What does tâter in French mean?

What is the meaning of the word tâter in French? The article explains the full meaning, pronunciation along with bilingual examples and instructions on how to use tâter in French.

The word tâter in French means feel, try, hesitate, touch yourself, take 's pulse, check 's pulse, check to see what kind of shape is in, find out what kind of shape is in, see how the land lies. To learn more, please see the details below.

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Meaning of the word tâter

feel

verbe transitif (palper) (Medicine)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Le docteur tâtait mon ventre gonflé.
The doctor palpated my swollen stomach.

try

verbe transitif indirect (figuré, familier (essayer, recevoir)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Si tu continues à l'énerver de la sorte, tu pourrais tâter de son bâton.
If you keep making him angry like this, you'll feel the weight of his stick.

hesitate

verbe pronominal (figuré, familier (hésiter)

(intransitive verb: Verb not taking a direct object--for example, "She jokes." "He has arrived.")
Je me tâte à choisir cette solution.
I'm in two minds about picking this answer.

touch yourself

verbe pronominal (argot (se masturber) (masturbate)

(transitive verb and reflexive pronoun: Transitive verb with reflexive pronoun--for example, "Enjoy yourself." "They behaved themselves.")
Il se tâtait souvent pendant son adolescence.
He often used to touch himself as a teenager.

take 's pulse, check 's pulse

locution verbale (contrôler le pouls de [qqn]) (medical)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Le secouriste tâta le pouls du blessé pour voir si son cœur battait toujours.

check to see what kind of shape is in, find out what kind of shape is in

locution verbale (figuré, familier (évaluer, jauger) (figurative)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Le directeur tâta le pouls du projet.

see how the land lies

locution verbale (figuré (évaluer la situation) (colloquial)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Put out a few feelers before making a firm offer.

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French (le français) is a Romance language. Like Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish, it comes from popular Latin, once used in the Roman Empire. A French-speaking person or country can be called a "Francophone". French is the official language in 29 countries. French is the fourth most spoken native language in the European Union. French ranks third in the EU, after English and German, and is the second most widely taught language after English. The majority of the world's French-speaking population lives in Africa, with about 141 million Africans from 34 countries and territories who can speak French as a first or second language. French is the second most widely spoken language in Canada, after English, and both are official languages at the federal level. It is the first language of 9.5 million people or 29% and the second language of 2.07 million people or 6% of the entire population of Canada. In contrast to other continents, French has no popularity in Asia. Currently, no country in Asia recognizes French as an official language.