Why do I need to know se prendre un râteau?
Generally if you use this French expression, it's not a good sign.
What does it mean?
The expression se prendre un râteau, roughly pronounced suh prahndr unh rah-toh (listen here), literally translates to "to get hit by a rake".
But in reality it means to be rejected romantically or to get turned out. It is one of the most common French expressions for being rejected after expressing romantic interest.
The expression is most commonly used for romantic rejection, but it can also be used more broadly whenever you get turned down or ignored. For example, if you send an enquiry, apply for a job, or contact someone and never hear back, you might jokingly say je me suis pris un râteau. In other words, I got rejected or I got blanked.
The expression is believed to be relatively recent, becoming popular in the 1990s, although its exact origin remains uncertain. One theory links it to silent comedy films, where a classic gag involved a gardener stepping on a rake and getting smacked in the face by the handle - a fitting image for a painful and embarrassing setback.
Interestingly this gag has also made its way into English as a phrase, but with a different meaning - 'stepping on a rake' means making an easily avoidable mistake and failing to avoid an obvious pitfall. It's often used in politics.
Others suggest the French phrase may be related to the verb rater (to miss or to fail), while another theory contrasts the râteau (rake) with a pelle (shovel), implying that if you don't get the rake, you'll end up with the shovel.
The members of the Académie française, however, favour a different explanation. They point to the expression se prendre un rat (to take a rat), which appeared in the first edition of the Academy's dictionary in 1687. Originally used in military circles, it meant to miss one's target or to fail. How rat eventually became râteau remains a mystery...
Use it like this
Il lui a proposé un rendez-vous et il s'est pris un râteau. - He asked her out and got turned down.
Je me suis pris un énorme râteau hier soir. - I got badly rejected last night.
Tu ne risques rien, au pire tu te prendras un râteau. - You've got nothing to lose; worst case scenario? They say no.
Comments