niquer
/nike/
le (masc.) la (fem.)
Underline = a spelling pattern that usually signals that gender.
Forms
- present
- il nique
- past
- il a niqué
- perfect
- niqué
Meaning
-
to mess up, to ruin (vulgar slang)
-
Il a tout niqué en voulant réparer la machine.
He screwed everything up trying to fix the machine.
-
Fais attention, tu vas niquer le moteur si tu continues comme ça ! Ce genre d'erreur coûte cher à réparer.
Be careful, you're going to wreck the engine if you keep doing that! That kind of mistake is expensive to fix.
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Usage notes
Niquer is a crude, vulgar verb -- in its literal sense it's a coarse word for having sex, and in its figurative "to mess up/ruin" sense used in this entry it's still rude slang, common among young people but inappropriate in polite or professional settings. Milder alternatives: «rater», «gâcher», «bousiller» (also informal but less crude).
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