gué
ford (shallow river crossing)
noun GEH Rare
Origin: Old French gué, from Frankish *wad
Usage Note
Gué appears in the set phrase passer à gué, meaning to wade or ford a river. It is common in place names across France (e.g. Le Gué-de-la-Chaîne). The phrase tâter le gué figuratively means to test the waters before committing to something.
Examples
"Les soldats traversèrent la rivière à gué."
Natural Translation
The soldiers crossed the river at the ford.
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