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sauterelle

grasshopper

noun soh-tuh-REHL Rare
Animals & Nature Insects

Origin: Old French sauterelle, from sauter (to jump)

Also means

locust

Usage Note

Sauterelle covers both the common grasshopper and, in biblical or African contexts, the locust (criquet is the more precise term for locust in modern usage). La Fontaine's fable 'La Cigale et la Fourmi' is often mistranslated — la cigale is a cicada, not a grasshopper. Sauter (to jump) is visible in the root.

Examples

"Une sauterelle a sauté dans l'herbe haute."

Natural Translation

A grasshopper jumped into the tall grass.

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