French word

cobaye

Pronunciation

IPA/kobaj/

Meaning

  • masculine nounguinea pig

Example

J'ai un cobaye.

I have a guinea pig.

Illustration for cobaye (guinea pig)

More examples

Il faut prendre soin d'un cobaye chaque jour.

You need to take care of a guinea pig every day.

Core concept

A small animal used to test something first, with its exposed role extending to people and products.

Common phrases

  • acheter un cobaye

    buy a guinea pig

  • prendre soin d'un cobaye

    take care of a guinea pig

Similar words

cochon d'Inde: A common name for a guinea pig.
souris: A small, tailed rodent often found outdoors or near homes.
hamster: A small rodent with cheek pouches, commonly kept as a pet.
rongeur: A group of mammals with large front teeth for gnawing.

Definition in French

Petit rongeur d'Amérique du Sud; par extension, personne ou objet servant à tester une méthode, un traitement ou un produit.

Word origin

French cobaye is a borrowing from Portuguese cobaia, an animal name ultimately derived from Quechua cuy.

Usage tips

  • The ending -aye in cobaye sounds like the vowel sequence in French aïe, not like two separate vowel sounds.

Other meanings

  • test subjectnoun

Related words

  • cobayerexperiment on ___verb

Word lists with this word