French word

gomme

Pronunciation

IPA/gɔm/

Meaning

  • feminine nouneraser

Example

Prends une gomme et efface les erreurs.

Take an eraser and rub out the mistakes.

Illustration for gomme (eraser)

More examples

J'ai oublié ma gomme à la maison.

I forgot my eraser at home.

Core concept

A small rubber or plastic block rubbing pencil marks off paper.

Common phrases

  • acheter une gomme

    buy an eraser

  • une gomme blanche

    a white eraser

Similar words

chewing-gum: A soft confection chewed for its flavor or aroma.
effaceur: A tool used to rub writing off a whiteboard.
taille-crayon: A small tool for sharpening a pencil.
caoutchouc: An elastic material used to make rubber products.

Definition in French

Petit instrument, souvent fabriqué en caoutchouc ou en plastique, employé pour effacer des marques de crayon sur du papier.

Word origin

French gomme comes from Latin gummi, from Greek κόμμι, which first referred to resin or gum; the eraser sense developed with rubber.

Usage tips

  • Gomme is feminine, so the usual phrase is une gomme, as in Prends une gomme.

Other meanings

  • gumnoun
  • rubbernoun

Related words

Word lists with this word