Phrases in common use

Question

I am confused as to which phrases are acceptable in current lingo. For examples, "bartoter dans le marché boursier" for dabble in the stock market. Is this completely wrong? If so, why?

Is "faire les classes" wrong for learn the ropes?

The dictionary that I looked at used "examiner" for review; others used "revoir"

Finally, I am mystified as to why "une hypothèque" is not given as an option for mortgage. This is a word I heard most often when I lived in France.

Accepted Answer

Bonjour Vivienne,
1. The verb ‘barboter’ involves water or muddy water.
Les canards barbotent dans la marre = the ducks are dabbling in the pond
Les enfants barbotent dans la flaque d’eau = the children are splashing around the puddle
The only example I found where ‘barboter’ is used in a financial context is this very old fashioned expression meaning ‘stealing’:
Il a barboté de l’argent dans la caisse = he stole money from the cash box
2. ‘To learn the rope’ = ‘apprendre les ficelles du métier’ or ‘se familiariser avec les rouages’
3. ‘examiner’ / ‘revoir’ are not usually used in this sort of context or expressions:
J’examine un patient = I am examining a patient
J’examine la situation = I am looking into the situation
Je revoie mon texte = I am revising my text / I am going back over my text again
4. ‘Une hypothèque’ is not the same as what we commonly call ‘un prêt immobilier’. Sometimes, when you can’t pay your mortgage (mortgage = ‘un prêt immobilier’) for your home, you can ask for ‘une hypothèque’. This means that the bank becomes the sole owner of the house but you are allowed to stay in.
 
I hope this is helpful.
Bonne journée!

Answer

The "hypothèque" is explained a bit differently here:

https://www.french-property.com/guides/france/finance-taxation/mortgages/guarantees

But I suppose the main point is that French distinguishes between the loan and the guarantee, but in English we just use the word "mortgage" for both.

Answer

Agree with Céline re « barboter » - reputable references give the principal meaning as 'dabble' in relation to paddling/splashing (ducks/children) in water.

It seems (at least some) translation sites on-line have taken the 'dabble' part as in English "dabble in the market", and applied barboter to the « bourse », which is not a standard French expression as far as I can ascertain.