damer

Damer has two common uses: literally, to compact and flatten snow (damer une piste de ski), and figuratively in the set expression damer le pion à quelqu'un — to outdo or get the better of someone, from the game of checkers where damer a piece means crowning it as a king.

• La dameuse dame la piste chaque nuit. — The snowcat grooms the slope every night.
• Elle a damé le pion à ses concurrents. — She got the better of her competitors.
• Il faut damer la neige avant l'ouverture des pistes. — The snow has to be groomed before the slopes open.

Damer le pion à quelqu'un means outmaneuvering a rival, not simply beating them at something by chance — it implies a clever, deliberate move, closer to "outsmarting" than "defeating."

• expression Damer le pion à quelqu'un — Common idiom meaning to outwit or get the better of a rival, derived from the game of checkers/draughts (jeu de dames), where 'damer' a piece means crowning it as a king with extended powers.