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Anonymous Posted 12 years ago
Vocabulary

Petrol rag night

Hi there!

I'm translating a book and found a passage that got me confused. A girl gives birth on the street "in a a sweltering petrol rag night" in Rio de Janeiro. She abandons the baby and "the pumps whirred and clicked indifferent to the horror". What does "petrol rag night" mean? Did the mother give birth in a petrol/gas station?

Thanks a bunch!

Nicole
  

Top answer

Anonymous What does "petrol rag night" mean? I have no idea - it is no expression that I am aware of. Perhaps it is an expression used locally.

— AlpheccaStars

  • Anonymous What does "petrol rag night" mean?
  • I have no idea - it is no expression that I am aware of.
  • Perhaps it is an expression used locally.
  • A petrol rag could mean that dirty rag that mechanics use to wipe the dip stick when they check the engine oil level in a car.
  • Anonymous Did the mother give birth in a petrol/gas station?
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2 Answers
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AnonymousWhat does "petrol rag night" mean?
I have no idea - it is no expression that I am aware of. Perhaps it is an expression used locally.
A petrol rag could mean that dirty rag that mechanics use to wipe the dip stick when they check the engine oil level in a car.
AnonymousDid the mother give birth in a petrol/gas station?
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on the street "in a a sweltering petrol rag night" in Rio de Janeiro.
Petrol rags can also be used to make Molotov cocktails for use in a street riot.

Or can be sniffed by drug addicts.

Your context should show if these kinds of meaning are possible.


the p
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