je ne sais quoi en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /ˌʒə n(ə)sɛ ˈkwɑː/ emulating French
- /ˌʒə nə seɪ ˈkwɑ/ (US)
- /ˌʒə nə seɪ ˈkwɑː/ (UK)
Etymology
Borrowed from French je ne sais quoi (literally “I don't know what”).
Meanings
-
An indefinable quality that makes something distinctive or attractive.
"Say, you others, I find that the Englishman has something of truly distinguished in the voice, something of sympathetic, of touching—something of je ne sais quoi!" Bouchardy: "Yes, yes—something of je ne sais quoi! That's the very phrase— […]"
1894, George du Maurier, “Part Second”, in Trilby: A Novel, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, →OCLC, page 85:She has a certain je ne sais quoi about her.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| je ne sais quoi | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Translations (22)
es no sé qué (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · el πώς να σου το πω (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · pt não-sei-quê (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · nl ik-weet-niet-wat (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · nl je ne sais quoi (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · fr Dieu sait quoi (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · af ek weet nie wat nie (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · cs kdovíco (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · it non so che (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · de gewisse Etwas (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · gl aquel (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · ru э́такое (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · ca no-sé-què (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · fr je-ne-sais-quoi (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · fr je ne sais quoi (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · cs bůhvíco (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · fr on ne sait quoi (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · pt não-sei-o-quê (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · fi en-tiedä-mikä (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · cs cosi (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · el πώς να το πω (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive) · fi se jokin (indefinable quality that makes something distinctive)