I love French. I studied it a bit at school and then had to stop because they canceled the class. ‘Tis a tremendous pity.
So anyway, I just came across these lovely French phrases that have no English equivalent:
The sensation of being in another country.
The heart-wrenching pain of wanting someone you can’t have.
To be unemployed, but because it’s a verb, it makes the state active.
To make the most of or take advantage of.
As defined in the book Elegant Wits and Grand Horizontals, it’s “the deliberately aimless pedestrian, unencumbered by any obligation or sense of urgency, who, being French and therefore frugal, wastes nothing, including his time which he spends with the leisurely discrimination of a gourmet, savoring the multiple flavors of his city.”
The literal translation is staircase wit, but it means to think of a comeback when it’s too late.
The happiness of meeting again after a long time.
An adjective for someone you can take anywhere without being embarrassed.
Voila/voici
It’s so necessary that we use it all the time. “Voila” literally means “there it is” and “voici means “here it is.”
Empêchement
An unexpected last-minute change of plans. A great excuse without having to be specific.
