Much like the seas incarnadine, the English language is multitudinous! We have so many words for various feelings and experiences, yet we’re missing some important ones. Luckily, many other languages have evocative words that perfectly describe common situations. Here’s a few I enjoyed!
Tartle (Scottish)
The moment of panic that happens when you can’t remember someone’s name when you’re about to introduce them.
Iktsuarpok (Inuit)
The feeling of expectation you feel when waiting for someone to arrive at your house, which makes you keep going outside to check if they’ve arrived.
Pelinti (Ghanaian)
To move hot food around in one’s mouth in an attempt to avoid burning oneself. Ouch!
Seigneur-terrace (French)
Someone who sits in a coffee shop for a long time without spending much money. I know I’m guilty of being a seigneur-terrace from time to time!
Koi no yokan (Japanese)
The sense you have when you first meet someone that the two of you are going to fall in love.
Age-otori (Japanese)
To look worse after a haircut. I feel like this happens to me nearly every time I get a haircut!
Fernweh (German)
A feeling of homesickness for somewhere you’ve never been.
Nunchi (Korean)
The art of listening to and understanding someone’s attitude, related to the concept of emotional intelligence. We should all aspire to practice the art of nunchi a bit more.
Zeg (Georgian)
The day after tomorrow. Much easier to clarify plans when you can say, “See you zeg!”
Verschlimmbesserung (German)
A supposed improvement that actually makes things worse. Why tell your friend “don’t fix what isn’t broken” when you can just say “avoid verschlimmbesserung”?
What are some of your favorite non-English words?
