Quirky foreign words the English language is missing
Ever felt your waistband tighten after raiding the fridge at the end of an overly stressful day at work? That’ll be a case of ‘grief bacon’ (or kummerspeck), as the Germans call it.A specific feeling, situation or action may be perfectly summed up by a single phrase like this in one language, yet it can lack a direct equivalent in another.
This not only demonstrates the richness of language, but also how it is often necessary to ‘borrow’ from other tongues to find an expression which hits the nail on the head.
The exaggerated use of Anglicisms in other languages is often a point of contention, but what about those quirky foreign phrases that we could use in English?
Here are five examples:
1. Backpfeifengesicht (German) – a face that cries out for a fist
2. Espirit d’escalier (French) – when you think of that perfect verbal comeback…but far too late
3. Gigil (Tagalog) – that urge to pinch or squeeze something ridiculously cute
4. Cafune (Brazilian Portuguese) – the act of “tenderly running your fingers through your lover’s hair”…oh those Romantic Brazilians!
5. Bakku-shan (Japanese) – not so romantic. Meaning a beautiful girl… as long as she’s being viewed from behind!
For the full list, click here.