The English Language is Not That Complete

The English Language is Not That Complete

English is the universal language, but that doesn't mean it can take over every dialect. There are actually some foreign words that Mr. Webster can't translate.

L'esprit d' escalier {French}

• the feeling you get after leaving a conversation, when you think of all the things you should have said. Translated, it means, "the spirit of the staircase."

Waldeinsamkeit {German}

• the feeling of being alone in the woods

Meraki {Greek}

• doing something with soul, creativity, or love

Forelsket {Norwegian}

• the euphoria you experience when you are first falling in love

Pochemuchka {Russian}

• a person who asks a lot of questions

Pena ajena {Mexican Spanish}

• the embarrassment you feel watching someone else's humiliation

Cualacino {Italian}

• the mark left on a table by a cold glass

Ilunga {Tshiluba, Congo}

• a person who is ready to forgive any abuse for the first time, to tolerate it a second time, but never a third time

Gigil {Filipino}

• the urge to pinch or squeeze (or bite) something (or someone) that is unbearably cute

Or sometimes, gigil is the way that someone act if he or she is angry.

Let Blair demonstrate this for you.

See, one word can convey different feelings. How should I know? I'm a Filipino. 

I am one of the few who falls in love with words, how they tangle with each other, how they plant emotions, how they ignite a thought, how they sound when placed side by side. I fell in love with English, yet it is as magical to explore other foreign languages. Latin intrigued me when I was younger. My mom always uses the word, nunca whenever she's mad at me. It means never. Never shall I dare speak back at her.

As I sleep, I carry on with me the beauty of language in my dreams.

*All pictures via Tumblr.