Untranslatable words from foreign languages that English desperately needs

English is a great language, spoken by millions of people worldwide, either as their native language or a close second. The speakers of English are more than happy to adopt words from other languages, and even to invent new ones. New words enter English dictionaries at a fast pace, keeping up with the diversity of all English speakers.

Other languages — French, Hindi, Gaelic — spot things that English just doesn't hit. 

But this language cannot overtake all the other languages on Earth. What follows is an impressive list of words from other languages that are simply untranslatable into English:

Abbiocco	Italian	Everyone has succumbed to drowsiness after a meal at one time or another, but only the Italians have enshrined the phenomenon in a single word. When you wish you could take a nap after lunch, you’re “having the abbiocco” (avere l’abbiocco).
Abseilen	German	To lower on a rope
Age-otori	Japanese	To look worse after a haircut.
Aiteall	Irish	A Break Between Rain Showers. From Redditor u/Darth_Bfheidir:iteall; the bit of nice weather you get between two short showers of rain
Anteayer	Spanish	A one-word way of saying the day before yesterday or a shorter version of ‘antes de ayer’.
Anzi	Italian	'To The Contrary' But So Much More. "Anzi" would be my top Italian word. Such a pain to translate, so much meaning in just 4 letters. Context: Anzi can roughly be translated as “to the contrary,” but its uses in Italian are many and varied.
Apericena	Italian	Pre-dinner drinks accompanied by free food.
Arbejdsglæde	Danish	Literally work happiness, the feeling of happiness provoked by a satisfying job.
Arigata-meiwaku	Japanese	An act someone does for you that you didn’t want to have them do and tried to avoid having them do, but they went ahead anyway, determined to do you a favor, and then things went wrong and caused you a lot of trouble, yet in the end social conventions required you to express gratitude.
Aşermek	Turkish	The experience of craving certain foods while pregnant.
Atolondrar	Spanish	To be so overwhelmed by something that it causes you to become scatter-brained and careless. For example, if you were multi-tasking so heavily at work that you forgot to send an important e-mail.
Aware	Japanese	The bittersweetness of a brief and fading moment of transcendent beauty.
Ayurnamat	Inuit	The philosophy that there is no need or reason to worry about that which you cannot change. Basically, Hakuna Matata.
Backpfeifengesicht	German	A face badly in need of a fist.
Badkruka	Swedish	Somebody reluctant to go into a body of water while swimming outdoors.
Bakku-shan	Japanese	The experience of seeing a woman who appears pretty from behind but not from the front.
Bérézina	French	More than a serious failure, a defeat.
Bescherung	German	The handing out of presents at Christmas
Beżżul	Maltese	Somebody who is cursed with unrelentless bad luck. This is similar to the Yiddish words ‘Schlimazl’ and ‘Schlemiel’.
Bilita Mpash	Bantu	An amazing dream. Not just a "good" dream; the opposite of a nightmare.
Blaumachen	German	This is a word used to describe feeling horribly unmotivated the moment you wake up in the morning. Blaumachen, "to make blue," is believed to originate from the expression Blauer Montag or "Blue Monday," which was used to describe the day craftsmen had to wait around for their fabrics to dry after being dyed indigo. Therefore, Mondays were deemed as rather unproductive days.
Boh	Italian	“I don’t know”. Used to express uncertainty/doubt.
Boketto	Japanese	It’s nice to know that the Japanese think enough of the act of gazing vacantly into the distance without thinking to give it a name.
Bricoleur	French	A bricoleur is a handyman who makes use of whatever materials are available to him to create a construction (or bricolage). Perhaps the closest equivalent in English would be something like a DIYer, although this doesn’t quite convey the meaning of using a variety of available materials to create one unified thing, like taking the old wood in your shed to create a nice bookshelf.
Buksvåger	Swedish	What you call someone who has had sex with someone you’ve already had sex with.
Cafuné	Brazilian Portuguese	Leave it to the Brazilians to come up with a word for “tenderly running your fingers through your lover’s hair.”
Cavoli Riscaldati	Italian	The result of attempting to revive an unworkable relationship. Translates to "reheated cabbage."
Çekoslovakyalılaştıra madıklarımızdanmışsınız	Turkish	With the breakup of Czechslovakia, Turks found themselves faced with the prospect of a fantastically long new word, which means “you are reportedly one of those that we could not make Czechoslovakian”. Not something we have a ready equivalent for in English. But once again, this feat is achieved by sleight of grammar. Turkish is an agglutinativelanguage, in which the various parts of speech, tense and case markers are run together. It’s not really a word, but a sentence.
Chai-Pani	Hindi	Money given to someone, often a bureaucratic worker, to get things done.
Chez	French	This is another classic French word that you probably are familiar with. But it’s such a useful and versatile word. Not only can chez mean that you are at a particular location (chez moi) but it can also indicate the particular state of mind of a person or group of people (chez les français — “among the French”) or to speak about an artist’s body of work (chez Molière).
Chindogu	Japanese	A solution to a common problem that’s pretty useless otherwise.
Chingada	Spanish	A hellish, imaginary, faraway place where you send all those who annoy you.
Clagarnach	Irish	The Sound Of Rain On A Rooftop. Clagarnach: the sound of heavy rainfall on a roof
Commuovere	Italian	Often taken to mean “heartwarming,” but directly refers to a story that moved you to tears.
Cotisuelto	Caribbean Spanish	A word that would aptly describe the prevailing fashion trend among American men under 40, it means one who wears the shirt tail outside of his trousers.
Craic	Irish	No one in Ireland can really define craic, but everybody knows that it means. If you've ever belted out songs while arm-in-arm with a few of the lads and a few more pints of Guinness, you'll know it too.
Cúbóg	Irish	A collective noun for Easter eggs.
Culaccino	Italian	The mark left on a table by a cold glass.
Da brat’ mir doch einer ‘nen Storch!	German	Common saying - A way to express surprise in a very amusing way. It literally means something along the lines of “Now fry me a stork!”
Da net, navernoe	Russian	‘Da’ means ‘yes’. ‘Net’ means ‘no’. ‘Navernoe’ means ‘maybe’. Therefore, the phrase literally means “Yes, no, maybe”, but is used to mean “rather, no,” or, to a Russian mentality, it is “no” communicated hesitantly.
Dapjeongneo	Korean	When somebody has already decided the answer they want to hear after asking a question, and are waiting for you to say that exact answer.
Davka	Hebrew	1. Done on purpose/done in spite. Example: “Jon pushed that kid davka.” (This means he did it on purpose, not by mistake). 2. On the contrary/actually. Example: “I thought you didn’t like basketball.” “What do you mean? I davka ADORE basketball.”
Dépaysé	French	Far From Home And Disoriented, literally: "decountrysed". When you're abroad, or in a new place, and you feel like this is something completely unfamiliar and new.
Dépaysement	French	The unsteady feeling you get when you are away from your home country or away from your origin in geThis interesting word can mean anything from disorientation to culture shock. The word is formed from the word pays or “country” and would literally mean something like “to be uncountried”. Dépaysement is the feeling one gets of not being in one’s own country, of being a foreigner.
Desenrascanço	Portuguese	The ability to quickly improvise a solution. Desenrascanço is the M.O. of any high-functioning procrastinator. Not only does it mean to solve a problem or complete a task, it means doing so with a completely improvised solution. TV’s MacGyver utilized this skill every time he averted disaster with nothing but a bent paper clip and a chewing gum wrapper.
Desvelado	Spanish	Being unable to sleep or to be sleep deprived.
Doch	German	This word negates a previous negation of a statement, or the disagreement to the negative of an assumption.
Dolilyts	Ukranian	To lie with your face turned down to the ground.
Donaldkacsázás	Hungarian	Quite literally, ‘Donald Ducking’ – i.e. Wearing a shirt but no trousers or underpants inside your house.
Dor	Romanian	Dor is the longing for someone you love very much, combined with sadness, and implies the need to sing sad songs; its etymology relates it to “dorinta” which means wish.
Dozywocie	Polish	Parental contract with children guaranteeing lifelong support.
Drachenfutter	German	A drachenfutter (it translates as ‘dragonfeed’, people!) is the gift you buy them once you are well and truly in the dog house.
Duende	Spanish	Picasso. Dali. Goya. El Greco. Spaniards don't just paint. They paint hard. Correspondingly, Spanish has a word for the stirring you feel in your soul when gazing into a great work of art — duende.
Embasan	Philippines	To wear clothes while taking a bath.
Empalagarse	Spanish	Being overcome by sweetness to the point of nausea – so much that you find yourself needing to drink water or eat something salty to take away the sweetness.
Encandilar	Spanish	To see spots/to be blinded by a flash of bright light.
Eomchina	Korean	A hilarious Korean word that is a contraction of the phrase “Mom’s friend’s son”. Korean mothers are often very competitive and compare their children against the offspring of their friends. This word is used to describe a person who is more successful or skilled than you – the kind of person your mother would compare you to in a negative light so as to motivate you to study harder.
Épater	French	Not to bring up Baudelaire again, but among the French decadent poets of the 19th century, they used the following rallying cry: épater la bourgeoisie! This literally means, “shock the middle class”. But épater also means to wow, to stun, to amaze, and to impress — it packs quite a bit of punch!
Erbsenzähler	German	Anyone who is obsessed with details and a bit of a control freak would be referred to as an Erbsenzähler by Germans. The word Erbsen means "peas" and Zähler means "tally." Therefore, an Erbsenzähler literally describes a person who counts their peas.
Erklärungsnot	German	The state of having to quickly explain yourself.
Erotas	Greek	Specifically Romantic Love. Erotas - The feeling of being in love, which is different from "agapi" (love). I wish English had different words for it cause you don't love a romantic partner the same way you love your family.
Eselsbrücke	German	A little trick that helps you to remember something is called an Eselsbrücke, which literally means "donkey bridge." Why donkey bridge? Because when donkeys transported goods, people built bridges across rivers to help cut the distance between destinations. These donkey bridges were shortcuts just like a mnemonic device is a shortcut to memorizing something.
Estrenar	Spanish	To wear or use something for the first time.
Extrawurnsch	German	Used to call someone who is slowing things down by being fussy.
Faamiti	Samoan	To make a squeaking sound by sucking air past the lips in order to gain the attention of a dog or child.
Fachidiot	German	Someone who knows a great deal about a very narrow subject.
Fahrvergnügen	German	The love of simply driving.
Fare la scarpetta	Italian	to mop the sauce or whatever’s left on your plate with a piece of bread.
Fargin	Yiddish	To wholeheartedly appreciate the success of others.
Faule Socke	German	Someone who has no drive or ambition is referred to as a ‘lazy sock’ in German, which, I’m sorry, is just plain genius. What could be more insulting than being called a lazy sock?
Feierabend	German	The Time Between Coming Home From Work And Bedtime. German: “Feierabend” - The time between work and going to bed. The rest of the day when there is no (more) work to be done.
Fensterln	German	When you have to climb through someone’s window in order to have sex with them without their parents knowing about it.
Fernweh	German	Feeling homesick for a place you have never been to.
Fika	Swedish	Americans eat lunch at their desks and have coffee breaks while walking to the next meeting. The Swedish, those livers of the good life, know how to break. The fika, which happens about twice is a day, is when you grab coffee, a pastry, and a conversation. No devices involved.
Filotimo	Greek	A friend of honour, but it also implies dignity, pride, sacrifice and respect.
Fingerspitzengefühl	German	Literally, ‘fingertips feeling’; used to refer to situational awareness, and the ability to react appropriately to a given situation.
Firgun	Hebrew	Firgun is a modern, informal Hebrew term and concept in Israeli culture that describes a generosity of spirit and the unselfish joy that something good has happened or might happen to someone else. Another possible definition describes firgun as a genuine, unselfish feeling of delight or pride in someone else's accomplishment. The infinitive verb form of the word, lefargen, means to make someone feel good without any ulterior motives.
Fisselig	German	Being flustered to the point of incompetence. It's most often used in reference to a nagging wife or a micro-managing boss, but it seems to be applicable for newborns who won't go to sleep in the wee hours of the morning.
Fjellvant	Norwegian	Being accustomed to walk in the mountains.
Flâner	French	Perhaps one of the most Parisian of all French words, the verb "flâner" was defined in the 19th century by the Paris literary crowd. It refers to the art of leisurely strolling the streets of Paris without any goal or destination simply for the pleasure of soaking up the city's beauty. These aimless pedestrians are known as "flâneurs."
Foozle	Scandinavian-American	The small pieces of lint or hair that stick to clothing or other fabric. As in, ” here, let me get that foozle off your shirt.”
Forelsket	Norwegian	The euphoria you experience when you are first falling in love.
Formacja	Polish	A state of mind and its own culture of a generation.
Fremdschämen	German	The kinder, gentler cousins of Schadenfreude, both these words mean something akin to "vicarious embarrassment.”
Fremdschämen	German	Embarrassment By Proxy. "Fremdschämen" - to feel embarrassed when we see someone else doing something embarrassing
Friolero	Spanish	A person who is especially sensitive to cold water and temperatures.
Frühjahrsmüdigkeit	German	This 18-letter word is used to describe a general sense of weariness in the springtime, specifically between mid-March through mid-April. In German, the word Frühjahr means "springtime," and Müdigkeit means "tiredness." Conjoined, Frühjahrsmüdigkeit is "springtime lethargy."
Gattara	Italian	A woman, often old and lonely, who devotes herself to stray cats.
Geborgenheit	German	Was selected as the most beautiful word in German a few years ago. The meaning is a feeling of being wrapped in comfort, protection, security, satisfaction and pleasure. Imagine the feeling you had in your mom’s tummy.
Geisterfahrer	German	Ghost driver. this is someone who is driving in the oncoming side on the Autobahn, presumably to commit suicide.
Gemütlichkeit	German	Describing a feeling of togetherness and warmth while drinking. When welcome, comfort, and joy all come together, you've got Gemütlichkeit. "A soft chair in a coffee shop might be considered 'cosy,'" explains a German language blog. "But sit in that chair surrounded by close friends and a hot cup of tea, while soft music plays in the background, and that sort of scene is what you’d call gemütlich."
Genki	Japanese	Describes a state of general well-being..healthy, lively, happy etc.
Gezellig	Dutch	Cozy, quaint or nice, but can also represent time spent with loved ones and general togetherness.
Gezellig	Dutch	Literally 'Cozy,' But With Infinite Shades Of Meaning. "gezellig" [is] one of the most used words of the Dutch language and absolutely not translatable. Context: Gezellig literally means “cozy” or “quaint,” but its usage in Dutch goes far beyond that, encompassing ideas of family togetherness, time comfortably spent, etc.
Gezelligheid	Dutch	This Dutch word can be associated with the Danish concept of hyggelig and the German concept of gemütlichkeit, although its definition depends on the context. Gezelligheid refers to a convivial, cozy, or warm atmosphere, but can also refer to the warmth of being with loved ones, the feeling of seeing a friend after a long absence, or a general togetherness that provides a feeling of warmth. Many consider it the word that most closely encompasses the heart of Dutch culture.
Gigil	Filipino	The overwhelming urge to squeeze or pinch something unbearably cute.
Gökotta	Swedish	To wake up early in the morning with the purpose of going outside to hear the first birds sing.
Gotterdammerung	German	Complete destruction of an institution, regime, order, etc.
Goya	Urdu	Goya is an Urdu word that refers to the transporting suspension of disbelief that happens when fantasy is so realistic that it temporarily becomes reality. It is usually associated with good, powerful storytelling.
Greng-jai	Thai	That feeling you get when you don't want someone to do something for you because it would be a pain for them.
Greng-Jai	Thai	That feeling you get when you don't want someone to do something for you because it would be a pain for them.
Gretchenfrage	German	A question asked for the purpose of finding out someone’s real intentions. First dates are overflowing with Gretchenfrages.
Handschuhschneeballwerfer	German	A coward willing to criticize and abuse from a safe distance. A bit of a mouthful, this one translates to ‘gloves snow wearer’ and refers to someone who wears their gloves in a snowball fight. Also known as ‘a massive pussy’ or a coward who criticises from a safe distance.
Hanyauku	Rukwangali (Namibia)	The act of walking on tiptoes across warm sand.
Hapukurgihooaeg	Estonian	A Time For Pointless Busywork. In Estonian hapukurgihooaeg, which literally means pickle season. It refers to a period of time where someone has nothing to do and therefore starts making up silly things that nobody needs. Also used in journalism when journalists have nothing special to write about.
Házisárkány	Hungarian	Literally indoor dragon, a nagging restless spouse.
Hiraeth	Welsh	Hiraeth is a Welsh word that refers to homesickness mixed with grief and sadness over the lost or departed, or a type of longing for the homeland or the romanticized past. It represents a mixture of longing, nostalgia, wistfulness and yearning. The concept of hiraeth is considerably similar to the Portuguese saudade mentioned earlier, the Romanian dor, and the Ethiopian tizita.
Hiraeth	Welsh	A longing for your homeland (as opposed to your home) whilst absent.
Holopos kuntul baris	Indonesian	A phrase uttered in order to gain extra strength when carry heavy objects, and is meant for a person who is lifting solo.
Honigkuchenpferd	German	By dissecting this word, you have "horse-shaped honey cake," but it really means to have a giant dorky grin on your face. If your mom embarrasses you in front of your friends, you're probably going to have a honigkuchenpferd-looking smile. German dictionaries translate this word as the action of "grinning like a Cheshire cat" given the wide-sweeping smile from the Cheshire cat in "Alice and Wonderland."
Hyggelig	Danish	Do you ever wish there was one word to combine everything snuggly, safe, friendly and caring? The Danes have you covered with hyggelig. The word is used so often in daily life that many Danes consider it part of the national character. This Danish word refers to a warm, friendly, cozy, delightfully intimate moment or thing. It gives off imagery of a candlelit winter evening at home with warm blankets and maybe a bit of alcohol. While there are similar words in German (gemütlichkeit), Swedish (gemytlig) and Norwegian (hyggelig), there is no direct translation in English.
Ikigai	Japanese	A reason to get up in the morning, a reason to live.
Iktsuarpok	Inuit	Iktsuarpok refers to the feeling of anticipation when you're expecting someone that leads you to constantly check to see if they're coming. It's the impatient excitement for a visit that makes you look out the window countless times in hope of seeing your guest arrive.
Iktsuarpok	Inuit	The anticipation you feel when you’re waiting for someone to show up at your house.
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.
Inuuqatigiittiarniq	Inuit	Being respectful of all people.
Jaksaa	Finnish	A lack of enthusiasm to do something.
Jayus	Indonesian	A joke so poor and unfunny that one cannot help but laugh.
Jijivisha	Hindi	The Hindi word jijivisha refers to the strong, eternal desire to live and to continue living. It is usually used to talk about a person who loves life and always has intense emotions and desires to live and thrive.
Kaapshljmurslis	Lithuanian	Being cramped in public transportation during rush hour.
Kaelling	Danish	You know that woman who stands on her doorstep (or in line at the supermarket, or at the park, or in a restaurant) cursing at her children? The Danes know her, too.
Kaelling	Danish	You know that woman who stands on her doorstep (or in line at the supermarket, or at the park, or in a restaurant) cursing at her children? The Danes know her, too.
Karelu	Tulu Indian	The mark left on the skin by wearing something tight.
Kiasu	Singapore	Someone willing to go to any lengths to be first in the queue, get the best bargain, outdo everyone and anyone etc.
Kilig	Tagalog	The Tagalog noun kilig is often used in the Philippine culture to refer to the thrilling feeling of butterflies in your stomach that you typically feel when something romantic happens. When used as an adjective, it refers to the exhilaration a person feels during an exciting or romantic experience, such as catching your crushes' eye for the first time or watching a marriage proposal.
Kilig	Tagalog	The stupid-silly rush you feel immediately after something good happens, especially when it comes to love (like after accidentally bumping into your crush.)
Kilkanaście	Polish	A Number Greater Than 10 But Less Than 20. I think that kilkanaście is a very useful word that's used commonly in Polish language while it exist only in Polish and other Slavic languages. English doesn't have something like that. Kilkanaście means "some" but only between 11 and 19. "Several" is not enough, "a dozen or so" is around 12, and "many" doesn't really say anything, because "many" is different for everyone.
Kjæreste	Norwegian	A gender neutral term for girlfriend or boyfriend. It literally translates as “dearest”, and can be used in similar constructions (for example, “kjæreste minne” means “dearest memory”).
Koi no yokan	Japanese	The feeling of knowing that you will soon fall in love with the person you have just met.
Koi No Yokan	Japanese	It’s not quite love at first sight, but koi no yokan is nevertheless the feeling you get upon meeting someone that love will happen for the two of you, in time.
Kombinować	Polish	Clever, Unorthodox Work-Around. This is difficult to explain, but basically means to handle problems or situations with a clever, kinda tricky workaround solution. If your government closes your gym but you turn it into a church and a shop that allows customers to test their equipment, you are doing the art of kombinowanie perfectly. If you want to succeed in Poland, you will have to learn how to kombinować well. Edit: Also, it's not always necessarily a positive word as sometimes it refers to avoiding taxes.
Komorebi	Japanese	Komorebi is a Japanese word that refers to the sunlight that filters through the leaves of trees. The word is made up of three kanji and the hiragana particle れ. The first kanji means "tree" or "trees," the second kanji refers to "escape," and the third kanji means "light" or "sun."
Kuidaore	Japanese	To eat yourself into bankruptcy.
Kummerspeck	German	Literally grief bacon, the binge eating or the excess weight gained from emotional over-eating that follows an emotional blow.
Kyoikumama	Japanese	Mother who pushes her children into academic achievements.
L’appel du vide	French	“The call of the void” is this French expression’s literal translation, but more significantly it’s used to describe the instinctive urge to jump from high places.
L’esprit de l’escalier	French	Ever have a zinger come to mind five minutes after getting into a spat with somebody? The French, of course, have a phrase for it: L'esprit de l'escalier, the wit of the staircase.
La douleur exquise	French	Literally ‘the exquisite agony’, this is used to refer to the pain of unrequited love.
Lagom	Swedish	Maybe Goldilocks was Swedish? This slippery little word is hard to define, but means something like, “Not too much, and not too little, but juuuuust right.”
Laotong	Chinese	A friendship bonding two girls together for eternity as kindred sisters.
Layogenic	Tagalog	Remember in Clueless when Cher describes someone as “a full-on Monet…from far away, it’s OK, but up close it’s a big old mess”? That’s exactly what this word means.
Layogenic	Tagalog	Remember in Clueless when Cher describes someone as “a full-on Monet…from far away, it’s OK, but up close it’s a big old mess”? That’s exactly what this word means; when someone looks attractive from far away, but, oh, they’re getting closer, oh, never mind.
Lebenskunstler	German	Something like "someone for whom life is an art form"
Lebensmüde	German	Weary of life.
Lebenswelt	German	All the events and experiences, thoughts and so on which make up an individual. Think of it as a kind of giant bag fill with all the goo that is essentially you. Can also be the particular social and historical situation in which an individual is immersed.
Leiliviskaja	Estonian	The person who makes steam in a sauna by throwing water on the hot rocks.
Leise	German	Opposite of “loud”. “Soft” or “quiet” are not complete equivalents, because they have the connotations of “not hard” or “not restless”.
Lieko	Finnish	A trunk of tree that has submerged to the bottom of a lake.
Lihai	Mandarin Chinese	"Lihai" isn't a value judgment. It's doesn't say whether something is good or bad, but that whatever you're describing is powerful. A storm that tears down trees is lihai, a teacher that demands the most out of students is lihai, and a spicy soup is lihai. Lions are lihai; pandas are not.
Listopad	Russian	The falling of the leaves.
Litost	Czech	A state of anxiety and torment created by the sudden sight of one’s own misery.
Lønningspils	Norwegian	First Beer After Getting Paid. Lønningspils - beer that you have after monthly payment
Luftmensch	Yiddish	Have a friend who's endlessly abstract? Who can't stop staring out of windows, up into the sky or stars? Bumps into things because they're always in their head? That person is a luftmensch, a German by way of Yiddish word directly translating as air person.
Luftschloss	German	The word luft in this context means "sky" and schloss means "castle," coming together to create "castle in the sky." The expression is used to describe someone's unrealistic dream.
Madrugada	Spanish	The time of day occurring between past midnight and early morning.
Magari	Italian	Maybe / If only / I wish / I desire that
Mamihlapinatapai	Yaghan - Tierra del Fuego	This word captures that special look shared between two people, when both are wishing that the other would do something that they both want, but neither want to do.
Mångata	Swedish	This beautiful Swedish word refers to the road-like reflection of the moon on the water. It's the long, wavy shape that appears across the water when the moon is shining on it. It is made up of the prefixes "Måne" meaning moon, and "gata" meaning street/road. For this reason,  it is sometimes indirectly translated as "moon-path," "moon-river," "moon-track," or "moon-wake."
Manja	Malay	Gooey, childlike, and coquettish behaviour by women designed to elicit sympathy or pampering by men.
Mencolek	Indonesian	You know that old trick where you tap someone lightly on the opposite shoulder from behind to fool them? The Indonesians have a word for it.
Merak	Serbian	The Serbian word merak is a wonderful little word that refers to a feeling of bliss and the sense of oneness with the universe that comes from the simplest of pleasures. It is the pursuit of small, daily pleasures that all add up to a great sense of happiness and fulfillment.
Meraki	Greek	To do something with soul, creativity or love; when you leave a piece of yourself in your work.
Meriggiare	Italian	To escape the heat of the midday sun by resting in the shade.
Mitdenken	German	To “think along”. To anticipate the actions and needs of the people around you, assist accordingly, and also avoid obstructing them. To act in a way that maximizes the efficiency of everyone’s work all around you. Its a state of mind. A way you live your life.
Mokita	Kivila	The truth everyone knows but agrees not to talk about.
Morfar' And 'Farfar	Swedish	Maternal And Paternal Grandfather. I'm quite partial to how Swedish handles describing relatives. Morfar = maternal grandfather, farfar = paternal grandfather. Morbror = uncle on the mother's side, farbror = uncle on the father's side, etc etc. Simple, straightforward and logical.
Myötähäpeä	Finnish	a shared sense of shame
Nahat	Hebrew	Contentment/satisfaction at someone's successes
Natsukashii	Japanese	Describing something which brings back nostalgic memories or takes them back in time.
Naz	Urdu	The pride or confidence derived from knowing that somebody holds you as the object of their affection and desire.
Nekama	Japanese	A man who pretends to be a woman on the internet.
Nivroku	Ukrainian	Not bad, suitable, right, good, appropriate. Used to express the wish not to bring unhappiness, especially via the evil eye.
Notgeil	German	This one translates to ’emergency horny’ and is used to describe the urgency when one becomes aroused and feels the need to do something about it immediately. So basically the feeling you get before a quickie. It’s efficient with just two syllables and by definition.
Nővér' And 'Báty	Hungarian	Older Siblings. Honestly, [separate] words for older and younger siblings. Nővér and báty are older sister and brother and húg and öcs are younger sister and brother.
Nunchi	Korean	The ability to gauge mood of others, read the atmosphere, and react appropriately.
Odnoliub	Russian	Someone who has only one love in his or her life, or someone who is capable of loving only one at a time.
Onsra	Boro Language Of India	That bittersweet feeling of loving for the last time — in other words, that feeling you get when you know a love won’t last.
Oodal	Tamil	The overly exaggerated, fake anger that follows a lovers’ quarrel.
Oodal	Tamil	The fake-sulking you do after getting into a lovers’ tiff, usually over something inconsequential. Also see: crocodile tears.
Oohrwurm	German	A little animal (which is a symbol for a song) being in your ear and you aren't able to get rid of it. English now has Ear Worm.
Otsukaresama	Japanese	"You're tired", and is used to let someone know that you appreciate their hard work.
Paasa	Cebuano Dialect	“A person who leads someone on (intentionally or not). Appearing as if they are genuinely interested romantically when they aren’t.”
Packesel	German	The packesel is the person who’s stuck carrying everyone else’s bags on a trip. Literally, a burro.
Padkos	Afrikaans	Food taken with you while traveling/going on a trip. Literally means “road-food”.
Pålegg	Norwegian	Sandwich Artists unite! The Norwegians have a non-specific descriptor for anything – ham, cheese, jam, Nutella, mustard, herring, pickles, Doritos, you name it – you might consider putting into a sandwich.
Pålegg	Norweigian	Sandwich Artists unite! The Norwegians have a non-specific descriptor for anything – ham, cheese, jam, Nutella, mustard, herring, pickles, Doritos, you name it – you might consider putting into a sandwich.
Pana Po’o	Hawaiian	“Hmm, now where did I leave those keys?” he said, pana po’oing. It means to scratch your head in order to help you remember something you’ve forgotten.
Pantoffelheld	German	A man who may act tough in front of his friends but can't stand up for himself against his wife is what Germans call a Pantoffelheld or a "slipper hero." The first part of the word, Pantoffel means "slipper" and the latter, Held means "hero." The closest English reference would be someone who is "whipped" by their overbearing partner.
Papakata	Maori (Cook Islands)	To have one leg shorter than the other.
Parea	Greek	A group of friends that get together to enjoy nothing else but sharing their life experiences, their philosophies, values and ideas
Pelinti	Buli, Ghana	Your friend bites into a piece of piping hot pizza, then opens his mouth and sort of tilts his head around while making an “aaaarrrahh” noise. The Ghanaians have a word for that. More specifically, it means “to move hot food around in your mouth.”
Pelinti	Buli, Ghana	Your friend bites into a piece of piping hot pizza, then opens his mouth and sort of tilts his head around while making an “aaaarrrahh” noise. The Ghanaians have a word for that. More specifically, it means “to move hot food around in your mouth.”
Pena ajena	Spanish	[Mexico] The embarrassment you feel watching someone else’s humiliation.
Pisan Zapra	Malay	The time needed to eat a banana.
Pochemuchkas	Russian	A person who asks too many questions
Półtorej	Polish	One And A Half. Półtorej (or półtora, still not sure which one is correct) - one and a half. Sometimes I forget that word[s] like this doesn't exist in the English language, which causes my mind to try to remember a non-existent word
Prozvonit	Czech	To call a mobile phone only to have it ring once so that the other person would call back, allowing the caller not to spend money on minutes
Psithurism	Greek	The sound of leaves rustling in the wind.
Queesting	Dutch	A whole verb dedicated to inviting a lover into your bed for some pillow talk.
Raabta	Hindi	In American English we may "vibe" with someone. But in Hindi, there's a much more elegant word: raabta. It speaks of a soul-level connection. Appropriately enough, it's also the title of a Bollywood banger.
Radioukacz	Polish	Telegraphist for the resistance movements on the Soviet side of the Iron Curtain.
Razbliuto	Russian	The feeling a person has for someone he or she once loved but now does not.
Razbliuto	Russian	The (usually sentimental) feeling you have toward someone you used to loved but no longer do.
Ré nao (热闹)	Chinese	The Chinese word ré nao is usually translated as "lively" or "bustling," but its true meaning goes beyond these adjectives. A place or situation that is ré nao is not only fun and lively, but also has a special vibe that makes everyone want to be there. A lively, special bar or club may be ré nao, but so might a university class or meeting with friends.
Repelar	Spanish	Getting Every Last Bit Of Food With Your Spoon. repelar or rebañar (depends where you are from) which is when you are eating a yogurt for example and you try to get all of its content with your spoon. It’s something a lot of grandmas and mums tell us so we don’t waste any food
Resferber	Swedish	The restless race of a traveller’s heart before the journey begins, when anxiety and anticipation are mixed together.
Retrouvailles	French	I love this word. Literally meaning something like “refindings”, this word refers to the reunion you would have with someone you care deeply for but whom you have not seen in a long time. The English word “reunion” just doesn’t do this word justice.
Retrouvailles	French	Retrouvailles, or “rediscovery,” refers to the happiness you feel upon reuniting with someone after you’ve been apart for a long time.
Rhwe	Tsonga, South Africa	College kids, relax. There’s actually a word for “to sleep on the floor without a mat, while drunk and naked.”
Rire dans sa barbe	French	To laugh in your beard quietly while thinking about something that happened in the past.
S’encoubler	French	[Switzerland] Losing balance or falling because you got entangled in something, like a cable.
Sankocha	Kannada	The feeling of embarrassment due to receiving an inordinately and perhaps inappropriately large or extravagant gift or favor, that makes you feel obliged to return the favor when you can’t. Example: Coming over only to chat, and being made to stay for tea and then dinner.
Saudade	Portuguese	If anybody knows about longing, it's sailors. So it's natural that one of the world's greatest seafaring tongues, Portuguese, has a word for missing your home, your love, and your life that no word in English can touch: Saudade. Centuries of men dying on their way toward Africa, Asia, and the New World left the culture with a sense of longing that English can't touch. A melancholic nostalgia for someone or something from the past.
Sauregurkenzeit	German	A typical German vacation, which can last anywhere from 3-6 weeks in July through August, is referred to as the Sauregurkenzeit. This literally translates to "pickle time," possibly because cucumbers come into season in the summer. This is the "off-season" where there is nothing happening because everyone is away. Washington, D.C. experiences a Sauregurkenzeit during Congress' 5-week summer recess.
Savoir-Faire	French	This word is, of course, ubiquitous in English. In French, it is similar to “know-how”, or how to solve certain practical problems. Once adopted into the English language, however, this French word took on a different meaning: knowing how to act appropriately in social situations.
Scarpetta	Italian	Scooping Up Leftover Sauce On A Plate. Scarpetta - dipping bread in plate to finish wip[ing] up the sauce to eat it. Context: When the sauce is too good to waste, grab the nearest piece of bread - heck, even a crust - and sop up that deliciousness! Scarpetta means “little shoe” in Italian, and shoes, just like little bread pieces, are good at scraping up what's under them.
Schadenfreude	German	Enjoyment obtained from the misery of others.
Schilderwald	German	A street crowded with so many road signs that you become lost.
Schlemiel and schlimazel	Yiddish	Someone prone to bad luck. Yiddish distinguishes between the schlemiel and schlimazel, whose fates would probably be grouped under those of the klutz in other languages. The schlemiel is the traditional maladroit, who spills his coffee; the schlimazel is the one on whom it's spilled.
Schlimmbesserung	German	An "improvement" that actually makes things worse
Schnapsidee	German	or a schnapps idea, is that drunk decision to go skinny dipping in the community pool, or the decision to go try and play the guitar after having a few too many cold ones. Schnapsideen are the dumb decisions you make while drunk. “An ingenious plan one hatches while drunk.”
Schotter	German	As distinct from Kiesel: in english “gravel”, schotter is crushed gravel like that used in road construction. Kiesel is gravel composed of of natural smooth rocks.
Sehnsucht(-üchtig)	German	It is a kind of longing for something you may or may not have in the future. It's somewhat similar to the Portuguese word Saudades.
Seigneur-terraces	French	Coffee shop dwellers who sit at tables a long time but spend little money.
Sentak Bangun	Indonesian	To wake up with a start - when you dream that you’re falling and wake up suddenly,
Sesselpupser	German	This word is reserved for those who sit around all day doing nothing, a little bit like a lazy sock, only this one is known as a ‘chair farter’. It’s pretty self explanatory from there.
Sgriob	Gaelic	The itchiness that overcomes the upper lip just before taking a sip of whisky.
Shemomedjamo	Georgian	You know when you’re really full, but your meal is just so delicious, you can’t stop eating it? The Georgians feel your pain. This word means, “I accidentally ate the whole thing."
Shemomedjamo	Georgian	You know when you’re really full, but your meal is just so delicious, you can’t stop eating it? The Georgians feel your pain. This word means, “I accidentally ate the whole thing."
Shlimazl	Yiddish	An inept, bungling person who is chronically unlucky.
Shouganai	Japanese	Connected to the idea of fate, this word means that something can’t be helped, so why worry about it.
Si	French	Si can mean multiple things in French (like “if”), but it is also a cool way to answer in the affirmative to a negative question. So, for example, someone asks you, referring to a film perhaps, tu ne l’as pas vu, n’est-ce pas? (You didn’t see it, right?), you would say si (and not oui) in order to respond, si, je l’ai vu la semaine dernière (yes, I saw it last week).
Sitzfleisch	German	Seat meat or butt flesh - The amount of endurance a person has for sitting still on his/her butt for the hours and hours and hours of time that it takes to get important work done
Sitzpinkler	German	Slang for “wimp,” literally translated as “a man who sits to pee”.
Släkt	Swedish	Extended Family. In Sweden we have "familj" meaning close family, and "släkt" which is the rest of the family.
Slampadato	Italian	Addicted to the UV glow of tanning salons? This word describes you.
Sobremesa	Spanish	Sobremesa is the Spanish word that refers to the time spent after lunch or dinner socializing with the people you shared the meal with. Meals are a very important part of the Spanish culture, and the Spanish people value the time spent relaxing and chatting after finishing eating. The Catalan equivalent is sobretaula.
Sólarfrí	Icelandic	Sun holiday, i.e., when workers are granted unexpected time off to enjoy a particularly sunny/warm day.
Sonnenuntergangsgemutlichkeit	German	The happiness you feel upon watching the sun going down", presumably while sitting on the patio with a long drink.
Spannend	Dutch	Scared And Excited. I would also add spannend. I recently heard on an American podcast, the host saying that she invented the word "scited" to say scared+excited. But the Dutch say spannend to mean this.
Spanungsbogen	German	The self imposed delay between the desire for a thing and the action of reaching out to get that thing.
Spleen	French	Ah, spleen. Another 19th century, Baudelairian word. In French, spleen means melancholy, profound boredom and dissatisfaction. In fact, its synonymous with another French word that the English language has adopted: ennui. In English, spleen (not the anatomical definition) is bad temper or spite.
Sprachgefuhl	German	A feeling for language or a sensitivity for what is correct language
Stam	Hebrew	“With no purpose, value or significance.” Example: “What is that?” “Oh, that’s stam an old bucket.” or “Why did you step on the ant?” “Stam.”
Suilk	Scottish	To swallow, gulp, suck with a slobbering noise.
Tampo	Filipino	Withdrawing affection from a person when one’s feelings have been hurt.
Tan-te	Mandarin	A sense of uneasiness and worry – as if you were hyper-aware of your own heart beating.
Tarab	Arabic	A noun and can be used as a verb, to refer to not only music, but getting drunk on the poetry and magic of music.
Tartle	Scottish	The nearly onomatopoeic word for that panicky hesitation just before you have to introduce someone whose name you can't quite remember. - you're at a colleague's birthday party. Another colleague is there. With his girlfriend. Whose name you don't remember. The conversational contortions you pull off to not have to admit that you don't recall their names is called tartling, according to the Scots, and it's one of the more ridiculous things you can do.
Terroir	French	I’ve written a blog post on this word before. Terroir is a notoriously tricky word to translate, although it is often used in the international wine and cheese industries. Terroir describes the combination of climate, labor, geology, and geography of a certain place that contributes to its distinct agricultural products, including wine and cheese.
Tidsoptomist	Swedish	A person who is always late because they think they have more time than they do; a time optimist.
Tima	Icelandic	Not being ready to spend time or money on a specific thing, despite being able to afford it.
Tingo	Pascuense (Easter Island)	To gradually steal all the possessions out of a neighbour’s house by borrowing and not returning.
Tocayo	Spanish	Somebody who shares your first name is your ‘tocayo’.
Togok	Malay	To drink from a bottle in huge gulps.
Tokka	Finnish	A large herd of reindeer.
Torschlusspanik	German	Literally fear of a closed door, fear of losing opportunities because of ageing, the fear that time is running out. It describes the panic you get when you realise one day that in actual fact, you haven’t done very much with your life, and if you don’t act soon then you may miss out on more opportunities as time passes and the ‘gate closes’.
Toska	Russian	The Russian word toska can be roughly translated to mean sadness or lugubriousness, but according to Lolita author Vladimir Nabokov, these English words don't come close to its real meaning. "No single word in English renders all the shades of toska. At its deepest and most painful, it is a sensation of great spiritual anguish, often without any specific cause. At less morbid levels it is a dull ache of the soul, a longing with nothing to long for, a sick pining, a vague restlessness, mental throes, yearning. In particular cases it may be the desire for somebody or something specific, nostalgia, love-sickness. At the lowest level it grades into ennui, boredom."
Treppenwitz	German	Stairway joke. To explain, I need to give you a bit of a scenario: so you’re out at the bar, and a friend of yours come over and you two get into a heated debate over who’s boxers are “sexier”. The other guy wins because you didn’t come up with a good enough comeback about the plebness of his boxers. Ten minutes later, you come up with the perfect line… but he already won… that comeback is an example of treppenwitz, a comeback or joke that you come up with after the fact.
Trepverter	Yiddish	Literally, staircase words, a witty riposte or comeback you think of only when it is too late to use it.
Tretår	Swedish	A second refill of a cup of coffee; a ‘threefill’.
Tsundoku	Japanese	The act of leaving a book unread after buying it, typically piling it up together with other such unread books.
Tuerto	Spanish	A man with only one eye.
Tumiwisiz	Polish	A noun derived from the sentence ‘Wisi mi to’ (‘I don’t give a damn’). It describes an attitude which could be compared to ‘not being bothered about’, that means lack of engagement and caring, mostly connected with lack of passion for one’s actions because of feeling cocky or overconfident rather than depression or resignation.
Tuqburni	Arabic	The literal translation is “You bury me,” referring to a love so deep you can’t imagine living life without your partner.
Tutear	Spanish	To treat someone informally by addressing them as tú instead of the more formal usted.
Übermorgen	German	The Day After Tomorrow. Morgen = tomorrow, Übermorgen = the day after tomorrow, Überübermorgen = the day after the day after tomorrow. And this could be continued to eternity. But using more than 2x "über" is quite uncommon.
Ubuntu	South African	The belief that we are defined by our compassion and kindness towards others.
Uffda	Swedish	A sympathetic word to be used when someone else is in pain. It combines ‘Ouch for you’ and ‘Oh, I’m sorry you hurt yourself’. Also an exclamation or interjection expressing bafflement, surprise, or dismay.
Uitwaaien	Dutch	Going out for a walk or to the countryside in order to clear one’s mind.
Utepils	Norwegian	Utepils is a Norwegian word that literally translates to "outdoor lager." Utepils has taken on several different interpretations within Scandinavian culture and among beer drinkers worldwide throughout the generations, but it typically refers to the act of sitting outside on a sunny day enjoying a beer. It also may refer to the first beer you drink outside on a warm, sunny day, and is the (great) name of a brewing company.
Vedriti	Slovenian	To take shelter from the rain and wait for it to finish.
Vergangenheitsbewaeltigung	German	A difficulty in coming to terms with the wrong done in the past. It is particularly relevant in modern German society, which is still guilt-wracked by the atrocities carried out in their name during WWII.
Verschlimmbessern	German	We’ve all done this before: by trying to fix a small problem we create a bigger problem. Perhaps you tried to repair a flat tire on your bike, and now the wheel won’t turn? Or after reinstalling Windows your laptop freezes every time you boot up? Oh no, don’t tell me you tried to fix that bad haircut yourself!
Verschlimmbesserung	German	Attempted Help That Backfires. Apart from all the beautiful German words already mentioned: Verschlimmbesserung. Making something worse by trying to fix it.
Viraag	Hindi	The emotional pain of being separated from a loved one.
Voorpret	Dutch	Literally pre-fun, the pleasure feeling one might have before a pleasant event, like a vacation.
Voorpret	Dutch	That feeling of excitement you get even before an event actually takes place. Literally translates to “pre-fun.”
Vorfreude	German	You probably already know the meaning of schadenfreude but another super-specific German word 'vorfreude' describes a kinder, less terrible feeling. The joy you feel when thinking about good things that will happen.
Vybafnout	Czech	A word tailor-made for annoying older brothers—it means to jump out and say boo.
Wabi	Japanese	A flawed detail that creates an elegant whole.
Wabi-Sabi	Japanese	You can probably blame the Ancient Greeks for the Western obsession with the perfect — perfect painting, perfect product, perfect body. Japan — which has its own troubles with perfectionism — has a gorgeous history of wabi sabi, an aesthetic sense wherein cracks in clay or wrinkles in skin are signs of beauty.
Wakuwaku Dokidoki	Japanese	The nervous excitement that causes your heart to beat faster in anticipation.
Waldeinsamkeit	German	The feeling of being alone in the woods. This is how you feel when you’re in your most peaceful state. Just imagine being a hundred miles from civilization and looking up at the stars… that sort of peaceful feeling.
Weichei	German	Literally soft egg; someone who is weak and cowardly.
Weltanschauung	German	World view; philosophy of life; a framework through which to interpret the world. A unified conception of one's philosphical view of the world.
Weltschmerz	German	Denotes the kind of feeling experienced by someone who believes that physical reality can never satisfy the demands of the mind. Literally “world grief”, it means a gloomy, romanticized world-weary sadness, experienced most often by privileged youth.
Witzelsucht	German	A rare neurological disorder whose sufferers have an excessive tendency to tell pointless stories or inappropriate jokes and puns
Won	Korean	The reluctance on a person’s part to let go of an illusion.
Ya’arburnee	Arabic	This word is the hopeful declaration that you will die before someone you love deeply, because you cannot stand to live without them. Literally, may you bury me.
Yakamoz	Turkish	No matter which language you speak, from time to time you probably admire the moon’s reflection on a body of water. But unless you’re Turkish or Swedish it’s impossible to describe this beauty with a single word. The Swedish mångata literally translates to “moon-road”, an aptly poetic description. Turkish also has a very specific word, gümüşservi, but it’s not really used in everyday speech. It’s far more common to call the moon’s reflection on water yakamoz, which can be used to describe any kind of light reflecting on water, or even the sparkle of fish.
Yoko meshi	Japanese	Literally a meal eaten sideways, refers to the peculiar stress induced by speaking a foreign language.
Yūgen	Japanese	A profound, mysterious sense of the beauty of the universe – and the sad beauty of human suffering.
Yuputka	Ulwa	A word made for walking in the woods at night, it’s the phantom sensation of something crawling on your skin.
Zaida	Ukrainian	An alien, one who came from the outside. A foreign invader.
Zankha	Arabic	A particular unpleasant smell that lingers on cups or plates, produced by certain foods, such as fried eggs.
Żanżan	Maltese	To wear or use something new for the first time. Similar to the Spanish ‘Estrenar’.
Zapoi	Russian	Two or more days of drunkenness usually involving a journey or waking up in an unexpected place.
Zeg	Georgian	It means “the day after tomorrow.” OK, we do have "overmorrow" in English, but when was the last time someone used that?
Zeitgeist	German	The cultural, social and political spirit of an era.
Zhaghzhagh	Persian	The chattering of teeth from the cold or from rage.
Zug	German	Literally anything that travels in a line. Train, caravan, a line of children, whatever.
Zugzwang	German	The tail end of this word Zwang means "to be forced." This word is used in scenarios when you feel extreme pressure and stress to make a strategic move, like in a game of chess.
Zwischenzug	German	A purely tactical move made to buy time.