je ne sais quoi

English

Etymology

Borrowed from French je ne sais quoi (literally “I don't know what”).

Pronunciation

(UK) IPA^(key): /ˌʒə nə seɪ ˈkwɑː/
(US) IPA^(key): /ˌʒə nə seɪ ˈkwɑ/[1]
(emulating French) IPA^(key): /ˌʒə n(ə) sɛ ˈkwɑː/
Rhymes: -ɑː

Noun

je ne sais quoi (uncountable)

An indefinable quality that makes something distinctive or attractive.
She has a certain je ne sais quoi about her.
- 1894, George du Maurier, Trilby‎, page 85:
  “Say, you others, I find that the Englishman has something of truly distinguished in the voice, something of sympathetic, of touching—something of je ne sais quoi!” Bouchardy: “Yes, yes—something of je ne sais quoi! That's the very phrase— […] ”

Translations

indefinable quality that makes something distinctive

Czech: bůhvíco (cs) n, kdovíco n, cosi (cs) n
Dutch: ik-weet-niet-wat n, je ne sais quoi n
Finnish: se jokin, en-tiedä-mikä
French: je ne sais quoi (fr) m, je-ne-sais-quoi (fr) m, Dieu sait quoi m, on ne sait quoi (fr) m
German: Gott weiß was n, weiß Gott was n

Greek: πώς να το πω n (pós na to po), πώς να σου το πω n (pós na sou to po)
Italian: non so che m
Portuguese: não-sei-quê m
Russian: э́такое (ru) n (étakoje)
Spanish: no sé qué m

References

“je ne sais quoi” (US) / “je ne sais quoi” (UK) in Oxford Dictionaries, Oxford University Press.

Further reading

je ne sais quoi on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

French

Alternative forms

je-ne-sais-quoi

Etymology

Literally “I don't know what”.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ʒə n(ə) sɛ kwa/
Rhymes: -a

Noun

je ne sais quoi m (plural je ne sais quoi)

A certain something, je ne sais quoi (intangible quality that makes something distinctive)

Synonyms

Dieu sait quoi (literally “God knows what”)
on ne sait quoi (literally “one doesn't know what”)

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