Foreign words and phrases in English language

Over the centuries the English language has assimilated words and phrases from a variety of other languages. In context, those listed here are often printed in italics.

ab initio                Latin from the beginning

a cappella            Italian sung without instrumental accompaniment (literally ‘in chapel style’)

à deux                 French for or involving two people

ad hoc                  Latin made or done for a particular purpose (literally ‘to this’)

ad infinitum          Latin endlessly; forever (literally ‘to infinity’)

ad interim             Latin for the meantime

ad nauseam            Latin to a tiresomely excessive degree (literally ‘to sickness’)

a fortiori                 Latin more conclusively (literally ‘from a stronger [argument]’)

agent provocateur          French a person who tempts a suspected criminal to commit a crime so that they can be caught and convicted (literally ‘provocative agent’)

à huis clos            French in private (literally ‘with closed doors’)

al dente               Italian (of food) cooked so as to be still firm when bitten (literally ‘to the tooth’)

alfresco                Italian in the open air (literally ‘in the fresh’)

amour propre        French self-respect (literally ‘own love’)

annus mirabilis      Latin a remarkable or auspicious year

a posteriori           Latin based on reasoning from known facts or past events rather than on assumptions or predictions (literally ‘from what comes after’)

a priori                   Latin based on deduction rather than experience (literally ‘from what is before’)

au courant               French well informed; up to date (literally ‘in the (regular) course’)

au fait                     French having a good or detailed knowledge (literally ‘to the point’)

au fond                    French basically; in essence (literally ‘at the bottom’)

au naturel           French in the most simple or natural way

beau geste         French a noble and generous act (literally ‘fine gesture’)

beau idéal           French the highest standard of excellence (literally ‘ideal beauty’)

beau monde         French fashionable society (literally ‘fine world’)

beaux arts           French the fine arts

bête noire           French a person or thing one particularly dislikes (literally ‘black beast’)

belles-lettres       French literary works written and read for their elegant style (literally ‘fine letters’)

billet-doux          French a love letter (literally ‘sweet note’)

blitzkrieg              German an intense, violent military campaign intended to bring about a swift victory (literally ‘lightning war’)

bona fide             Latin genuine; real (literally ‘with good faith’)

bon mot               French a clever or witty remark (literally ‘good word’)

bon vivant           French a person with a sociable and luxurious lifestyle (literally ‘person living well’)

brasserie             French an informal or inexpensive restaurant (literally ‘brewery’)

carpe diem         Latin make the most of the present time (literally ‘seize the day!’)

carte blanche                   French complete freedom to act as one wishes (literally ‘blank paper’)

cause célèbre                   French a controversial issue attracting much public attention (literally ‘famous case’)

caveat emptor                  Latin the buyer is responsible for checking the quality of goods before purchasing them (literally ‘let the buyer beware’)

c’est la guerre                      French used as an expression of resigned acceptance (literally ‘that's war’)

chacun à son gout                 French everyone to their own taste

chef-d’œuvre                      French a masterpiece (literally ‘chief work’)

cherchez la femme             French there is certain to be a woman at the bottom of a problem or mystery (literally ‘look for the woman’)

comme il faut                     French correct in behaviour or etiquette (literally ‘as is necessary’)

compos mentis                   Latin sane; in full control of one's mind

cognoscenti                      Italian people who are well informed about something (literally ‘people who know’)

cordon sanitaire               French a guarded line placed around an area infected by disease to prevent anyone from leaving (literally ‘sanitary line’)

Cosa Nostra                    Italian a US criminal organization related to the Mafia (literally ‘our thing’)

coup de foudr                 e French love at first sight (literally ‘stroke of lightning’)

coup de grâce                  French a blow by which a mortally wounded person or thing is mercifully killed (literally ‘stroke of grace’)

coup de main        French a sudden surprise attack (literally ‘stroke of hand’)

coup d’état             French a sudden violent seizure of power (literally ‘blow of state’)

cri de cœur             French a passionate appeal or protest (literally ‘cry from the heart’)

cui bono?                 Latin who stands to gain? (implying that whoever does may have been responsible for a crime; literally ‘to whom (is it) a benefit?’)

de facto                    Latin in fact, whether by right or not

Dei gratia                Latin by the grace of God

déjà vu                   French the sense of having experienced the present situation before (literally ‘already seen’)

dejure                          Latin rightful; by right (literally ‘of law’)

de nos jours                 French contemporary (literally ‘of our days’)

Deo gratias                 Latin thanks be to God

Deo volente                Latin God willing

de profundis                Latin expressing one's deepest feelings (literally ‘from the depths’)

de rigueur                    French obligatory; required by etiquette or current fashion (literally ‘of strictness’)

dernier cri                     French the very latest fashion (literally ‘the last cry’)

de trop                            French not wanted; superfluous (literally ‘excessive’)

deus ex machina              Latin an unexpected event that saves an apparently hopeless situation (literally ‘god from the machinery’)

dolce far niente                Italian pleasant idleness (literally ‘sweet doing nothing’)

dolce vita                         Italian a life of pleasure and luxury (literally ‘sweet life’)

doppelgänger                    German an apparition or double of a living person (literally ‘double-goer’)

double entendre                French a word or phrase with two possible interpretations (from obsolete French, ‘double understanding’)

dramatis personae            Latin the characters in a play (literally ‘persons of the drama’)

embarras de richesse       French more options or resources than one knows what to do with (literally ‘embarrassment of riches’)

éminence grise                 French a person who has power or influence without holding an official position (literally ‘grey eminence’)

en famille                       French with one's family; in an informal way (literally ‘in family’)

enfant terrible                French a person whose behaviour is unconventional or controversial (literally ‘terrible child’)

en masse                        French all together (literally ‘in a mass’)

en passant                      French by the way (literally ‘in passing’)

entente cordiale              French a friendly understanding between states

entre nous                      French between ourselves

esprit de corps               French a feeling of pride and loyalty uniting the members of a group (literally ‘spirit of body’)

ex gratia                       Latin (of payment) given as a favour rather than because of any legal obligation (literally ‘from favour’)

ex officio                       Latin by virtue of one's position or status (literally ‘out of duty’)

fait accompli                 French a thing that has been done or decided and cannot now be altered (literally ‘accomplished fact’)

faute de mieux               French for want of a better alternative

faux pas                         French an embarrassing blunder or indiscretion (literally ‘false step’)

femme fatale                   French a seductive woman (literally ‘disastrous woman’)

fête champêtre                French an outdoor entertainment; a garden party (literally ‘rural festival’)

fin de siècle                    French relating to the end of a century

force majeure                 French superior strength

folie de grandeur             French delusions of grandeur

gîte                                    French a small furnished holiday house in France

grande dame                    French a woman who is influential within a particular sphere (literally ‘grand lady’)

haute couture                  French the designing and making of clothes by leading fashion houses (literally ‘high dressmaking’)

haute cuisine                   French high-quality cooking (literally ‘high cookery’)

haut monde                      French fashionable society (literally ‘high world’)

hors de combat                French out of action due to injury or damage (literally ‘out of the fight’)

ideé fixe                          French an obsession (literally ‘fixed idea’)

in absentia                      Latin while not present (literally ‘in absence’)

in camera                       Latin in private (literally ‘in the chamber’)

in extremis                     Latin in an extremely difficult situation; at the point of death

in loco parentis              Latin in the place of a parent

in medias res                   Latin in or into the middle of things

in propria persona           Latin: in his or her own person

in situ                               Latin in the original or appropriate position

inter alia                           Latin among other things

in toto                               Latin as a whole

ipso facto                          Latin by that very fact or act

je ne sais quoi                   French a quality that is hard to describe (literally ‘I do not know what’)

jeu d’esprit                       French a light-hearted display of wit (literally ‘game of the mind’)

jeunesse dorée                   French wealthy, fashionable young people (literally ‘gilded youth’)

joie de vivre                     French exuberant enjoyment of life (literally ‘joy of living’)

katzenjammer                   German a hangover or a severe headache accompanying a hangover (literally ‘cats’ wailing’)

laissez-faire                      French a non-interventionist policy (literally ‘allow to do’)

locum tenens                      Latin a temporary deputy or stand-in (literally ‘one holding a place’)

locus classicus                  Latin the best known or most authoritative passage on a subject (literally ‘classical place’)

magnum opus                        Latin the most important work of an artist, writer, etc. (literally ‘great work’)

manqué                                     French having failed to become what one might have been (from manquer ‘to lack’)

mea culpa                                  Latin an acknowledgement that something is one's fault (literally ‘by my fault’)

memento mori                           Latin something kept as a reminder that death is inevitable (literally ‘remember (that you have) to die’)

ménage à trois                            French an arrangement in which a married couple and the lover of one of them live together (literally ‘household of three’)

modus operandi                         Latin a way of doing something (literally ‘way of operating’)

modus vivendi                           Latin an arrangement that allows conflicting parties to coexist peacefully (literally ‘way of living’)

mot juste                                      French the most appropriate word or expression

ne plus ultra                                Latin the best example of something (literally ‘not further beyond’)

nil desperandum                          Latin do not despair

noblesse oblige                           French privilege entails responsibility

nolens volens                              Latin whether one wants or likes something or not (literally ‘not willing, willing’)

non sequitur                                 Latin a conclusion or statement that does not logically follow from the previous statement (literally ‘it does not follow’)

nouveau riche                                French people who have recently become rich and who display their wealth ostentatiously (literally ‘new rich’)

objet d’art                                      French a small decorative or artistic object

on dit                                              French a piece of gossip (literally ‘they say’)

papabile                                          Italian worthy or eligible to be elected pope

par excellence                                French better or more than all others of the same kind (literally ‘by excellence’)

parti pris                                         French a preconceived view; a bias (literally ‘side taken’)

per annum                                       Latin for each year

per capita                                       Latin for each person (literally ‘by heads’)

per se                                             Latin by or in itself or themselves

persona non grata                           Latin a person who is not welcome somewhere

pièce de résistance                         French the most important or impressive item (literally ‘piece (i.e. means) of resistance’)

pied-à-terre                                     French a small flat or house kept for occasional use (literally ‘foot to earth’)

pis aller                                           French a last resort (literally ‘worse to go’)

plat du jour                                      French a special dish prepared by a restaurant on a particular day (literally ‘dish of the day’)

plus ça change                                  French used to express resigned acknowledgement of the fact that certain things never change (from plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose ‘the more it changes, the more it stays the same’)

pococurante                                     Italian careless or nonchalant (literally ‘little caring’)

prima facie                                      Latin accepted as so until proved otherwise (literally ‘at first face’)

primus inter pares                            Latin the senior or representative member of a group (literally ‘first among equals’)

pro rata                                            Latin proportional; proportionally (literally ‘according to the rate’)

proxime accessit                             Latin the person who comes second in an examination or is runner-up for an award (literally ‘came very near’)

quid pro quo                                   Latin a favour or advantage given in return for something (literally ‘something for something’)

raison d’être                                   French the most important reason for someone or something's existence (literally ‘reason for being’)

reductio ad absurdum                        Latin a method of disproving a premise by showing that its logical conclusion is absurd (literally ‘reduction to the absurd’)

roman-à-clef                                     French a novel in which real people or events appear with invented names (literally ‘novel with a key’)

sangfroid                                          French the ability to stay calm in difficult circumstances (literally ‘cold blood’) 

savoir faire                                      French the ability to act appropriately in social situations (literally ‘know how to do’)

sine die                                             Latin (of proceedings) adjourned indefinitely (literally ‘without a day’)

sine qua non                                     Latin a thing that is absolutely essential (literally ‘without which not’)

soi-disant                                        French self-styled; so-called (literally ‘self-saying’)

sotto voce                                       Italian in a quiet voice (literally ‘under voice’)

sub judice                                      Latin being considered by a court of law and therefore not to be publicly discussed elsewhere (literally ‘under a judge’)

sub rosa                                       Latin happening or done in secret (literally ‘under the rose’)

sui generis                                   Latin unique (literally ‘of its own kind’)

table d’hôte                                 French a restaurant meal offered at a fixed price, with few if any choices (literally ‘host's table’)

tant mieux                                    French so much the better

tant pis                                       French so much the worse; too bad

terra firma                                  Latin dry land; the ground (literally ‘firm land’)

terra incognita                            Latin unknown territory

tête-à-tête                                   French a private conversation (literally ‘head-to-head’)

tour de force                              French a thing accomplished with great skill (literally ‘feat of strength’)

tout de suite                               French at once (literally ‘quite in sequence’)

unheimlich                                German uncanny or weird

verboten                                   German forbidden

via media                                 Latin a compromise (literally ‘middle way’)

victor ludorum                         Latin the overall champion in a sports competition (literally ‘victor of the games’)

vis-à-vis                French in relation to; as compared with (literally ‘face-to-face’)

vox populi             Latin public opinion (literally ‘the voice of the people’)

Zeitgeist                German the characteristic spirit or mood of a particular historical period (literally ‘time spirit’)