Foreign Words We Need in English | Otherwords

English has more words than most other languages, but there are still so many familiar things and experiences that we don't have a word for... but other languages do! Here are some of our faves!

Otherwords is a PBS web series on Storied that digs deep into this quintessential human trait of language and fınds the fascinating, thought-provoking, and funny stories behind the words and sounds we take for granted. Incorporating the fıelds of biology, history, cultural studies, literature, and more, linguistics has something for everyone and offers a unique perspective on what it means to be human.

Host: Erica Brozovsky, Ph.D.
Creator/Director: Andrew Matthews & Katie Graham
Writer: Erica Brozovsky, Ph.D.
Producer: Katie Graham
Editor/Animation: Andrew Matthews
Executive Producer: Amanda Fox
Fact Checker: Yvonne McGreevy

Executive in Charge for PBS: Maribel Lopez
Associate Director of Programming for PBS: Niki Walker

Stock Images from Shutterstock
Music from APM Music
Otherwords is produced by Spotzen for PBS.
© 2022 PBS. All rights reserved.

[aristotleasparaguspodcast]

"The English language takes what it wants, kind of like the England of languages"
That line deserves an award.

[Rhomega]

A recent one I learned was the Japanese "Chuunibyou" describing "early teens who have grandiose delusions, who desperately want to stand out, and who have convinced themselves that they have hidden knowledge or secret powers."

[dw]

“Hiraeth” is a welsh word that means the longing for a place or time that no longer exists. Like a nostalgia for your childhood home, where people long departed still live. Something irretrievably lost.

[tiagooliveiradelucia]

In brazilian portuguese, we have "cafuné", which means the act of moving your fingers through the hair of someone you love. It becomes even more special when you discover that this word was brought to our language all way from Africa by slaved people.

[oktabramantio]

As an Indonesian, I think English should have a word for "we including you" and "we excluding you". In Indonesia we have the word "Kita" and "Kami" for these concepts. It is just much easier to understand in conversation

[David-uncs]

I learned recently that Indian English has some unique words. One that I learned about was "prepone" as in the opposite of "postpone". So you could prepone a meeting from Tuesday to Monday.

[SuicideBunny]

“Though our dictionaries are different, the human experience is remarkably similar across the globe.”
That’s such a beautiful line.

[plr]

Another gem from Japanese is enryo no katamari. It literally means "The piece of restraint." It refers to the last piece of a shared food that doesn't get eaten because it would be selfish/awkward for someone to take it.

[ThisIsNotAhnJieRen]

Some Filipino (Tagalog) words that I can think of:
1. Kilig - like "butterflies in your stomach", but more of the rush or the giddy feeling you get when you experience or witness something romantic.
2. Umay - the feeling when you had too much of the same food or of the same chore or task that if you do it one more time, you'll gonna be literally sick.
3. Tampo - the feeling when you are disappointed at someone because they did something wrong to you but you're not on the level of pissed off yet. Then you kinda sulk and avoid the person. But if they woo or cajole you even the slightest, you're okay again. It's basically Filipino passive-aggressive but a little flirty?! If that makes sense.

[KissMyFrog]

Submitted for your approval: the German word "kummerspeck" which means the weight gained through emotional eating. The literal translation is "grief bacon". After the last few years, I think we can all identify with this word.

[ian]

In Finnish the word ‘sisu’ does not have a direct English translation. Though the rough translation can be ‘inner strength’ ‘perseverance’ or ‘strength of will.’

My Finnish grandmother, however, said the real translation would be: ‘too dense to know any better’

[moderndaycain]

we have the word "üşenmek" in Turkish. it means "being too lazy to do someting". it is different than word "procrastinating" because you procrastine your responsibilities but you can "üşenmek" for literally everything. to stand up, to talk, to wake up, to drink water etc.

[monguu]

One of my favorites in Spanish is "empalagoso/a" which is a word to describe something that is so sweet that it becomes overwhelming. This can also be used to describe that annoying overly lovey-dovey couple or a significant other that coddles their partner too much or is too affectionate.

[sheren_b]

"the england of languages" really got me lol

i do really love the sentiment tho that no matter the language there are shared experiences and how much richer the share and exchange of words between languages to describe those experiences

[sylviecroteau]

So interesting! As a native French speaker, I often struggle to find an equivalent to "bon courage" (literally "good courage") to say to English-speaking friends going through a tough time. "Good luck" doesn't quite cut it for someone about to undergo major surgery or rebuilding their lives after the loss of a loved one.

[tammygant]

I'm not a native German speaker, but one of their untranslatable words I love is waldeinsamkeit--The feeling of solitude in the forest...not in a lonely way, but in a spiritual way.

[lydia]

I am Algerian and I have three mother tongues (Amazigh, Arabic, and French), all completely different from each other. I also speak English, German, and Spanish (I am currently learning Mandarin) and this video beautifully expresses what I feel when I try to translate an untranslatable word. There is always something lost in translation. It's fascinating, and it's one of the reasons I adore linguistics.

[Sam_on_YouTube]

My daughter has fully adopted "my mouth is lonely" into her lexicon.

[KevinVanOrd]

When I moved to Belgium and started to learn Flemish, two words immediately struck me: 'komkommertijd' and 'gezellig'. 'Komkommertijd' means 'cucumber time' and refers to a slow news cycle because all the politicians are on holiday. 'Gezellig' is sort of like the Dutch/Flemish version of 'hygge'. The closest English equivalent I can think of is 'cozy', but 'gezellig' encompasses so much more nuance.

[joanhoffman]

In a Western film (don’t recall which), a Native woman’s name is given in English as Dawn. The Native man explains that it means all the things that come with dawn. I always think of it as the early morning light, the birdsong, the feeling of the air, the freshness of a new day. I know that some words contain multitudes of meaning, in any language.