je ne sais quoi
an indefinable, elusive quality, especially a pleasing one: She has a certain je ne sais quoi that charms everybody.
Origin of je ne sais quoi
1Words Nearby je ne sais quoi
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use je ne sais quoi in a sentence
Just in time for Paris Fashion Week, a new book, Paris Street Style, offers tips on how to acheive that certain je ne sais quoi.
In order to maintain that certain je ne sais quoi, a guido must always remain fresh and mint.
She never finishes her soup and she wears a toweling robe with a certain je ne sais quoi.
But you shall be called by an English name, if you wish, though to my mind there's a je ne sais quoi about the French.
The Adventures of Harry Revel | Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-CouchBecause the baggage has a pert je ne sais quoi; she reads plays, keeps a monkey, and is troubled with vapours.
The Beaux-Stratagem | George Farquhar
And not one has the beginnings of the polished charm of manner, the fire of glance, the je ne sais quoi of Mrs. Hunt Maclean.
The Californians | Gertrude Franklin Horn AthertonIn pair-oar rowing there is needed a je-ne-sais-quoi sort of mutual concession of style.
Boating | W. B. WoodgateBesides, you have a je ne sais quoi that will prevent the world from laughing, but if you continue you will have nothing.
Sylvia & Michael | Compton Mackenzie
British Dictionary definitions for je ne sais quoi
/ French (ʒənsekwa) /
an indefinable quality, esp of personality
Origin of je ne sais quoi
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Cultural definitions for je ne sais quoi
[ (zhuh nuh say kwah) ]
That little something; a quality that eludes description: “The Mona Lisa's smile has a certain je ne sais quoi.” From French, meaning “I don't know what.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Browse