mot juste
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Gainsbourg is bilingual, but French is her first language; she pauses occasionally in our conversation to search around for le mot juste.
From The Guardian ● Oct. 26, 2019
Two years later, “thirst” remains with us as the mot juste for these and other people, moments and things — and the evidence of that thirst has only grown more undeniable.
From New York Times ● Apr. 4, 2017
In January, when PhD students jostle for jobs at the annual meeting of the American Economic Association, a “market” might seem the mot juste.
From Economist ● Nov. 24, 2016
They all try to describe James’s distinctive manner of speaking, which was an extremely deliberate, pause-filled, somewhat stammering effort to grasp le mot juste.
From The New Yorker ● Jul. 21, 2016
It occurred to me that 'hungry' was perhaps the mot juste for him; but—hungry for what?
From Seven Men by Beerbohm, Max, Sir
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
