See je ne sais quoi on Wiktionary
{
"etymology_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "fr",
"3": "je ne sais quoi",
"lit": "I don't know what"
},
"expansion": "French je ne sais quoi (literally “I don't know what”)",
"name": "bor"
}
],
"etymology_text": "Borrowed from French je ne sais quoi (literally “I don't know what”).",
"head_templates": [
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},
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}
],
"examples": [
{
"text": "She has a certain je ne sais quoi about her.",
"type": "example"
},
{
"ref": "1894, George du Maurier, “Part Second”, in Trilby: A Novel, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, →OCLC, page 85:",
"text": "\"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— […]\"",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"An indefinable quality that makes something distinctive or attractive."
],
"id": "en-je_ne_sais_quoi-en-noun-7k6H7wVa",
"links": [
[
"indefinable",
"indefinable"
],
[
"quality",
"quality"
],
[
"distinctive",
"distinctive"
]
],
"tags": [
"uncountable"
],
"translations": [
{
"code": "af",
"lang": "Afrikaans",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"word": "ek weet nie wat nie"
},
{
"code": "ca",
"lang": "Catalan",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "no-sé-què"
},
{
"code": "cs",
"lang": "Czech",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "bůhvíco"
},
{
"code": "cs",
"lang": "Czech",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "kdovíco"
},
{
"code": "cs",
"lang": "Czech",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "cosi"
},
{
"code": "nl",
"lang": "Dutch",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "ik-weet-niet-wat"
},
{
"code": "nl",
"lang": "Dutch",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "je ne sais quoi"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"word": "se jokin"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"word": "en-tiedä-mikä"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "je ne sais quoi"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "je-ne-sais-quoi"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "Dieu sait quoi"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "on ne sait quoi"
},
{
"code": "gl",
"lang": "Galician",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "aquel"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "gewisse Etwas"
},
{
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"roman": "pós na to po",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "πώς να το πω"
},
{
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"roman": "pós na sou to po",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "πώς να σου το πω"
},
{
"code": "it",
"lang": "Italian",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "non so che"
},
{
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "não-sei-quê"
},
{
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "não-sei-o-quê"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"roman": "étakoje",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "э́такое"
},
{
"code": "es",
"lang": "Spanish",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "no sé qué"
}
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"ipa": "/ˌʒə nə seɪ ˈkwɑː/",
"tags": [
"UK"
]
},
{
"ipa": "/ˌʒə nə seɪ ˈkwɑ/",
"tags": [
"US"
]
},
{
"ipa": "/ˌʒə n(ə)sɛ ˈkwɑː/",
"note": "emulating French"
},
{
"rhymes": "-ɑː"
}
],
"word": "je ne sais quoi"
}
{
"etymology_templates": [
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"args": {
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},
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},
{
"args": {
"1": "I don't know what"
},
"expansion": "Literally, “I don't know what”",
"name": "lit"
}
],
"etymology_text": "Literally, “I don't know what”.",
"forms": [
{
"form": "je ne sais quoi",
"tags": [
"plural"
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}
],
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"english": "If you have it, you have it, Ella she has it. This I don't know what. That the others don't have.",
"ref": "1987, Michel Berger (lyrics and music), “Ella, elle l'a”, in Babacar, performed by France Gall:",
"text": "Si tu l’as, tu l’as, Ella elle l’a / Ce je ne sais quoi / Que d’autres n’ont pas",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"a certain something, je ne sais quoi (intangible quality that makes something distinctive)"
],
"id": "en-je_ne_sais_quoi-fr-noun-lDcovqh7",
"links": [
[
"je ne sais quoi",
"je ne sais quoi#English"
]
],
"related": [
{
"word": "je ne sais pas"
}
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "Dieu sait quoi"
},
{
"word": "on ne sait quoi"
},
{
"word": "je-ne-sais-quoi"
}
],
"tags": [
"masculine"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"ipa": "/ʒə n(ə) sɛ kwa/"
},
{
"audio": "LL-Q150 (fra)-WikiLucas00-je ne sais quoi.wav",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/0/0f/LL-Q150_%28fra%29-WikiLucas00-je_ne_sais_quoi.wav/LL-Q150_%28fra%29-WikiLucas00-je_ne_sais_quoi.wav.mp3",
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],
"word": "je ne sais quoi"
}
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"args": {
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"2": "fr",
"3": "je ne sais quoi",
"lit": "I don't know what"
},
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"name": "bor"
}
],
"etymology_text": "Borrowed from French je ne sais quoi (literally “I don't know what”).",
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "-",
"nolinkhead": "1"
},
"expansion": "je ne sais quoi (uncountable)",
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],
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"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "noun",
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
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"English lemmas",
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"Terms with Catalan translations",
"Terms with Czech translations",
"Terms with Dutch translations",
"Terms with Finnish translations",
"Terms with French translations",
"Terms with Galician translations",
"Terms with German translations",
"Terms with Greek translations",
"Terms with Italian translations",
"Terms with Portuguese translations",
"Terms with Russian translations",
"Terms with Spanish translations"
],
"examples": [
{
"text": "She has a certain je ne sais quoi about her.",
"type": "example"
},
{
"ref": "1894, George du Maurier, “Part Second”, in Trilby: A Novel, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, →OCLC, page 85:",
"text": "\"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— […]\"",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"An indefinable quality that makes something distinctive or attractive."
],
"links": [
[
"indefinable",
"indefinable"
],
[
"quality",
"quality"
],
[
"distinctive",
"distinctive"
]
],
"tags": [
"uncountable"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"ipa": "/ˌʒə nə seɪ ˈkwɑː/",
"tags": [
"UK"
]
},
{
"ipa": "/ˌʒə nə seɪ ˈkwɑ/",
"tags": [
"US"
]
},
{
"ipa": "/ˌʒə n(ə)sɛ ˈkwɑː/",
"note": "emulating French"
},
{
"rhymes": "-ɑː"
}
],
"translations": [
{
"code": "af",
"lang": "Afrikaans",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"word": "ek weet nie wat nie"
},
{
"code": "ca",
"lang": "Catalan",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "no-sé-què"
},
{
"code": "cs",
"lang": "Czech",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "bůhvíco"
},
{
"code": "cs",
"lang": "Czech",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "kdovíco"
},
{
"code": "cs",
"lang": "Czech",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "cosi"
},
{
"code": "nl",
"lang": "Dutch",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "ik-weet-niet-wat"
},
{
"code": "nl",
"lang": "Dutch",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "je ne sais quoi"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"word": "se jokin"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"word": "en-tiedä-mikä"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "je ne sais quoi"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "je-ne-sais-quoi"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "Dieu sait quoi"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "on ne sait quoi"
},
{
"code": "gl",
"lang": "Galician",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "aquel"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "gewisse Etwas"
},
{
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"roman": "pós na to po",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "πώς να το πω"
},
{
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"roman": "pós na sou to po",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "πώς να σου το πω"
},
{
"code": "it",
"lang": "Italian",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "non so che"
},
{
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "não-sei-quê"
},
{
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "não-sei-o-quê"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"roman": "étakoje",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "э́такое"
},
{
"code": "es",
"lang": "Spanish",
"sense": "indefinable quality that makes something distinctive",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "no sé qué"
}
],
"word": "je ne sais quoi"
}
{
"etymology_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "I don't know what"
},
"expansion": "“I don't know what”",
"name": "m-g"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "I don't know what"
},
"expansion": "Literally, “I don't know what”",
"name": "lit"
}
],
"etymology_text": "Literally, “I don't know what”.",
"forms": [
{
"form": "je ne sais quoi",
"tags": [
"plural"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "m",
"2": "#"
},
"expansion": "je ne sais quoi m (plural je ne sais quoi)",
"name": "fr-noun"
}
],
"lang": "French",
"lang_code": "fr",
"pos": "noun",
"related": [
{
"word": "je ne sais pas"
}
],
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
"French countable nouns",
"French entries with incorrect language header",
"French lemmas",
"French masculine nouns",
"French multiword terms",
"French nouns",
"French terms with IPA pronunciation",
"French terms with quotations",
"Pages with 2 entries",
"Pages with entries",
"Rhymes:French/a",
"Rhymes:French/a/4 syllables"
],
"examples": [
{
"english": "If you have it, you have it, Ella she has it. This I don't know what. That the others don't have.",
"ref": "1987, Michel Berger (lyrics and music), “Ella, elle l'a”, in Babacar, performed by France Gall:",
"text": "Si tu l’as, tu l’as, Ella elle l’a / Ce je ne sais quoi / Que d’autres n’ont pas",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"a certain something, je ne sais quoi (intangible quality that makes something distinctive)"
],
"links": [
[
"je ne sais quoi",
"je ne sais quoi#English"
]
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "Dieu sait quoi"
},
{
"word": "on ne sait quoi"
}
],
"tags": [
"masculine"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"ipa": "/ʒə n(ə) sɛ kwa/"
},
{
"audio": "LL-Q150 (fra)-WikiLucas00-je ne sais quoi.wav",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/0/0f/LL-Q150_%28fra%29-WikiLucas00-je_ne_sais_quoi.wav/LL-Q150_%28fra%29-WikiLucas00-je_ne_sais_quoi.wav.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/0/0f/LL-Q150_%28fra%29-WikiLucas00-je_ne_sais_quoi.wav/LL-Q150_%28fra%29-WikiLucas00-je_ne_sais_quoi.wav.ogg"
},
{
"rhymes": "-a"
}
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "je-ne-sais-quoi"
}
],
"word": "je ne sais quoi"
}
Download raw JSONL data for je ne sais quoi meaning in All languages combined (7.5kB)
This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable All languages combined dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2025-01-25 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2025-01-20 using wiktextract (c15a5ce and 5c11237). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.
If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.