je ne sais quoi....[gen-se-kwa].... noun
French = "I know not what."
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DEFINITION
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.RECENT SIGHTINGS.
.FILM REVIEW:
No matter how preposterous, Mr. [Joel] Schumacher’s films [“Car Wash,” “Flatliners,” “Batman & Robin”] almost always have a certain pop je.ne.sais.quoi; they’re hooky like a chart-topping song, like that not-quite-dumb-enough television show you just can’t stop watching.
—From a review of Schumaker’s film “The Number 23,” “A Man, a Book, a Number: What Does It All Mean?” by Manohla Dargin in The New York Times, Movies, Feb. 3, 2007.•
ADVERTISEMENT:
A journalist once asked Marilyn Monroe what she wore to bed, and she cooed, “Just a few drops of No.5.” It’s the ineffable je.ne.sais.quoi of Chanel No. 5 that has ensured its timeless appeal, and a truly beguiling mystery never grows old.
— Leslie Bennetts, in an full page advertisement titled “Essence of Time,” in Vanity Fair; September, 2007; pg. 208..............................................................................................
Any reason for the "qua" spelling? I believe the French word for "what" is "quoi."
ReplyDeleteD'org,
ReplyDeleteYour question is kindly put. "Qua" was an embarrassing typo. Thanks for reading the post and noting the error. And congratulations on your hard work when at school studying French.
Ovruhwarh,
Bloggin' John
What's Ovruhwarh?
ReplyDeleteYikes, my french is terrible.
D'orge,
ReplyDelete"Ovruhwarh" (ov-ruh-warh) was a failed jocular attempt at rendering a mispronunciation I once heard of "au revoir."
"Oaruhvwauh" for now!
Bloggin' John