Tuesday, January 28, 2020

In Other Words: A Language Lover's Guide to the Most Intriguing Words Around the World



In Other Words: A Language Lover's Guide to the Most Intriguing Words Around the World
written by Christopher J. Moore

"Take a trip around the world of words and unlock the meaning of some of the most insightful, intriguing, and satisfying expressions on the planet, for which there are no English equivalents."

Christopher J. Moore closely studies all the languages of the world to find the most fascinating words and expressions and shares them with us in this book. Moore finds words in French, German, Italian, and other Western European languages; Czech, Russian, and other Eastern European languages; Yiddish; Nordic languages including Danish, Norwegian, and Icelandic; the Middle Eastern languages of Arabic, Turkish, and Persian; African languages; Asian languages; ancient and classical languages; indigenous languages; and Creole and Pidgen languages. This is the kind of book that we who love words could read for a year.

While I'm off in Paris for a few weeks, I thought it would be fun to share some of the most fascinating French words from the book, and to use my nascent photography skills to illustrate each.

Here are a few illustrated words:





18 comments:

  1. They are new to me, so what English ones did you learn

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  2. I've heard/seen the 'sand culottes' expression before.....but usually in relation to a man being caught without his trousers on, in a compromising position. Possibly with someone else's wife !
    I learnt something new today....thanks for that.

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  3. That's all new for me. Thanks for teaching me something new.

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  4. oh my- the yellow smile is aptly named!

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  5. Oh, this sounds wonderful. I'm definitely looking for it on my next library trip. Chichi is a term I use on occasion, and I remember sans-culottes from studying European history in college. Words are so fun.

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  6. How fun and especially the last one. Oh my.

    Thank you for joining the Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop.

    Have a fabulous day. ♥

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  7. I find words quite fascinating, too. These are awesome picks that you shared :)


    Feel free to share at My Corner of the World

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  8. fasciinatiing. I love etymology!
    Rae

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  9. Thanks for making 'My Corner of the World' a success this week!

    My Corner of the World

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  10. What a fabulous post! I was familiar with the first and third words but rire jaune is new to me.

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  11. I love hearing phrases in other languages that don't really have a good/direct translation into English. One of my favorites is "immer dabei" from German, which means, I always have it with me.

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  12. They refused to wear pants? What a sight that would have been when you were walking around town!

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