Friday, March 6, 2020
Eat Your Heart Out, English! 12 Beautiful Words in Other Languages
Eat Your Heart Out, English! 12 Beautiful Words in Other Languages 12 Beautiful Words in Other Languages Talk is cheap. Actions speak louder than words. A picture is worth a thousand words.The truth is, words tend to get a bad rap.Our world is inundated with visual stimulation. People need to see to believe. We often want to watch instead of read or listen. And its not just television, movies, memes and YouTube that were watching.Look around you. Go ahead. Look around. There are images everywhere, both still and moving. They can be incredibly awesome or woefully uninteresting. Either way, they make us feel something and when we want to talk about what that something is, we use our words. No matter how much visual stimulation we encounter on a daily basis, words will always be our primary source of communication. Its just that simple.And were desperate for more of them.How many times have you been in a situation where youve said I really dont know how to explain it or I wish there was a word for this? Life lends itself to a vast panoply of experiences that makes us feel, see or do things that are weird, cool, kind or even troubling, and sometimes we just want to tell someone about it.As great as the English language is, it has its limitations. English is taking small strides towards expansion. For instance, selfie, google (the verb) and lol have made it into the dictionary, so all hope isnt lostâ"or is it?Luckily, other languages from around the world often offer the solution to the language limitation issue. Expand your horizons by opening your mind to beautiful words and phrases from languages around the world, and youll always know just what to say.Lets take a look at how other languages describe some of the pains and pleasures of humanity that we just cant find the words for. 12 Beautiful Words in Other LanguagesThe list below is a great taste of the languages represented, but to learn more beautiful words, phrases, concepts and sentences, we recommend you check out FluentU. FluentU takes real-world videosâ"like movie trailers, music videos, news and inspiring talksâ"and turns them into personalized language lessons for beautiful, individualized learning.1. Douleur ExquiseLanguage: FrenchLove. The gift and the curse. The be all and end all. We all know what it feels like to love someone. Its the best feeling in the worldâ"when its reciprocated. Theres arguably no worse feeling than the pain of unrequited love. Many of us know the feeling of looking on at that other person wanting nothing more than to be forever wrapped in their arms, but knowing it will never happen because they dont love you back. Its painful. Its horrible. Its douleur exquise. Meaning: The pain of unrequited love.2. SobremesaLanguage: SpanishThere are little joys in life like that of gathering together for a meal with family and close friends. The food, the drinks and the laughter can make for great memories. We get so swept up in the conversation that hours can slip by unnoticed. In Latin cultures this practice is so common that they came up wi th a word for it.Meaning: The conversation at the table that continues after a meal is over.3. Heimat Language: GermanMost of us associate who we are with where we come from. The food, the music, the art, friends, family, school, childhood memories and adulthood experiences all stem from the place we call home. Heimat refers to the place that makes us who we are. It refers to the attitudes and beliefs weve formed that have evolved over generations. It doesnt refer to just homeland pride, but our roots.Meaning: The place were connected to that shaped who we are.4. Forelsket Language: NorwegianIs it infatuation? Fascination? Obsession? This is the word to describe that giddy feeling when we havent reached the point of I love you, but were past the initial crush phase. In English the best weve got for the feeling in this stage of a relationship is I really, really like you a lot or I like like you. If you ask a Norwegian, theyll say its forelsket.Meaning: The feelings yo u have when youre falling in love with someone but you havent quite reached love yet.5. HyggeligtLanguage: DanishThis is that feeling you get when youre cuddled up with that special someone, or when your mom makes your favorite meal while youre home for the holidays. Maybe you get it when youre curled up on the couch with a cup of hot cocoa watching Netflix. Its that warm tingly feeling of comfort in your chest and your bones that makes you want to stay in the moment forever.Meaning: A feeling of extreme comfort or coziness.6. ????? (Toska)Language: RussianIts been said that no words in the English language could ever capture the full meaning of toska. Lets give it a shot anyway. This word is used to describe a deep, dark feeling of despair. Its the ultimate feeling of yearning and hopelessness. Its the kind of pain that tortures the soul. Its pure, unadulterated, heart-wrenching sadnessâ"something wed all like to feel on a very infrequent basis.Meaning: A feeling a deep s piritual anguish for no specific reason.7. ??? (Ukiyo-e)Language: JapaneseThis word literally means floating world, but its used to describe people who dont take a second of their life for granted. They live in the present and dont let the small things get to them. As difficult as this level of enlightenment is to achieve, how great would it be if we could all just let the small things roll off of our backs?Meaning: Someone who lives in the moment and is detached from the minor distractions in life.8. Gigil Language: FilipinoTheres the adorable baby in the supermarket waving at all the passersby. Then theres the mischievous cat that knocks your morning coffee off of the counter before youve had a single sip. Both of them exhibit such intense cuteness that they give you this extreme urge of wanting to squeeze them, and thats what this word tries to capture. The closest phrase in the English language for this sensation is I could just eat you up. However, the English phrase only captures the positive end of this sensation.Meaning: The sudden urge to want to squeeze someone or something out of extreme cuteness or irritation.9. ?????? (Kreng-jai)Language: ThaiThe world would be a much happier place if everyone showed some common courtesy. However, it would be utopia if everyone showed some kreng-jai. The sentiment behind this word is related to an extreme sense of courtesy. It comes from a place of not wanting anyone to have to inconvenience themselves for you. Please dont go to any trouble, is generally something we say to be polite. If the other person insists, a lot of the time we cave. Kreng-jai is the opposite. You would insist that the other person doesnt go to any trouble.Meaning: Not wanting someone to have to go out of their way for you.10. Jayus Language: IndonesianTwo men walk into a bar, youd think one of them would have seen it. Yup. The bad joke. Dont worry, Ill keep my day job. Most of the time when someone tells a bad joke the rooms fall s to that uncomfortable awkward silence, and the joke teller ends up mortified. However, sometimes a joke is so astonishingly bad that we cant help but laugh at it. Its one of those stolen moments of joy where, fortunately, no ones pride is injured in the process.Meaning: A joke so bad or told so poorly that one cant help but laugh.11. ?????? (Toâoborni)Language: ArabicEarly on we got a taste of the pain of unrequited love, but now were in the realm of unconditional love. This is a word used for that person who you love so much that you would rather die than be on this earth without them. Its appropriate for use between parent and child, romantic partners and even close friends.Meaning: You bury me; I love you so much that I want to die before you.12. Ilunga Language: TshilubaThis is from a language spoken in a region of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It may be one of the hardest words to translate because it has so many layered meanings. This one little word touches on p atience, forgiveness and breaking points.Meaning: A person who will forgive someone for the first offense against them, tolerate it a second time, but will not forgive them for a third time.As you can see, its a big, beautiful world out there.Ready to start exploring? And One More ThingLets be honest.Most languages have lots of beautiful words.To learn more of the beautiful language of your choice, check out FluentU.FluentU takes real-world videos like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks, and turns them into language learning experiences, as you can see here:FluentU App Browse Screen.FluentU has interactive captions that let you tap on any word to see an image, definition, audio and useful examples. Now native language content is within reach with interactive transcripts.Didnt catch something? Go back and listen again. Missed a word? Hover your mouse over the subtitles to instantly view definitions.Interactive transcript for Carlos Baute song.You can learn all the vocabulary in any video with FluentUs learn mode. Swipe left or right to see more examples for the word youâre learning.FluentU Has Quizzes for Every VideoAnd FluentU always keeps track of vocabulary that youâre learning. It uses that vocab to give you a 100% personalized experience by recommending videos and examples.Start using FluentU on the website with your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes store or Google Play store.
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