Seven words English borrowed and never gave back
English keeps words from other languages when they carry a distinction English wants. These seven loanwords arrived with their histories and became useful enough to stay.
English doesn't so much borrow words as adopt them. When another language names something perfectly, whether a very specific boredom or a painter's trick of light, English shrugs, takes the word whole, and never looks back. Seven permanent residents:
a feeling of listless dissatisfaction and boredom arising from a lack of purpose or stimulation
By the fourth rainy day of the holiday, a heavy ennui had settled over the cabin.
calm composure and self-control maintained even in the face of danger or great pressure
The pilot's sangfroid during the engine failure kept the whole cabin from panicking.
a person who strolls city streets at leisure, observing urban life as a detached spectator
He spent his Paris afternoons as a flaneur, no destination beyond the next interesting doorway.
the artistic use of strong contrasts between light and shadow in a picture
Caravaggio's chiaroscuro turns an ordinary tavern scene into something almost theatrical.
pleasure derived from another person's misfortune or embarrassment
He felt a flicker of schadenfreude watching his rival's presentation crash mid-slide.
a studied carelessness that makes a difficult performance look completely effortless
The violinist played the impossible passage with such sprezzatura that the audience assumed it was easy.
a strong, ongoing liking for a particular thing or way of doing something
He had a well-known penchant for showing up exactly ten minutes late to every meeting.
Loanwords are the easiest words to remember, because each one carries a little of its home country with it. Meet one a day and the accent starts to feel like yours.
