| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| je ne sais quoi |
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| PRONUNCIATION: |  zh  n s kwä , s |
| NOUN: | A quality or attribute that is difficult to describe or express: “Fishing has lacked a certain je ne sais quoi in terms of its public image, as all activities must that involve beer, worms and one-size-fits-all gimme caps” (Charles Leerhsen). | | ETYMOLOGY: | French : je, I + ne, not + sais, first person present indicative of savoir, to know + quoi, what.
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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