When a language fails to convey the essence of a word when translated, the word is considered ‘untranslatable.’ There are many words that evoke feelings and emotions that are not translated into English. By taking a look at some of the most beautiful and influential words in the world, they can provide us with a glimpse of the various cultures and beliefs that help us to understand the people who speak these wonderful languages.
Untranslatable Words List with Meanings
Following is the list of 100 best untranslatable words with their meanings in alphabetically sorted order:
- Besa – An Albanian verb and oath of allegiance which means to keep a promise by honoring your word. It is usually translated “faith” or “oath”
- Aspaldiko – This Basque translation translates the meaning of joy and happiness that comes from meeting someone you have never met.
- Ghodar-dim (?????? ???) – Pronounced [gho-rar-deem], this Bengali word is a sarcastic term for ‘nothing’ or false hope.
- Ailyak – Ailyak is a beautiful Bulgarian name for the subtle art of doing everything quietly and without haste, while enjoying the experience and life in general
- Voorpret– Voorpret builds the anticipation, joy or excitement you feel before a real event like setting up a party and you can’t help but dance like you did.
- Leiliviskaja– A person who throws water on hot rocks to make steam in a sauna.
- Jaksaa– Severe lack of motivation to do something. If you do not have enough energy, you will have the energy to do something or you may be distracted.
- Kaamos—Kaamos is more than just Polar Night where there are 24 consecutive hours of darkness, kaamos describes the longing for sunlight, the feeling of stress and the lack of motivation and enthusiasm.
- Lieko– A trunk of a tree that has submerged to the bottom of a lake.
- Myötähäpeä– Dealing with or embarrassment shared when you see someone else doing something embarrassing.
- Poronkusema– Talking about Finnish problems too, poronkusema describes the distance a reindeer can walk well before taking a break to urinate.
- Sauna– A sauna is a small room used as a hot-air or steam bath for cleaning and refreshing the body.
- Sisu– Sisu is a Finnish concept that describes stoic resilience, determination and resilience which is considered necessary to deal with general health and health problems in particularly difficult situations
- Tokka– Pronounced [talk-uh] is a Finnish collective noun for a large herd of reindeer.
- Bérézina– A sense of panic associated with a huge defeat.
- Dépaysement– Dépaysement is the feeling of insecurity that comes with being away from your country and feeling like a foreigner
- Bricoleur— A bricoleur is a craftsman who uses whatever materials he can get his hands to build (or bricolage).
- La douleur exquise– If French is the language of love, then it seems only fitting that there is a word to describe all the feelings associated with illicit love.
- L’esprit de l’escalier–According to the word ‘stairwell wit’, l’esprit de l’escalier feels like you have got a full return, but you think about it too late.
- Yaourt– The need to sing along to a song even though you don’t know the lyrics.
- Shemomedjam– When you eat something because it’s so yummy and delicious, even though you’re not hungry.
- Backpfeifengesicht– backpfeifengesicht is one of the most invented. The German compound word literally means ‘face to be slapped’ or ‘face to be slapped.
- Drachenfutter– Literally, ‘dragon fodder’, this is a gift that a person gives to humble and apologize to someone, especially a spouse, after doing something wrong or foolish.
- Erklärungsnot– The urgent need to explain something, either yourself or the situation. It can also mean to struggle explaining something.
- Extrawunsch– A term used to call someone who complicates things by being fussy or picky, and thus slows things down.
- Fachidiot– Fachidiot, literally it means ‘subject-idiot’..
- Fahrvergnügen– The love and pleasure one feels from simply driving around.
- Fisselig– This represents the temporary state of indifference, often caused by human persistence.
- Kabelsalat– Kabelsalat literally means, ‘cable salad’, a good word that describes the contamination of twisted strings.
- Handschuhschneeballwerfer– Handschuhschneeballwerfer is German slang for ‘coward’.
- Kummerspeck– Are you guilty of eating your fill of emotions? That is called ‘grief bacon’ or kummerspeck. The term refers to overeating due to emotional trauma and the excess weight you can gain by overeating.
- Lebensmüde– Lebensmüde is a compound German compound composed of the words leben (life) and müde (fatigue), and literally means ‘living fatigue’.
- Schadenfreude– A feeling of joy and pleasure that comes with seeing another’s misfortune.
- Schilderwald– A street that is so overcrowded and rammed with street signs, that you’re more prone to getting lost rather than finding your way.
- Schlimmbesserung– Something that was meant to be an improvement, but actually makes things worse.
- Schnapsidee– Literally, ‘schnapps’ view, is an absurd scheme that you should have been intoxicated at the time you thought about it..
- Sitzfleisch– Literally, sitzfleisch means ‘sitting flesh’ or ‘sitting flesh’ – in other words, your bottom.
- Torschlusspanik– This beautiful word is used to describe the feeling you feel at some point in your life when you see a thoughtful door closing all your possibilities, and you wonder what it was.
- Treppenwitz– The most useful word that cannot be translated in this list, treppenwitz describes all the things you should have said during the heat but think only when it is too late.
- Waldeinsamkeit– The feeling of being alone in the woods.
- Weichei– Weichei is a German slang word that often refers to a coward. Literally meaning ‘soft egg’, the closest English equivalent would be ‘wimp’.
- Weltschmerz– The literal translation of the word ‘world tribulation’, or ‘world pain’, is the name first coined
- Filotimo (????????)– Philemon is almost impossible to translate but can be summed up as ‘the love of glory’. It describes a person who understands the obligation to him, as a person, to always do what is right and respectful.
- Parea (?????)– In Greek culture, a parea is a group of friends who meet to share life experiences, philosophies, values, and ideas
- Psithurism (????????)– Psithurism is the rustling sound of leaves in the air. It comes from the Greek word psithuros, which means ‘gossip, slander.’
- Pana Po’o– The act of scratching your head in an attempt to remember something you’ve forgotten.
- Akihi– When you ask someone for directions, go, and immediately forget what you said. He went ‘akihi’.
- Chai-Pani (??? ????)–The term ‘Chai-Pani’ literally means, ‘tea and water’, is used to provide welcome drinks and to assist guests in Indian homes.
- Jijivisha (????????)– The Hindi word conveys the idea of ??living a full and satisfying life. The term is generally applied to a person who lives with deep emotions and ambitions, who want to prosper.
- Viraha (????)– Realising you love someone only after you’re separated.
- Elmosolyodni– A kind of smile that forms when something isn’t especially funny, but you can’t help but smile anyway.
- Házisárkány– A nickname for your spouse or better half who is constantly nagging. It literally means an ‘Domestic Dragon’
- Dalalæða– Low fog that builds up after a warm, sunny day. Literally it means, ‘sneaking mist from the bottom of the valley’ or ‘valley-sneak.’’
- Gluggaveður– If the weather looks good on your window, but in fact it is really cold that you need a coat. Gluggaveður literally means ‘window-weather.
- Tima– Being unwilling to spend time or money on a particular thing, even though you can afford it.
- Jayus– A joke so terrible and unfunny that you can’t help but laugh. It’s funny because it’s not funny, kind of like a dad joke.
- Mencolek– A lighthearted prank where you trick someone by tapping their opposite shoulder from where you’re standing in order to fool them.
- Iktsuarpok (????????)– From the Eastern Canadian Inuktitut, one of the major Inuit languages ??in Canada, the Iktsuarpok is an act of going out repeatedly to keep an eye on anyone (anyone) coming.
- Abbiocco– This is one of my favorite words in the roman language. It describes the drowsiness or ‘carb coma’ you feel after eating a large meal.
- Attaccabottoni– Literally, ‘paste the buttons’, attaccabottoni is a conversationalist who locks you in the corner to tell you long, meaningless stories, with endless details about his or her life.
- Mono no aware (????)– Literally ‘traces of things’, also translated as ‘sensitivity to things’.
- Gilchi (??)– What you call a person with a terrible mind and who is always lost..
- Kaapshljmurslis– Kaaphljmurslis is used to describe the uncomfortable feeling of congestion you experience when you are on a bus full of people or a train during a race.
- Nepakartojama– A never-to-be-repeated perfect situation. Directly translated, it means ‘unable to repeat’
- Manja– Manja is a person who shows external love and affection to the person he cares for, such as a spouse, partner, or child, to the point of pampering or spoiling him or her.
- Pisan Zapra– It takes time to eat a banana. That is, about two minutes.
- Papakata– To have one leg shorter than the other.
- Dugnad– It is a kind of public day where Norwegians come together to help clean up their neighborhoods by repairing, cleaning, painting, or tidying up.
- Forelsket– The indescribable joy that you find when you start dating.
- Uffda! / Uff da!– Is it a dynamic interjection and a phrase that basically means ‘Oh, I’m sorry to hear that’
- Do?ywocie– A contract between parents and children, which guarantees lifelong care in exchange for housing and land.
- Formacja– Formacja is used in conversational language to describe a general attitude of a particular generation or period of time.
- Kombinowa?– To do something or to try to solve a problem in an empty and unusual way.
- Anteayer– This single word means ‘the day before yesterday’.
- Chingada– Chingada is an obscene word commonly used in ordinary Mexican Spanish that should not be easily thrown away.
- Encandilar– The aftermath of seeing a sudden bright flash of light, often associated with seeing spots.
- Estrenar– Estrenar means ‘beginning time’ or the beginning of something. It is used to describe the first time you make, wear or use something for the first time.
- Vacinlando– Vacilando is a beautiful Spanish word that describes the journey or knowledge of the journey, more important than the destination.
- Hakuna matata – In the Swahili language, Hakuna matatacan be directly translated to ‘there are no troubles’.
- Badkruka– Someone who feels hesitant or reluctant to swim in the open water due to the low temperature.
- Fika–Fika is a special type of Swedish coffee break that can last for hours and is more about having fun than drinking coffee.
- Gökotta– I adore this beautiful untranslatable Swedish word.
- Harkla– Harkla is an amazing act that means something very similar to ‘clearing the throat’.
- Hinna– Hinna is a common Swedish verb that means ‘to be on time’ ‘to find the time’.
- Jobbig– Jobbig is an all-encompassing word that means troublesome or trying, annoying or difficult.
- Mångata– Mångata refers to a long, wavy, road-like reflection of the moon that often appears on water.
- Orka– This common verb in the Swedish language means ‘to have the energy’.
- Tidsoptimist– Literally, a ‘time optimist’ this is a person who is constantly late because they think they have more time than they actually do.
- Tretår– When two cups of coffee isn’t enough, you go for a second refill or ‘threefill’ of coffee.
- Vobba– Describes the specific action of a parent who takes paid leave to care for his or her sick child but continues to work, for example checking emails or taking calls.
- Vabba– From vobba, comes vabba, an abridged version of vård av barn, which means ‘to be home with the children’
- Gigil– Gigil is an amazing feeling that comes over you when you see something in an unbearable way that you want to squeeze or squeeze. It’s like when your grandmother wants to pinch you when you’re young.
- Oodal– An exaggerated, fake anger that usually follows a quarrel between lovers.
- Ilunga– Pronounced [ee-lun-ga], this is a person who is ready to forgive another person once, tolerate a second time, but not do it a third time.
- Karelu– The mark left on the skin from wearing something tight, such as jeans, socks, or a bra.
- Ci?erpare– This beautiful word literally has Persian origins and literally means ‘liver part’.
- Goya– This Urdu word refers to a feeling of wonder and disbelief that accompanies a particularly realistic fantasy.
- Mamihlapinatapei– Mamihlapinatapai is a meaningful, but wordless exchange between two people, who both desire to initiate something but are hesitant to act on it.
- Shlimazl– A chronically unlucky, usually inept, clumsy person.
- Chutzpah– Is an untranslatable Yiddish word for adopting a ‘don’t-take-no-for-an-answer’ attitude where you’ll build up the guts to do something ballsy.
- Ubuntu– The act of being kind to others because of one’s common humanity.
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