Expressions of Foreign Origin

“Hasta la vista, baby,” as Arnold Schwarzenegger said in the movie. (or was it The Eliminator, The Eradicator or …? Whatever!) before he pulled the trigger on the bad guy. Of course, what he meant was, “So long, darling!”, but in spanish. But the term has become so widespread that it’s now standard English usage.

Here are some other foreign expression which have found their way into the English language :

• Au pair = French; usually a young foreign girl hired as a nanny to take care of young children; the au pair was German.
• Babushka = Russian; 1. a woman’s scraf, often triangular, used as a hood with two of the endstied under the chin; 2. an eldery Russian woman, esp. an eldery grandmother.
• Carpe diem = Latin: Seize the day; enjoy the present. Carpe diem! Don’t worry about tomorrow!
• Coup d’etat = French: a sudden and decisive action in politics, esp. one resulting in a change of government illegally or by force.
• Cul-de-sac = French: 1. street, lane, etc., closed at one end;blind alley;dead-end street; 2. any situation in which further progress is impossible: it’s useless to do anything;the situation is a cul-de-sac!
• Fait accompli = French: an accomplished fact;a thing already done: The election of the new president was afait accompli long before the polls began.
• Hasta la vista = Spanish: Until I see you; until we meet;so long.
• Lingua Franca = Latin : any languages that is widely used as a means of communications among speakers of other languages: The lingua franca in Singapore is English.
• Pied-a-terre = French: a residence, as an apartment, for part-time or temporary use;He has hired a pied-a-terre downtown.
• Pret-a-porter = French: ready-to-wear clothing: The designer specialize in pret-a-porter.
• Quid pro quo = Latin: one thing is return for another, something that is given or taken in return for something else: You can stay in my apartment. But as a quid pro quo. I can use your car,OK?
• Sang-froid = French: coolness of mind; calmness; composure: The murdered killed the woman with complete sang-froid.
• Vamoose = Spanish: to leave hurriedly or quickly: The hoodlums vamoosed when the police arrived.
• Vendetta = Italian: any prolonged and bitter feud or rivalry: The two neighboring families have been carrying on a vendetta for more than four decades.
• Veni, Vidi, Vici = Latin: I came, I saw, I conguered: when the visiting team won the game, they shouted: “veni, vidi, vici”.
• Yin & yang = Chinese: (In Chinese philosophy and religion) two principles, one negative, dark and feminine (yin), and one positive, bright and masculin (yang), whose interaction influences the destinies of creatures and things: In everything we do or make, we have to consider the yin and yang of things.

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