List of Use context as a clue to the meanings of foreign expressions

No.	Expression	Language	Meaning (in context)
1	ad hoc	Latin	For a specific purpose
2	à la carte	French	Individual items priced separately
3	à la mode	French	In fashion; or with ice cream (US)
4	alma mater	Latin	School one graduated from
5	avant-garde	French	New and unusual ideas (especially in the arts)
6	bon appétit	French	Enjoy your meal
7	bon voyage	French	Have a good trip
8	carpe diem	Latin	Seize the day
9	caveat emptor	Latin	Buyer beware
10	cliché	French	Overused expression
11	coup d’état	French	Sudden overthrow of government
12	déjà vu	French	Feeling of having seen something before
13	en route	French	On the way
14	esprit de corps	French	Team spirit
15	et cetera (etc.)	Latin	And the rest
16	faux pas	French	Social mistake
17	habeas corpus	Latin	Legal right to appear in court
18	hors d’oeuvres	French	Appetizers
19	in loco parentis	Latin	In place of a parent
20	in medias res	Latin	In the middle of things
21	joie de vivre	French	Joy of living
22	laissez-faire	French	Let it be; no interference
23	modus operandi	Latin	Method of working
24	nom de plume	French	Pen name
25	per capita	Latin	Per person
26	per se	Latin	In itself
27	prima facie	Latin	At first glance
28	pro bono	Latin	Done for free
29	quid pro quo	Latin	Something in return
30	rendezvous	French	Meeting place
31	résumé	French	Summary of qualifications
32	RSVP	French	Please respond (to an invitation)
33	savoir-faire	French	Ability to act appropriately
34	status quo	Latin	The current situation
35	terra firma	Latin	Solid ground
36	tête-à-tête	French	Private conversation
37	tour de force	French	An impressive achievement
38	vis-à-vis	French	In relation to; face-to-face
39	zeitgeist	German	Spirit of the time
40	déjà entendu	French	Feeling of having heard it before
41	mutatis mutandis	Latin	With necessary changes
42	mea culpa	Latin	My fault
43	enfant terrible	French	A shocking or unruly person
44	doppelgänger	German	A lookalike
45	pièce de résistance	French	The most important dish or item
46	je ne sais quoi	French	A special something you can’t explain
47	laissez passer	French	Permit or pass
48	lingua franca	Latin	Common language between speakers
49	raison d’être	French	Reason for existence
50	savoir vivre	French	Knowing how to live well
51	sine qua non	Latin	Essential element
52	sub rosa	Latin	Secretly
53	tête d’affiche	French	Star performer or headliner
54	après-ski	French	Activities after skiing
55	coup de grâce	French	Final blow
56	carte blanche	French	Complete freedom to act
57	enfant prodige	French	Child prodigy
58	double entendre	French	Phrase with two meanings (often risqué)
59	fait accompli	French	Something already done
60	film noir	French	Dark, mysterious crime movie
61	haute couture	French	High fashion
62	laissez-aller	French	Carelessness
63	locum tenens	Latin	Substitute doctor
64	modus vivendi	Latin	Way of living
65	nolo contendere	Latin	No contest (legal plea)
66	non sequitur	Latin	Illogical statement
67	panache	French	Style and flair
68	persona non grata	Latin	Unwelcome person
69	post mortem	Latin	After death
70	prima donna	Italian	Very demanding person
71	quidnunc	Latin	Gossip or busybody
72	schadenfreude	German	Pleasure from others’ misfortune
73	tête-à-tête	French	One-on-one talk
74	tour de force	French	An impressive achievement
75	veni, vidi, vici	Latin	I came, I saw, I conquered
76	vox populi	Latin	Voice of the people
77	ad nauseam	Latin	To the point of annoyance
78	alter ego	Latin	Other self
79	bête noire	French	Something you hate or fear
80	cause célèbre	French	Famous controversial case
81	coup de foudre	French	Love at first sight
82	deus ex machina	Latin	Sudden solution
83	entre nous	French	Just between us
84	ex officio	Latin	By virtue of office
85	idée fixe	French	Obsession
86	in vino veritas	Latin	Truth comes out when drinking
87	inter alia	Latin	Among other things
88	joie de vivre	French	Love of life
89	le mot juste	French	The perfect word
90	memento mori	Latin	Reminder of death
91	mirabile dictu	Latin	Wonderful to say
92	noblesse oblige	French	Privilege brings responsibility
93	persona	Latin	Social face
94	pièce d’occasion	French	Special piece for an event
95	sang-froid	French	Coolness under pressure
96	sic transit gloria mundi	Latin	Thus passes worldly glory
97	tabula rasa	Latin	Blank slate
98	tempus fugit	Latin	Time flies
99	tout de suite	French	Right away
100	vis-à-vis	French	In relation to

let’s practice!