Savoir Faire: 1,000+ Foreign Words & Phrases You Should Know to Sound Smart
About this ebook
Some foreign phrases are so good they become a sort of lingua franca. They capture the true zeitgeist, where the English translation is just comme ci, comme ca. If you’re a linguistics geek or language lover with a curiosity about the origins of foreign words and phrases, you need this beautifully designed reference that includes approximately 1,000 foreign phrases in languages that run the gamut from French to German to Japanese, Arabic, Sanskrit, and more.
Entries offer precise translations, surprising origins, and commonly used terms you didn’t even know were foreign. (You may even find a phrase or two that you’ve been using incorrectly!) Also included are phonetic pronunciations and sidebars that explore the quirks of some favorite expressions.
Don’t suffer one more trip to the museum asking yourself, “What the heck is trompe l’oeil?” Don’t put down yet another Umberto Eco novel out of sheer confusion. And avoid tumbling into the camp of declasse—instead, become one of the intelligentsia! This handy guide will make you a true cognoscente of culture.
Praise for Laura Lee
“Lee’s dry, humorous tone makes her a charming companion . . . She has a penchant for wordplay that is irresistible.” —San Francisco Chronicle
Ratings and reviews
About the author
Laura Lee (Rochester Hills, MI) is the author of fifteen books, which include Schadenfreude, Baby!, Blame It on the Rain: How Weather Has Changed History, and Broke is Beautiful: Living and Loving in the Cash-Strapped Life. She is best known for her humorous reference, The Pocket Encyclopedia of Aggravation. The San Francisco Chronicle has said of her work: "Lee's dry, humorous tone makes her a charming companion... She has a penchant for wordplay that is irresistible." Laura brings an eclectic background that includes time spent as a radio announcer, an improvisational comic, and a professional mime. After a three-year stint as a part-time touring public relations director for a Russian ballet company, Laura has returned to her native Michigan where she divides her time between writing and producing ballet educational tours with Russian ballet star Valery Lantratov. More information about Laura can be found at her website: lauraleeauthor.wordpress.com
