je ne sais quoi

American  

[zhuh n^uh se kwa] / ʒə nə sɛ ˈkwa /

noun

French.

1. an indefinable, elusive quality, especially a pleasing one.

   She has a certain je ne sais quoi that charms everybody.

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je ne sais quoi British  

/ ʒənsekwa /

noun

1. an indefinable quality, esp of personality

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je ne sais quoi Cultural  

1. That little something; a quality that eludes description: “The Mona Lisa's smile has a certain je ne sais quoi.” From French, meaning “I don't know what.”

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Usage

What does je ne sais quoi mean? Je ne sais quoi literally means "I don't know what" in French. The phrase was borrowed into English as an expression of a quality that makes something or someone attractive, distinctive, or special in some way, but is hard to put into words.

Etymology

Origin of je ne sais quoi

Literally, “I don't know what”

Example Sentences

Influencers and brands are attempting to cash in by bottling and selling Carolyn’s unreplicable je ne sais quoi.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026

What we learn is that Fury owes his entire je ne sais quoi to these creatures.

From New York Times • Jul. 17, 2023

It requires a certain je ne sais quoi.

From BBC • Jul. 5, 2023

Others gravitate to rooms with views, or dishes with a French je ne sais quoi.

From Washington Post • Jan. 24, 2023

Those whose fables and metaphors, whose similes, and soliloquies, whose diction and je ne sais quoi daily slip into your survival soup, by way of their fingers.

From "Krik? Krak!" by Edwidge Danticat