Sometimes even the thousands of words in English aren’t adequate to precisely describe something we feel, or see, or think of. New words and phrases are created all the time to fill such gaps (think of the now-common term text message, which would have been meaningless thirty years ago). In addition, we can look to other languages for expressions that say what we want to say, even if there’s no English equivalent. Here are some of the ones we like best:

das Wanderjahr (German): A year of traveling around the world before settling down to a job after university; sometimes also occurring between graduation from secondary school and beginning university classes (the British refer to this as a “gap year”).

Pochemuchka (Russian): Someone with the habit of asking too many questions.

Mamihlapinatapai (Yaghan): According to the Guinness Book of World Records, who list this word as “the most succinct” word ever created, mamihlapinatapai means “a look shared by two people, each wishing that the other will offer something that they both desire but are unwilling to suggest or offer themselves.” Yaghan is a South American language with only one remaining native speaker, a woman named Cristina Calderón.

Waldeinsamkeit (German): The peaceful feeling one gets when wandering alone in the words. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote a poem by this name in 1858 that includes the lines, “Or on the mountain-crest sublime / Or down the oaken glade / O what have I to do with time? / For this the day was made.”

Sobremesa (Spanish): The lazy, relaxed time after the midday meal when you sit around the table and chat with friends long after you’re done eating.

Glas wen (Welsh): Literally “blue smile,” this expression refers to a smile that isn’t friendly, but instead insincere and mocking.

Lagom (Swedish): Precisely the right amount of something.

Meraki (Greek): Putting your heart and soul into what you’re doing, especially if it’s something creative.

Iktsuarpok (Inuit): After meraki has helped you set up a gorgeous dinner table, you might use this word to describe the feeling of anticipation you have when you keep going outside to see if your guests are coming yet.

Wabi sabi (Japanese): The beauty of imperfection.

One of the beauties of the English language is that it never stops growing, so perhaps someday we’ll bring these words into common use and add to the richness of English.