Advertisement

What are ‘untranslatable’ words?

Language necessarily evolves to accommodate new ideas, new concepts and new cultural paradigms. B...

Share this article

15.22 26 Mar 2025


What are ‘untranslatable’ words?


Listen to this episode


Share this article

15.22 26 Mar 2025


Language necessarily evolves to accommodate new ideas, new concepts and new cultural paradigms.

But, what happens when a word exists in one language, but not another?

There are lots of so-called ‘untranslatable’ words in English, and some Irish ones have been added to the latest version of the Oxford English Dictionary.

Fiona McPherson is Senior Editor at the Oxford English Dictionary and joins Seán to discuss.


Read more about

Moncrieff Highlights

Related Episodes

How to do Stuff: Naming a pet

00:14:58

How to do Stuff: Naming a pet

The Hard Shoulder

00:14:58


Meghann Scully on the final ep...

00:10:30

Meghann Scully on the final episode of ‘28 Ways to Save the World’

The Hard Shoulder

00:10:30


Jack Whitehall on his new dark...

00:11:02

Jack Whitehall on his new dark comedy ‘The Burbs’

The Hard Shoulder

00:11:02


Sport with John Duggan: World...

00:07:49

Sport with John Duggan: World Cup Hangover

The Hard Shoulder

00:07:49