Word of the Day

: November 5, 2007

manqué

adjective mahng-KAY (the "ng" is not pronounced, but the preceding vowel i

What It Means

: short of or frustrated in the fulfillment of one's aspirations or talents -- used postpositively

manqué in Context

Clarke has a remarkable gift for drawing, but unless he applies himself, he'll always be an artist manqué.

Did You Know?

The etymology of "manqué" is likely to vex left-handers. English speakers picked up "manqué" directly from French more than two centuries ago, and it ultimately comes from Latin "manco," meaning "having a crippled hand." But in between the Latin and French portions of this word's history came the Italian word "manco," which means both "lacking" and "left-handed." Lefties may be further displeased to learn that "manqué" isn't the only English word with a history that links left-handedness with something undesirable. For example, the word "awkward" comes from "awke," a Middle English word meaning both "turned the wrong way" and "left-handed." And the noun "gawk" ("a clumsy stupid person") probably comes from a "gawk" that means "left-handed" in English dialect.