l'esprit de l'escalier

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l'esprit de l'escalier

A French phrase meaning "the wit of the staircase"; a perfect witty remark, retort, or rejoinder that occurs to one after the fact or too late to be used. (Also written as "l'esprit d'escalier.") I was on the bus home long after being tongue-lashed by my boss when I thought of the perfect things to say that would take him down a few pegs. Ah, l'esprit de l'escalier!

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
DÉSirÉ	de-zee-RE	French
Zebadiah	zeb-ə-DIE-ə (English)	Biblical
Romilda	-	Italian, Ancient Germanic
Artemisios	-	Ancient Greek
Theodosia	-	Ancient Greek, Greek
Renata	re-NAH-tah (Italian, Spanish, German, Polish)	Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Polish, Czech, Croatian, Slovene, Late Roman