esprit d'escalier
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This is especially irritating with regard to Kaur's Bela, who comes off as her creator's wish fulfillment double, the star of endless esprit d'escalier daydreams made real, as opposed to a unique creation.
From Salon • Nov. 18, 2021
To discover now, after our downfall, that Germany ought never to have carried on a continental let alone a world policy, would be a pitiful example of esprit d'escalier.
From The New Society by Windham, Arthur
The French call this "esprit d'escalier" -- the spirit of the staircase, the snappy rebuttals that come to you after you leave the room and slink down the stairs.
From Little Brother by Doctorow, Cory
It was only when I saw him going that it occurred to me that I ought to have offered him tea—but you know the worth of "esprit d'escalier."
From On the Edge of the War Zone From the Battle of the Marne to the Entrance of the Stars and Stripes by Aldrich, Mildred
The opposite of esprit d'escalier is the way that life's embarrassments come back to haunt us even after they're long past.
From Little Brother by Doctorow, Cory
