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Somebody said this phrase in some political conversation on the radio, and I can't find the definition of what does the word caché mean in English.

If you search in the google books, you will find a lot of uses of the phrase without an acute accent. But it was pronounced as if it had an accent.

The dictionaries have the meaning of cache as store of things, but this isn't it.

The French word caché means hidden as a verb form.

  • What does the word caché mean in English?
  • Can it be used in the contexts other than political caché?
  • Is political caché an idiom?

I think, the word means behind the scenes. But I couldn't find the definition.

Here is where the term is used: This was certainly an indication that her political caché still had viability.

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  • Please provide some examples of your word in the context of full sentences.
    – Lawrence
    Commented Feb 20, 2016 at 5:55
  • The example I found in the book with this exact spelling: This was certainly an indication that her political caché still had viability. (books.google.com/…)
    – Grammar Addict
    Commented Feb 20, 2016 at 6:21
  • Good - that helps and it should be edited into the question. Comments are considered to be ephemeral on this site, and they are subject to deletion with little to no notice. The actual question posts and answer posts are treated with more care. (By the way, Jeremy's answer fits the usage in your example.)
    – Lawrence
    Commented Feb 20, 2016 at 6:53
  • "Cachet", in the above sense (and as suggested by Jeremy), means prestige or credibility. That seems to fit the quoted context.
    – Hot Licks
    Commented Feb 20, 2016 at 20:13
  • "Cachet" fits the quote after the misspelling is corrected.
    – Grammar Addict
    Commented Feb 20, 2016 at 21:29

2 Answers 2

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There's a very good reason you couldn't find caché: It's because the word is actually cachet. In this case, it refers to "a superior status", which is the only way I ever hear this word being used. Someone with cachet is someone who can get things done, whose opinion is respected and whose wishes are obeyed.

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  • I see, I didn't know this word. And pronunciation seems non-standard. What confused me is that one of the search results actually has caché with an accent. Thanks!
    – Grammar Addict
    Commented Feb 19, 2016 at 20:57
  • @GrammarAddict Words with french origin are sometimes pronounced that way, such as fillet.
    – Jeremy
    Commented Feb 19, 2016 at 21:00
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    Pronunciation of fillet goes both ways!
    – Brian Donovan
    Commented Feb 19, 2016 at 21:08
  • @GrammarAddict: it's entirely possible (probable, even) that you're not the first to make this mistake, hence the search result. (Which is one of the many reasons why Google Is Not General Reference.)
    – Marthaª
    Commented Feb 19, 2016 at 21:10
  • Without the entirety of the context of the speech/talk, you cannot jump to the conclusion that it's cachet/caché in the cachet sense. It very well could be a very French person talking English and saying the French cache word instead.
    – Sakatox
    Commented Feb 19, 2016 at 21:21
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In such context, "cachet" proposed by @Jeremy would mean "charm", "character". I am not sure that this word matches with a political debate.

The expression is perhaps political cliché.

For example: The phrase ‘hard-working families’ is the most loathed political cliché, according to the results of a new poll. [source: Top ten political clichés revealed]

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  • It would? Where did you get that definition? It's not in either of the dictionaries I checked.
    – Peter Shor
    Commented Feb 19, 2016 at 23:56
  • @PeterShor - I was refering to one of the sense of this word (in French usage) having the best fit with the circumstances.
    – Graffito
    Commented Feb 20, 2016 at 0:21

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