Crossword puzzles expect solvers to have a good grasp of general knowledge, but sometimes certain facts just aren’t in our personal wheelhouses.

That’s O.K. We’re here to help you solve … and to help you expand those wheelhouses.

Our latest list of terms you should know to become a better solver turns Wordplay into a French 101 classroom, so that we can brush up on 15 French words that frequently show up in puzzles.

We’ll also show you ways these terms might be clued, so you’ll be able to recognize them the next time they come up. The clues that involve wordplay meant to trick you are bold, to make them easier to spot and so you can learn to think like the puzzle makers.

This is by no means an exhaustive list, but familiarity with all these words will certainly help you out for future solving. Bonne chance!