Literally “good luck,” (well, literally, “good constellation”) but it’s a congratulation for what just happened, not a hopeful wish for what might happen in the future. Reminds you of certain chronic complainers, doesn’t it? But it’s also used on Yiddish web pages for “click” (Click Here). In popular English, kvetch means “complain, whine or fret,” but in Yiddish, kvetsh literally means “to press or squeeze,” like a wrong-sized shoe. I simply am restricted from eating it.” In English, when you hear something that seems suspicious or shady, you might say, “That doesn’t sound kosher.” An observant Jew might add, “Both pork and shellfish are doubtlessly very tasty. Food that Orthodox Jews don’t eat – pork, shellfish, etc. Other Jews may also “eat kosher” on some level but are not required to. Something that’s acceptable to Orthodox Jews, especially food. Literally means “a block of wood,” so it’s often used for a dense, clumsy or awkward person. It didn’t originally mean giving unwanted advice about someone else’s game – that’s an American innovation. In Yiddish, it’s spelled kibets, and it’s related to the Hebrew “kibbutz” or “collective.” But it can also mean verbal joking, which after all is a collective activity. Putting mayonnaise on a pastrami sandwich on white bread is even more goyish. Putting mayonnaise on a pastrami sandwich is goyish. As in Hebrew, one Gentile is a goy, many Gentiles are goyim, the non-Jewish world in general is “the goyim.” Goyish is the adjective form. More polite than bupkes, and also implies a strong sense of nothing used in phrases such as “gornisht helfn” (beyond help).Ī non-Jew, a Gentile. Literally “slip,” “skate,” or “nosedive,” which was the origin of the common American usage as “a minor problem or error.” In English, chutzpah often connotes courage or confidence, but among Yiddish speakers, it is not a compliment.Īn expression of disgust or disapproval, representative of the sound of spitting. Nerve, extreme arrogance, brazen presumption. “After all the work I did, I got bupkes!” Bubkes or bobkes may be related to the Polish word for “beans”, but it really means “goat droppings” or “horse droppings.” It’s often used by American Jews for “trivial, worthless, useless, a ridiculously small amount” – less than nothing, so to speak. Bubele is a similarly affectionate word, though it isn’t in Yiddish dictionaries. It means Grandmother, and bobeshi is the more affectionate form. Today, Yiddish is the language of over 100 newspapers, magazines, radio broadcasts, and websites.Ī good homemaker, a woman who’s in charge of her home and will make sure you remember it. In the 1930s, Yiddish was spoken by more than 10 million people, but by 1945, 75% of them were gone. There is no universally accepted transliteration or spelling the standard YIVO version is based on the Eastern European Klal Yiddish dialect, while many Yiddish words found in English came from Southern Yiddish dialects. You might be surprised to learn how much Yiddish you already speak, but also, how many familiar words actually mean something different in real Yiddish. Jewish scriptwriters introduced many Yiddish words into popular culture, which often changed the original meanings drastically. This article is a follow up on Ten Yiddish Expressions You Should Know. The Yiddish language is a wonderful source of rich expressions, especially terms of endearment (and of course, complaints and insults).
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