"ALL IS NOT GLITTER THAT GOLDS!"

OLD 'FRACTURED' IRISH PROVERB!

Yiddish Lesson ?

© - Tom Hyland - 7/17/11


chutzpah:

nerve, guts, daring, audacity, effrontery (Yiddish חוצפּה khutspe, from Hebrew) (AHD)

bupkis (also bupkes, bupkus, bubkis, bubkes):

emphatically nothing, as in He isn't worth bupkis (indeterminate, either 'beans' or 'goat droppings', possibly of Slavic, Vlach, or Greek origin; cf. Polish bobki 'animal droppings')[2] (MW, OED)

ganef or gonif:

thief, scoundrel, rascal (Yiddish גנבֿ ganev or ganef 'thief', from Hebrew גונב gannav). (AHD)

golem:

a man-made humanoid; an android, Frankenstein monster (from Hebrew גולם gōlem, but influenced in pronunciation by Yiddish גוילעם goylem) (OED, MW)

huck;

sometimes "hock," "huk," "hak," etc.: to bother incessantly, to break, or nag; from Hakn a tshaynik: "to knock a teakettle." Frequently used by characters intended to represent residents of New York City, even if not Jewish, in movies and television shows such as Law & Order.

kibitz:

to offer unwanted advice, e.g. to someone playing cards; to converse idly, hence a kibitzer, gossip (Yiddish קיבעצן kibetsn; cf. German kiebitzen, related to Kiebitz 'lapwing') (OED, MW)

klutz:

clumsy person (from Yiddish קלאָץ klots 'wooden beam', cf. German Klotz) (OED, MW)

kvetch:

to complain habitually, gripe; as a noun, a person who always complains (from Yiddish קװעטשן kvetshn 'press, squeeze', cf. German quetschen 'squeeze') (OED, MW)

macher:

big shot, important person (Yiddish מאַכער makher, literally 'maker' from מאַכן makhn 'make', cf. German Macher) (OED)

maven:

expert; when used in a negative sense: a know-it-all (from Yiddish מבֿין meyvn, from Hebrew mevin 'one who understands') (OED, MW)

meshuggener:

a crazy man (Yiddish משוגענער meshugener, a derivative of the above משוגע meshuge) (OED)

narrischkeit:

foolishness, nonsense (Yiddish נאַרישקייט, from nar 'fool', cf. German närrisch 'foolish') (OED)

nebbish:

an insignificant, pitiful person; a nonentity (from Yiddish interjection נעבעך nebekh 'poor thing!', from Czech nebohý) (OED, MW)

noodge, also nudzh:

To pester, nag, whine; as a noun, a pest or whiner (from Yiddish נודיען nudyen, from Polish or Russian) (OED)

nudnik:

a pest, "pain in the neck"; a bore (Yiddish נודניק nudnik, from the above נודיען nudyen; cf. Polish nudne, 'boring') (OED, MW)

pisher:

a nobody, an inexperienced person (Yiddish פּישער pisher, from פּישן pishn 'piss', cf. German pissen or dialectal German pischen) (OED)

putz:

(vulgar) an idiot, a jerk; a penis (from Yiddish פּאָץ pots) (AHD)

schlemiel:

an inept clumsy person; a bungler; a dolt (Yiddish שלעמיל shlemil from Hebrew שלא מועיל "ineffective") (OED, MW)

My Note: Person Spilling the Soup!

schlimazel:

a chronically unlucky person (שלימזל shlimazl, from Middle Dutch slimp 'crooked, bad'—akin to Middle High German slimp 'awry'—and Hebrew מזל mazzāl 'luck', cf. German Schlamassel) (M-W;OED).[6] In June 2004, Yiddish shlimazl was one of the ten non-English words that were voted hardest to translate by a British translation company.[7]

My Note: Person Receiving the Spilled Soup!

schlong:

(vulgar) penis (from Yiddish שלאַנג shlang 'snake'; cf. German Schlange) (OED)

schlub:

a clumsy, stupid, or unattractive person (Yiddish ‬זשלאָב zhlob 'hick', perhaps from Polish żłób) (OED, MW)

schmegeggy:

from Yiddish סטשמעגעגע schmegege meaning "an idiot"; "a dickhead."

schmo:

a stupid person. (an alteration of schmuck; see below) (OED, possibly influenced by Heb. שמו, 'his or its name', indicating either anonymity or euphemism.

schmuck:

(vulgar) a contemptible or foolish person; a jerk; literally means 'penis' (from Yiddish שמאָק shmok 'penis', maybe from Polish smok 'dragon') (AHD)

schnook:

an easily imposed-upon or cheated person, a pitifully meek person, a particularly gullible person, a cute or mischievous person or child (perhaps from Yiddish שנוק shnuk 'snout'; cf. Northern German Schnucke 'sheep') (OED)

tukhus:

buttocks, bottom, rear end (from Yiddish תחת tokhes, from Hebrew תחת taḥath 'underneath') (OED) ... Also;

tush (or tushy):

buttocks, bottom, rear end (from tukhus) (OED, MW)

yutz: a fool (NPD)

SHALOM: 'peace', used to say hello or goodbye. (OED)

DISCLAIMER:

Any resemblance to any person, Living or Dead, Is purely co-incidental!

© - TKH.