Yiddish Word of the Day
One word at a time — with how it's pronounced, what it actually means, a sentence you might really hear, and an illustration. New word most days.
Also: Modern Hebrew · Biblical Hebrew
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Yiddish insults and put-downs · 10Yiddish words for people and characters · 24Yiddish words for complaining and trouble · 7Yiddish words for feelings and moods · 11Yiddish words for family and home · 11Yiddish words for food and drink · 5Yiddish words for money, bargains and work · 5Yiddish blessings and sayings · 6Yiddish words from Jewish life and tradition · 7Yiddish words for talking and gossip · 8Yiddish words for mess and confusion · 9Yiddish words for music, parties and entertainment · 4Everyday Yiddish verbs · 13
קיבעצער
kibetser
kibitzer, an onlooker who offers unwanted advice
24 Oct 2026
לאַנדסמאַן
landsman
someone from your own hometown back in the old country
23 Oct 2026
פֿאַרקאָכט
farkokht
smitten, deeply engrossed
22 Oct 2026
גלוסטן זיך
glustn zikh
to crave, to have a yen for
21 Oct 2026
פֿרעסער
freser
glutton
20 Oct 2026
שלאָטע
shlote
slush, sleet, foul wet weather
19 Oct 2026
נחת
nakhes
pride and joy, especially from one's children
18 Oct 2026
מכּה
make
a plague; sarcastically, nothing at all
17 Oct 2026
זאַווערוכע
zaverukhe
blizzard; (figuratively) turmoil, upheaval
16 Oct 2026
אויסגעלאָסן
oysgelosn
dissolute, licentious, debauched
15 Oct 2026
שעלטן
sheltn
to curse, to swear
14 Oct 2026
אָפּגעשלאָגענע הושענא
opgeshlogene hoshane
a worn-out has-been, someone completely beaten down
13 Oct 2026
שאַכער־מאַכער
shakher-makher
wheeler-dealer
12 Oct 2026
צאַצקע
tsatske
toy; (ironic) a fine little specimen
11 Oct 2026
פֿאַרכמאַרעט
farkhmaret
overcast, clouded over (of sky or of a person)
10 Oct 2026
וואַלגערן זיך
valgern zikh
to loll about, to lie around (used for loafing people or strewn clutter)
8 Oct 2026
האָרעווען
horeven
to toil, to slave away at something
7 Oct 2026
שמענדריק
shmendrik
an ineffectual nobody; a nebbishy small-fry nobody takes seriously
6 Oct 2026
פֿרײלעכס
freylekhs
a fast klezmer dance tune — the kind that empties the chairs
5 Oct 2026
שיכּור
shiker
drunkard, drunk
3 Oct 2026
אָנגעשטאָפּט
ongeshtopt
stuffed full
2 Oct 2026
פֿאַרקנאַקט
farknakt
smitten, head-over-heels, crazy about someone
1 Oct 2026
באַדכן
badkhn
wedding jester; the hired rhymester who emceed, joked and improvised verses at a wedding (historical — no longer used in everyday speech)
30 Sept 2026
גזירה
gezeyre
a harsh decree; in speech, an outrageous imposition, a 'who ordered this?!'
29 Sept 2026
שטום
shtum
silent, quiet, speechless
28 Sept 2026
שנאָרער
shnorer
a professional moocher; a man who has raised sponging off others to a proud craft
27 Sept 2026
שאָקל
shokl
a shake, a sway
26 Sept 2026
זשלאָב
zhlob
a crude, loud boor; a man with no manners and no volume control (historical — no longer used in everyday speech)
25 Sept 2026
היימיש
heymish
homey, unpretentious, homemade-comfortable
23 Sept 2026
מאַשקע (משקה)
mashke
booze, liquor, the hard stuff
22 Sept 2026
קאָכלעפֿל
kokhlefl
busybody; the one who stirs things up in the family (literally: cooking spoon)
21 Sept 2026
איבערקערעניש
iberkerenish
upheaval
20 Sept 2026
שונד
shund
trashy melodrama; cheap crowd-pleasing schlock
18 Sept 2026
טומלער
tumler
a historic, affectionate term for a live-wire entertainer or noisemaker who stirs up a crowd (Borscht Belt era)
17 Sept 2026
ברויגז
broyges
on the outs with someone; in a state of mutual not-speaking
16 Sept 2026
מציאה
metsie
a bargain, a real find
15 Sept 2026
פּישער
pisher
a squirt; someone too young or too small to be taken seriously (literally: a bed-wetter)
14 Sept 2026
געזונטערהייט
gezunterheyt
in good health; enjoy it in health
13 Sept 2026
חלשן
khaleshn
to faint; (colloquially) to be dying for something, to have a fit
11 Sept 2026
בענקשאַפֿט
benkshaft
longing, the ache of missing something far away
9 Sept 2026
חבֿרה־מאַן
khevreman
a sociable fellow, one of the boys, the guy who knows everybody
8 Sept 2026
קוועטשן
kvetshn
to complain, to squeeze, to whine
7 Sept 2026
מזיק
mazik
a little devil; a mischievous, adored child
6 Sept 2026
שוויצער
shvitser
a braggart, a show-off
3 Sept 2026
אָנשיקעניש
onshikenish
a nuisance or pest foisted on you (as if by fate)
2 Sept 2026
חן
kheyn
charm, grace, magnetic appeal
1 Sept 2026
פֿאַרשפּילט
farshpilt
lost (through one's own play — gambled or squandered away)
31 Aug 2026
צרה / צורה / צורעס
tsore
trouble, problem, woe
30 Aug 2026
יאַכנע
yakhne
a nosy, gossipy busybody (usually a woman)
29 Aug 2026
בלאָנדזשען
blondzhen
to wander around lost, to lose one's way
28 Aug 2026
פֿאַרחולמט
farkholemt
lost in a daydream; mentally somewhere else
27 Aug 2026
בלאָטע
blote
mud (and, by extension, worthless nonsense)
26 Aug 2026
שטיפֿער
shtifer
a mischievous, restless child; a little rascal
25 Aug 2026
שייגעץ / שקצים
sheygets
an irreligious or brazenly transgressive young man; an unruly, unrefined fellow (literally: a non-Jewish youth)
22 Aug 2026
קרעכצן
krekhtsn
to groan, to moan (usually while complaining)
21 Aug 2026
פּעקל
pekl
little bundle (also: one's load of troubles)
20 Aug 2026
פֿאַרפֿרומט
farfrumt
gone overly pious; turned super-observant (with a side-eye)
19 Aug 2026
קיין עין־הרע
keyn ayn-hore
a protective phrase said after praise, warding off the evil eye
16 Aug 2026
בעל־בוסטע
baleboste
excellent homemaker, bossy woman, matriarch
14 Aug 2026
גרינער
griner
a newcomer, a greenhorn immigrant
12 Aug 2026
קעסט
kest
room and board provided to a young couple by the in-laws after the wedding
11 Aug 2026
כּפּרה
kapore
Atonement; sacrifice
10 Aug 2026
מאַכעטיינעסטע
makheteyneste
co-mother-in-law, busybody
8 Aug 2026
האַרציק
hartzik
heartfelt, warm, cordial
4 Aug 2026
מזל
mazl
luck, fortune, constellation
3 Aug 2026
פֿאַרבײַטן
farbaytn
to confuse, mix up, swap
2 Aug 2026
שלעפּן
shlepn
to drag, to haul, to trudge
1 Aug 2026
כּוח
koyekh
strength, energy, vigor
31 Jul 2026
פֿאַרדרײען
fardreyen
to twist someone's mind / to confuse or bamboozle
30 Jul 2026
פּלאָנטערן
plontern
to tangle, muddle, or make a mess of things
29 Jul 2026
פּלאַפּלען
plaplen
to babble, to chatter endlessly
28 Jul 2026
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