טומלערtumler meaning in Yiddish
a historic, affectionate term for a live-wire entertainer or noisemaker who stirs up a crowd (Borscht Belt era) · noun, masculine (די טומלערס)
Also spelled in English: tummler
You won't hear it in Mea Shearim or Brooklyn today, but in the mid-century Catskills hotels, the tumler was the resident comedian whose entire job was to keep guests from getting bored for even a second.
דער נײַער שכן איז אַ טומלער — אַ האַלבע שעה אין הויף, און די גאַנצע גאַס קען אים שוין.
“The new neighbour is a tumler — half an hour in the courtyard and the whole street already knows him.”
If you grew up with Jewish-American elders, you might remember this kind of character: the uncle who never entered a room without making a scene.
Yiddish words for people and charactersYiddish words for music, parties and entertainment
Published 17 September 2026