Pronunciations

Definitions

• n. Unlucky person; the constant butt of idiotic or unfortunate happenings.
  

• n. Bad luck, misfortune.
  

Example Sentences

Languages of Origin

• Yiddish
• Textual Hebrew
• German
• Other
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Etymology

• Y שלימזל 'shlimazl', from German schlimm 'bad' and Hebrew מזל 'luck'
  

Who Uses This

• Jews: Jews of diverse religious backgrounds and organizational involvements
• Older: Jews who are middle-aged and older
• Non-Jews: (words that have spread outside of Jewish networks)
• Ashkenazim: Jews with Ashkenazi heritage
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Regions

• North America
• Great Britain
• South Africa
• Australia / New Zealand
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Dictionaries

• The New Joys of Yiddish, by Leo Rosten and Lawrence Bush (New York, 2003[1968]).
• Yiddish and English: A Century of Yiddish in America, by Sol Steinmetz (Tuscaloosa, 1986).
• The JPS Dictionary of Jewish Words, by Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic, (Philadelphia, 2001).
• Dictionary of Jewish Usage: A Popular Guide to the Use of Jewish Terms, by Sol Steinmetz (Lanham, MD, 2005).
• Yinglish: A Lexicon of Judeo-English by Aliza Bulow
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Alternative Spellings

schlemazel, schlemosel, schlemasel, shlemazel, shlimazel, shlimazl, shlemazl, schlimazl, schlemozel, shemozzle, shlemozzle, schemozzle, shlemozel, shlmazl