segula

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Pronunciations

segula (seh-GOO-luh) listen

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Definitions

  • n. A folk remedy, safeguard, superstitious action, talisman.

  • n. A divinely bestowed reward as a result of an individual's participation in a minhag or mitzvah.

Example Sentences

  • "The mitzvah of proper burial is such a holy one. Our Rabbis tell us it is a sgula for long life to buy a burial plot (to be used after 120 years)." (source)

  • "We have a Minhag to give out a small bag with salt as a Segula for Hashem to guard us, we put it in our pocket. or Tefillin bag. Is this Avoda Zara, or superstition?" (source)

  • "Did she really ask you for a segula for an easy labor?" (Glinert)

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Languages of Origin

  • Textual Hebrew
  • Yiddish

Etymology

  • TH סגולה segulá > Y סגולה zgúle

      • Who Uses This

      • Orthodox: Jews who identify as Orthodox and observe halacha (Jewish law)
      • Older: Jews who are middle-aged and older
      • Ashkenazim: Jews with Ashkenazi heritage

      Regions

      • North America
      • Australia / New Zealand
      • South Africa

      Dictionaries

      • Yiddish and English: A Century of Yiddish in America, by Sol Steinmetz (Tuscaloosa, 1986).
      • The Joys of Hebrew, by Lewis Glinert (New York, 1992).

      Alternative Spellings

      zgule, sgule, skula, s'gulah, s'gula, sgula, segulah

Notes

  • plural: 'segulot' or 'sgules'

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