gevald

Definitions

• an interjection of alarm

Example Sentences

• "Gevald! Why did you put that slimy thing in my sleeping bag?!"

Languages of Origin

• Yiddish

Etymology

• גװאַלד gvald 'violence, force; help!'

Who Uses This

• Older: Jews who are middle-aged and older
• Ashkenazim: Jews with Ashkenazi heritage

Regions

• North America

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).
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Alternative Spellings

gevalt, oy gevald, oy gevalt