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kvell

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kvell

Definitions

  • feel or express pride, "to be extraordinarily pleased" (JPS)

Example Sentences

  • "I hear your daughter will be singing with the SF Opera! So you're kvelling, of course."

Languages of Origin

Yiddish

Etymology

קװעלן kveln 'to beam (at), be delighted (in)' (verbal stem is קװעל kvel)

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

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).
JPS: The JPS Dictionary of Jewish Words, by Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic, (Philadelphia, 2001)

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