bracha levatulla

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Definitions

  • n. A waste.

Example Sentences

  • “I spent a whole day trying unsuccessfully to get my passport so I could go to Eretz Yisroel. The entire experience was a bracha levatulla.” (Weiser)

  • "Despite the fact that we don’t have anyone who is not a baki and therefore the Shaliach Tzibbur is not motzi anybody; nevertheless, the tzibbur must answer amein so the tefilla should not be a bracha levatala." (source)

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Languages of Origin

  • Textual Hebrew
  • Yiddish

Etymology

  • TH ברכה לבטלה 'wasted blessing' > Y ברכה־לבֿטלה brokhe levatole

      • Who Uses This

      • Religious: Jews who are engaged in religious observance and have some Jewish education
      • Older: Jews who are middle-aged and older
      • Ashkenazim: Jews with Ashkenazi heritage

      Regions

      • North America

      Dictionaries

      • Yiddish and English: A Century of Yiddish in America, by Sol Steinmetz (Tuscaloosa, 1986).
      • Frumspeak: The First Dictionary of Yeshivish, by Chaim Weiser (Northvale, 1995).

      Alternative Spellings

      brakha levatulla, brachah levatullah, brakhah levatullah, brokhe levatole, broche levatole, brokheh levatoleh, brocheh levatoleh, bracha levatula, brachah levatulah, brakhah levatulah, brakha levatula, bracha levatala, bracha levatalah, brakha levatala, brakha levatalah

Notes

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