maven

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Pronunciations

maven (MAY-vin) listen

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Definitions

  • n. "An expert or connoisseur; a specialist." (JPS)

Example Sentences

  • "She's a maven of the history of the synagogue."

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Languages of Origin

  • Textual Hebrew
  • Yiddish

Etymology

  • Yiddish מבֿין meyvn 'expert', from Hebrew מבין mevin 'understands' (singular masculine present tense), 'one who understands'

      • Who Uses This

      • Jews: Jews of diverse religious backgrounds and organizational involvements
      • Non-Jews: (words that have spread outside of Jewish networks)

      Regions

      • North America
      • Great Britain
      • South Africa

      Dictionaries

      • The New Joys of Yiddish, by Leo Rosten and Lawrence Bush (New York, 2003[1968]).
      • 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).

      Alternative Spellings

      meyvn

Notes

  • Can be used to describe someone who claims to be an expert, even though they are not, such as "they think they're a maven in medicine because they live next door to a doctor."

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