alrightnik

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Pronunciations

alrightnik (awl-RYET-nik) listen

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Definitions

  • n. A successful person who shows off in a boastful way; a parvenu.

Example Sentences

  • "The rabbi came to a rich Jew and asked for a contribution to the poor. The alrightnik refused. 'They are nothing but lazy loafers! Their poverty is their own fault!'" (NJY)

  • "It is a response both mocking and affectionate, not simple hostility but something much more complicated and knowing: the tenement crowd observing, with mixed amusement and suspicion, the rise of an alrightnik [nouveau riche in Yiddish] to Park Avenue." (source)

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Languages of Origin

  • Yiddish
  • English

Etymology

  • Yiddish אָלרײַטניק olraytnik from English 'alright' as in someone who has done 'alright' for themselves

      • 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]).

      Alternative Spellings

      alrightnikeh, alrightnitseh, alrightnitse, alrightnike, alrightnick, allrightnik, allrightnick, alrightnikseh, alrightnikse, olraytnik, olraytnikeh, olraytnike, olreitnik, olreytnik, olraytnik, olraytnitse, olreytnitse, olreytnitseh, olraytnitseh, olreitnise, olreitniseh, olraitnitse, olraitnitseh

Notes

  • masculine: 'alrightnik'
    feminine: 'alrightnikeh'

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