neshama

Alternative Spellings

neshome, neshume

Definitions

• soul

Example Sentences

• "He already has such a Jewish neshama." (upon hearing of the news of a friend who finally converted to Judaism)

Languages of Origin

Textual Hebrew, Yiddish

Etymology

Heb נשמה neshamá, Yiddish neshóme

Who Uses This

Religious: Jews who are engaged in religious observance and have some Jewish education

Regions

North America

Dictionaries

The JPS Dictionary of Jewish Words, by Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic, (Philadelphia, 2001).
The Joys of Hebrew, by Lewis Glinert (New York, 1992).