putz

Alternative Spellings

pots, puts, potz

Definitions

• "A fool, an ass, a jerk." (Rosten) [lit. "penis"]

Example Sentences

• Al D'amato called Chuck Schumer a putz-head in a private meeting. He said afterwards, "The Yiddish word I used to describe you at a private meeting means fool...I stand by my remark 100%."

Languages of Origin

Yiddish

Etymology

פּאָץ pots '(vulgar) penis; fool'

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

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)