af shpilkes

Edit

Pronunciations

af shpilkes (AHF SHPIL-kuhs) listen

Record a Pronunciation

Definitions

  • adj., adv. On pins and needles.

Example Sentences

  • "When a candidate is feeling awkward and zitsin [sitting] oyf shpilkes -- sitting on pins and needles, it's best not to makhn a tsimis -- make a big deal about a subject they know little or nothing about." (source)

    Listen to recordings of this sentence: ( Recording 1)

Record a Sentence

Languages of Origin

  • Yiddish

Etymology

  • אױף שפּילקעס oyf shpilkes, lit. 'on pins'

      • Who Uses This

      • 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).

      Alternative Spellings

      oyf shpilkes

Notes

Edit     Something missing from this entry? Inaccurate? Feel free to suggest an edit.

Share this word: