behema

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Pronunciations

behema (beh-HAY-meh) listen
behema (beh-HAY-muh) listen
behema (beh-hay-MAH) listen

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Definitions

  • n. A boor, an uncouth, unmannered individual.

  • n. An animal, especially a large one.

Example Sentences

  • "I'm shvitzing like a beheyme!"

  • "Stop being such a behema!"

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Languages of Origin

  • Textual Hebrew
  • Yiddish

Etymology

  • Heb בהמה behemá, Yiddish בהמה behéyme 'large domesticated animal; fool, boor'

      • Who Uses This

      • Orthodox: Jews who identify as Orthodox and observe halacha (Jewish law)

      Regions

      • North America
      • Great Britain
      • South Africa

      Dictionaries

      • Yiddish and English: A Century of Yiddish in America, by Sol Steinmetz (Tuscaloosa, 1986).

      Alternative Spellings

      beheyme, beheyma, beheima, beheme, beheime

Notes

  • In some Yiddish dialects, beheyme is the neutral word for a cow (compared with קו ku in other dialects).

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