yetzer hara
Pronunciations
Definitions
Lit. 'The evil inclination.'
Example Sentences
"The yetzer hara is particularly strong during thesis work." (A thesis advisor in regard to working on one's thesis)
"The yetzer tov is good, but the yetzer hara is very good, because without it a man wouldn't marry, procreate or go into business." Talmud Ber 61b.
Languages of Origin
- Textual Hebrew
Etymology
יצר הרע
- Orthodox: Jews who identify as Orthodox and observe halacha (Jewish law)
- North America
- Great Britain
- South Africa
- Australia / New Zealand
- View More
- Yiddish and English: A Century of Yiddish in America, by Sol Steinmetz (Tuscaloosa, 1986).
- The JPS Dictionary of Jewish Words, by Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic, (Philadelphia, 2001).
- The Joys of Hebrew, by Lewis Glinert (New York, 1992).
Who Uses This
Regions
Dictionaries
Alternative Spellings
yeytser hore
Notes
Commonly used to refer to sexual urges.
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