yontif

Definitions

• a Jewish holiday, especially one on which work is prohibited (in contrast to chol hamoed)

Example Sentences

• "Where will you be for yontef?"

Languages of Origin

• Textual Hebrew
• Yiddish

Etymology

• Heb יום טוב yom tov 'lit. good day; holiday', Yiddish יום־טובֿ yóntev

Who Uses This

• Religious: Jews who are engaged in religious observance and have some Jewish education
• Ashkenazim: Jews with Ashkenazi heritage

Regions

• North America

Dictionaries

• The New Joys of Yiddish, by Leo Rosten and Lawrence Bush (New York, 2003[1968]).
• 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).
• View More

Alternative Spellings

yontef, yomtov, yomtev, yontev, yom tov

Notes

• More common among Orthodox Jews.