bubbe

Pronunciations

Definitions

  • n. Grandmother.

Example Sentences

  • "My bubbe makes the greatest cabbage soup."

Languages of Origin

  • Yiddish

Etymology

  • באָבע bobe 'old woman, grandmother' (plural באָבעס bobes)

    • Who Uses This

      • Ashkenazim: Jews with Ashkenazi heritage

      Regions

      • North America
      • Australia / New Zealand
      • Great Britain
      • South Africa

      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).

      Alternative Spellings

      bobi, booba, bubah, buba, baubie, boobah, bubba, buba, boby, bobie, bobe, bubby, bubbie, bubbee, bubi, babi, bobber

Notes

  • See also zaidie and savta.

    Also used as a term of endearment for children, as in bubbale.

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