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  • alte kaker

    n. Elderly person, old-timer; "A crotchety, fussy, ineffectual old man" (Rosten).

  • Ashkenazi

    n. (In plural) "[t]he name given to the group of Jews who were originally from Germany and France [and their descendants]...The Ashkenazim migrated to Central and Eastern Europe during times of oppression" (JPS).

  • Ashkenazic

    adj. Adjectival form for 'Ashkenazim', "The name given to the group of Jews who were originally from Germany and France, and their descendants" (JPS).

  • bagel

    n. "A leavened, firm, doughnut shaped roll" (JPS).

  • bar mitzvah

    n. Jewish coming-of-age ceremony/celebration for a 13-year-old boy; the boy who has come of age.

  • blintz

    n. A folded thin pancake filled with cheese, fruit, or potatoes.

  • bris

    n. Circumcision ceremony; the celebration surrounding it.

  • bupkis

    adv. Nothing.

  • challah

    n. "The braided egg bread that traditionally is eaten on almost every Jewish holiday and [the Sabbath]" (JPS).

  • chuppah

    n. "The Jewish wedding canopy; that is, the cloth under which the Jewish wedding ceremony is conducted." (JPS)

  • chutzpah

    n. Guts (positive).

  • Cohen

    n. "A male descendent of the family of Aaron, of the tribe of Levi. Aaron and his descendants were consecrated to the service of God... in the Tabernacle... in the desert and later the Holy Temple" (Steinmetz). Often poorly translated as "priest," though the term "Levite" or "Aaronite" is more accurate, especially due to Christian usage (Steinmetz).

  • Diaspora

    n. "The term for Jewish communities and their residents who live outside of the State of Israel" (JPS).

  • fatootsed

    adj. Enervated, played out, knackered, terminally fatigued.

  • feigele

    n. Gay man.

  • gefilte fish

    n. Minced sweet or sour fish, cooked in balls or a log and sliced. [lit., "stuffed fish"(JPS), since the chopped fish used to be placed back in the fish for cooking.]

  • gesundheit

    interj. Health. (Bless you) - said in response to a sneeze.

  • glitch

    n. Flaw; slight problem in a process.

  • goy

    n. A nation, but not the Jewish nation.

  • hamentaschen

    n. "Small, triangular-shaped cookies filled with fruit or jam that are eaten on Purim." (JPS)