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  • acharon acharon chaviv

    adv. Last but not least.

  • achron

    n. "Latter-day religious authorit[y]... scholar...of the Renaissance and later times[.]" (Glinert).

  • Adar

    n. The sixth month of the Jewish calendar year (or twelfth if counting from Nisan).

  • Adon Olam

    n. A hymn in the traditional Jewish liturgy, usually recited before Shacharit and often sung after services in synagogue, made up of traits attributed to God.

  • afikomen

    n. A piece of matzah from the Pesach seder traditionally hidden by adults, found by the children (or vice versa), and then ransomed for gifts after the meal.

  • aggadah

    n. Parts of the Talmud and Midrash that do not deal with law, including stories, fables, and sayings.

  • Akedah

    n. The binding of Isaac (episode in the Torah)

  • al hanisim

    n. A one-paragraph prayer added to the Amida on Chanukah and Purim.

  • al het

    n. "A Yom Kippur prayer that asks forgiveness for a multitude of sins committed during the previous year" (JPS).

  • al regel achat

    adv. lit. "On one foot"; off-the-cuff; in short; (of a question) "[answered] very briefly and cursorily" (Glinert).

  • al tiftach peh lasatan

    (sentence) "Don't tempt Providence" (Glinert); "Do not tempt fate."

  • Aleinu

    n. "A prayer in praise of God, Aleinu acknowledges the unique relationship between God and the Jewish people" (JPS)

  • aleph-bet

    n. "A name for the Hebrew alphabet" (JPS)

  • aliyah

    n. "Calling to the reading of the Torah." (Glinert)

  • am haaretz

    n. Bumpkin, ignoramus, uneducated person.

  • amen

    interj. Agreed. "The word used at the end of prayer to signify affirmation." (Rosten)

  • Amidah

    n. The Shemoneh Esrei prayer.

  • Anim Zmirot

    n. "A hymn composed of an alphabetic acrostic of 31 lines, generally sung in front of the open ark at the conclusion of the Musaf service on Shabbat." (JPS)

  • apikoros

    n. Heretic, non-believer, especially one with great knowledge of Judaism.

  • Arava

    n. "The dry lowland area of the eastern Negev, often called the Aravah Valley" (JPS)