Showing 174 of 174 words, page 1 of 1
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a nechtiker tog
1. an impossible occurrence 2. Not on your life! 3. Whom is he trying to kid? 4. forget about it!
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abi gezunt
"As long as you're healthy [you can be happy]."
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aleichem sholom
Peace be upon you. Response to "sholom aleichem"
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alte bubby
old woman, great-grandmother
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alte haym
Eastern Europe (lit. "the old home")
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alte kaker
elderly person, old-timer [literally "old shitter"] "A crotchety, fussy, ineffectual old man." (Rosten)
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altz iz gut
"All is well."
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aroisgevorfene gelt
"a waste of money"; lit., thrown out money.
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asina
Just like this/that, thus, in this manner. Such, even if.
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baitsim
balls, testicles, lit. 'eggs'
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balaboosta
1) Female head of household 2) Impressively competent homemaker
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bashert
JPS: "Predestined, fated." Soul mate.
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bench licht
(light and) bless candles
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berya
"Complimentary term for a talented, competent, energetic woman, especially one who gets a lot done - and does it well - around the house." (JPS Dictionary of Words)
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bisl
"a little bit of something, a tiny piece" (JPS)
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biz hundert un tsvantsik
[may you/he/she live] "until a hundred and twenty [years]" -- often used as a birthday wish for long life, or when mentioning a person who is getting on in years.
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Borscht Belt
region in the Catskill Mountains with many summer resorts frequented by Jews, especially in the mid twentieth century
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boychick
"A young boy...equivalent of the American expression 'buddy'" (JPS)
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broch
curse
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bubbale
sweetie, darling [term of endearment]
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bubbe meise
"old wive's tale"; an untrue story, sometimes related to superstition
"Something of little importance, an inconsequential thing or minor happening." (JPS)
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bulbenik
One who is inept, clumsy, all thumbs, who fouls things up (Rosten) An actor "who talks as though he has a potato in his mouth"—that is, an actor who "blows" his lines, mixes them up, commits embarrassing spoonerisms, a malaprop.
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bulvan
loud mouth know-it-all; "a boorish, brutish person" (Steinmetz)
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cement mixer
non-Jewish woman
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chaleria
Plague or cholera (literal or metaphorical)
"wreck," in the phrase "nervous choleria." A person who behaves wildly or badly.
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chazir
1. pork 2. a pig, greedy person (JPS)
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Chelm
from Yiddish literature/folklore, "The 'legendary' town inhabited by befuddled, stupid, foolish, but endearing people." (JPS). Also a real town in Poland (Chełmno).
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chrein
horseradish
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chutzpahdik
impertinent
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dreck
"Trash, junk, garbage; cheap or worthlesss things." (Rosten), sh*t
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einikel
grandchild
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farblondzhet
Rosten: "Lost...mixed up, wandering about without any idea of where you are." Can refer to being physically or intellectually lost.
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farbrente
fiery, devout, fervent [lit. 'burning']
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farfufket
befuddled, taken aback, disoriented, confused
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farmisht
mixed up, confused, crazy
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farshtunken(e)
literally 'stinking' (Rosten); contemptible
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fartootst
"The state of being bewildered, disoriented, discombobulated; slightly more intense than tsedrayt." (Rosten)
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feh!
an expression of disgust; "portraying...negative feelings" (Rosten)
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feigele
gay man
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fershnickered
Drunk, intoxicated, extremely drunk
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fluden
log-shaped pastry stuffed with apricot preserves, chopped dates, walnuts, and raisins
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forshpayz
"appetizers" (JPS)
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fress
To gobble up food; to gorge oneself. "To eat quickly or noisily, like an animal" (JPS)
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gantseh
entire, complete
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geferlech
Dangerous, terrible
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genug
enough
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geshmak
delicious, delightful
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gevald
an interjection of alarm
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gey avek
"Go away!"
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gey schluffen
Go to sleep!
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ghattis
derogatory term for working-class or boorish Afrikaaner person
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golem
"A creature of Jewish medieval folklore, a golem is a figure made into the form of a human and given life." (JPS)
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gonif
thief
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gorgel
neck, throat (generally of poultry)
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gribines
Deep-fried skin of chicken or goose, often prepared with onion and schmatlz. Also called cracklings.
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grizhidiker
nagging, annoying person
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gurnisht
"nothing, zilch, zero" (JPS)
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Hak mir nisht keyn tshaynik
Literally, don't knock a teakettle at me
Stop annoying me
Don't bother me
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handl
to bargain, do business
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helzel
chicken neck, poultry neck, stuffed poultry neck, the skin around the chicken's neck which is then stuffed
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hock
"to bother incessantly: ANNOY" (Weiser)
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I wish you well to wear it
A saying uttered on seeing a friend or relative wearing a new garment or accessory. It is value-neutral, not implying that the garment is nice, just that it is new.
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kaddishl
A son who will say kaddish for a parent (literally, "little kaddish").
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kasha
buckwheat groats, commonly served with bowtie noodles ('kasha varnishkes'); porridge
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keinehora
"no evil eye" (Rosten). "An expression said to ward off the evil eye or bad luck in general; the verbal equivalent of knocking on wood." (JPS)
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keppy
head, little head (informal, diminutive, often in child-directed speech)
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khremzl
"A fried fritter or latke, made of matzah meal and eggs, that may be stuffed with ground meat, nuts, or fruit. An old-fashioned Pesach recipe." (JPS Dictionary)
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kimmel
"kimmel bread" is rye bread with caraway seeds on top
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kinder
"children" (Rosten)
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kishka
"Stuffed derma: a sausagelike comestible of meat, flour, and spices stuffed into intestine casing and baked" (Rosten) Also, "guts," literally, Slavic. (Wikipedia)
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kishkas
Intestines, gut
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klafte
a naughty or nasty woman; a bitch
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klug
curse, but not a severe one
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knaidel
matzah ball; "a dumpling made of matzah meal meal and beaten eggs, usually served in chicken broth, often at the Pesach seder" (JPS)
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kochleffel
A cooking spoon, as for soup. By extension, a person who stirs up trouble; meddler, busybody.
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koppel
skullcap, kippah, yarmulke
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Kratsmach
Tongue-in-cheek way of referring to "Christmas," especially among Jews who want to avoid uttering the name of Christ.
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kuntz
strategy (Weiser)
feat, stunt, trick, challenge, ingenuity
peculiarity, particular oddness (JPS)
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kurveh
(profane) whore, slut, bitch
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kvell
feel or express pride, "to be extraordinarily pleased" (JPS)
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kvetch
"to chronically complain or gripe to others over minor issues" (JPS)
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landsman
Someone who comes from the same or nearby hometown, especially if one or both of you no longer lives there and all the more so if one or both now live far away from home, in which case an entire region (e.g., metro NY) or country e.g., Poland) may be the point of connection.
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lekvar
prune filling
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linker
leftist, socialist, secularist
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lobbus
a young mischievous person with a lot of chutzpah
a rascal, mischievous or cheeky child (usually a boy)
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lokh in cup
"hole in the head"(Rosten)
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maidel
girl
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make
To urinate or defecate
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mamaleh
diminutive term for a young girl [lit. 'little mama']
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mame-loshn
"mother tongue", usually refers to Yiddish
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mamzer
bastard [see note]; "A detestable [person] like the colloquial English "He's a bastard"" (Rosten)
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mayofes
a servile person (see note below)
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mechaye
"Pleasure, enjoyment, a real joy" (Rosten); something that gives great joy
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mechuten
the father of one's child's spouse
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mechuteneste
the mother of one's child's spouse
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naches
"Proud pleasure, special joy--particularly from the achievements of a child... 2. Psychological reward or gratification." (Rosten)
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narishkeit
"1. Foolishness 2. A triviality" (Rosten)
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nebach
interjection, adverb: "unfortunately"; noun: an unfortunate person
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nebbish
noun: nerdy, clumsy, awkward person. "An innocuous, ineffectual, weak, helpless, or hapless unfortunate" (Rosten)
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nicht shabbos geret
Not to speak of on Shabbat (used when a subject is not suitable for the Holy Shabbat, primarily business and money manners, to indicate that one shouldn't discuss it). Usually followed by a short comment about the "forbidden" subject.
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nishtikeit
a nobody
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no-goodnik
bad person, scoundrel (sometimes humorous or affectionate)
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noch
still, yet, moreover
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ongepotchket
overly elaborate, excessively decorated, slapped together senselessly
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ongeshnosket
inebriated, drunk
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orel
A goy (contemptuous, pejorative).
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oy vey iz mir
woe is me
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pachech
a complainer
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pekel
little bundle
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pishachs
(vulgar) urine, piss
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pisher, little pisher
a diminutive that combines amusement, admiration and annoyance
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polkeys
thighs (esp. of a chicken or baby)
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prost
coarse, base, not classy, vulgar, common
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pupik
Navel, belly button
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pushke
"The little container...in which money to be donated to charity is accumulated." (Rosten)
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schlemiel
idiot; contemptible person. "Clumsy, bungling person." (Steinmetz)
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schlemozel
The constant butt of idiotic or unfortunate happenings
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schmaltz
"Rendered chicken fat." (JPS)
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schmegege
"An unadmirable, petty person" (Rosten)
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schnorrer
a begger, a parasite. "A moocher" (JPS)
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shaina maidel
pretty girl
well-behaved girl (female equivalent of mensch, which is sometimes used just for males but is often used for males and females)
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shayna punim
pretty face
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sheygets
"1. A non-Jewish boy. 2. An impudent youth or man. 3. An irreligious or nonobservant Jew. The term is often regarded as disparaging." (Steinmetz)
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shicker
tipsy/drunk
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shissel
A bowl, especially for mixing
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shlump
an unkempt person, a loser
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shmecky
child-appropriate word for penis
affectionate term used to describe a child, often connoting silly or slightly naughty behavior
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shpatzir
literally 'to walk, take a stroll'; figuratively 'to delay, tarry, procrastinate'
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shpilkes
nervous energy, restlessness. Lit. 'pins'
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shvartsa
black person, [lit. "black"]. Often considered offensive in English.
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taka
(can also be used ironically)
Is that so? Really, actually, indeed, "in consideration of all the information available" (Weiser)
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tam
taste
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tate
little boy; especially when using diminutive tatele / tattele / tattaleh / tattale (in child-directed speech)
dad
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tsedreyt
mixed up, twisted, distorted, turned around
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tsekrochen
slovenly, [feeling] feeble or fragile, usually owing to minor illness or a night of excess.
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tsemisht
mixed-up, confused
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tsorris
"Troubles, woes, worries, suffering." (Rosten)
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tsu gezunt
a response after another person sneezes (analogous to "bless you")
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tuches afn tisch
lay your cards on the table [lit. "backside on the table"]
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tumler
"A funmaker, a 'live wire,' a clown, a prankster, the 'life of the party." (Rosten)
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ungepatchke
overdone, tacky, ostentatious, overcomplicated. "Excessively and unaesthetically decorated; overly baroque." (Rosten)
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vantz
bedbug
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varem
warm, kind-hearted, friendly
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verklempt
choked up; speechless; unable to express one's feelings/emotions overly emotional
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vilde chaye
a rambunctious or wild person [lit. 'wild animal']
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wimpel
a long, linen sash used as a binding for the Sefer Torah by Jews of German (Yekke) origin
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yenta
"A scandal spreader, a rumormongerer." (Rosten). Usually applied to women.
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yold
fool, dupe
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Yoshke
an irreverent or derogatory name for Jesus Christ
a nickname for Yosef or Yehoshua (archaic Yiddish form)
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zaftig
pleasantly plump, buxom, lit. "juicy"
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zei gezunt
be healthy, be well; farewell!
(humorous) a recommendation for greater sophistication or awareness: "get real"
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zitsfleysh
lit. "sitting-flesh" : 'the ability to sit down for a long period fo time'
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Zulik
The boy is "wild" or "a wilde chaya"
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