The Yiddish words Bubbe uses, and what they mean
Yiddish, the language of Ashkenazi Jews for centuries, gave English a whole vocabulary for complaining, praising, teasing and eating. Here are the words you are most likely to hear from a Jewish grandmother, and from Dear Bubbe.
Spellings vary, because Yiddish is written in the Hebrew alphabet and people transliterate it differently: you will see schlep and shlep, kvetch and kvetsh, chutzpah and hutzpa. Meanings also shift a little between Yiddish itself and the way the words are used in English.
Words of affection (and pride)
- Bubbe
- Grandmother. Zayde is grandfather.
- Bubbeleh
- Darling, sweetheart. A term of endearment for a child or anyone you are fond of, even when you are about to criticise them.
- Mensch
- A good, decent, honourable person. Being called a mensch is high praise; being told to be one is a hint.
- Shayna punim
- Pretty face. Said while pinching a cheek.
- Kvell
- To beam with pride, usually about a child or grandchild.
- Mishpocha
- Family, often in the wide sense that includes in-laws, cousins and people who are basically family.
Complaining, fussing and feeling things
- Kvetch
- To complain or whine, at length. Also a person who does it.
- Nudnik
- A pest or a nag; someone who keeps bothering you.
- Schlep
- To drag or carry something with effort, or to make a long, tiresome trip. "I schlepped all the way across town."
- Oy vey
- An exclamation of dismay, roughly "oh no" or "woe is me".
- Oy gevalt
- A stronger cry of alarm or exasperation, roughly "good grief!" or "help!"
- Feh
- An expression of disgust, like "yuck".
- Plotz
- To burst, collapse or be overwhelmed, with emotion, laughter or outrage. "Your mother will plotz."
- Mishegoss
- Craziness or nonsense; a ridiculous business.
- Verklempt
- Choked up with emotion, too moved to speak.
- Chutzpah
- Nerve or audacity. It can be an insult (shameless cheek) or a compliment (admirable boldness), depending on who is talking.
- Schmutz
- Dirt, a smudge or a stain, the kind someone wipes off your face with a licked thumb.
Bubbe's favourite insults
- Schlemiel
- A clumsy, hapless person who makes a mess of things. The old joke: the schlemiel is the one who spills the soup.
- Schlimazel (schlemazel)
- A chronically unlucky person. In the same joke, the schlimazel is the one the soup lands on.
- Schmendrick
- A foolish, ineffectual person; a nobody.
- Meshuggeneh
- A crazy person. Meshugge means crazy.
- Gonif (ganef)
- A thief or crook; used jokingly for a rascal or a shrewd dealer.
- Putz
- A fool or a jerk. Vulgar in origin, so not for polite company.
- Schmuck
- A jerk or a contemptible person. Also vulgar in origin; in English it is milder than it is in Yiddish.
- Alter kocker
- A grumpy old man, an old fogey. Vulgar in origin; often shortened to "A.K."
- Mamzer
- In Jewish law, a person born of a forbidden union. In everyday speech it is used loosely for a "bastard" or a scoundrel.
Around the kitchen, the closet and the living room
- Nosh
- A snack, or to snack. "Have a little nosh."
- Shmatte
- A rag; by extension, cheap or shabby clothing. "You are wearing that shmatte?"
- Schmear
- A spread, especially cream cheese on a bagel; to spread something thickly.
- Tchotchke
- A knick-knack or trinket, the kind that covers every surface in a grandmother's living room.
- Kibitz
- To chat idly, or to offer advice nobody asked for while watching someone else do something.
Why so many of these words are in English
Millions of Yiddish speakers emigrated from Eastern Europe in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, many to New York and other American cities. Their words travelled into everyday American English through neighbourhoods, newspapers, theatre and comedy, which is why people who have never spoken a word of Yiddish still schlep, kvetch and nosh.
Ready to hear them in context? Talk to Bubbe, or read what Dear Bubbe is.