634. Funny, You don't sound Yiddish. Let's learn some great Yiddish words with David. episode artwork

EPISODE · Mar 1, 2025 · 13 MIN

634. Funny, You don't sound Yiddish. Let's learn some great Yiddish words with David.

from You Just Have To Laugh

Yiddish is a language used by Jewish people. It originated in 9th or 10th century in Central Europe. It's a West Germanic language that developed when Jews from France and Italy settled in the Rhine River valley.  Today it is mainly spoken in the Israel, the United States and Russia. Bissel (bisl)— A little bit, as in "I just want to eat a bissel right now." Bubbe (bubby) — Grandmother Zayde (zaide)— Grandfather Chutzpah —Nerve, extreme arrogance, brazen presumption, confidence, as in "It took real chutzpah for him to ask for a raise when he kept showing up late for every appointment." Daven — To pray Klutz — A clumsy person Kvell — To experience pride in someone else, typically one's children. My daughter Rachel has a very succeeful estotician business and I'm just kvellin." Kvetch — To complain, whine or fret, as in "He likes to kvetch at me when we serve kasha varniskes, because he doesn't like it." Mensch (mentsch)— Literally "man," an honorable, decent, stand-up person, as in, "I don't care who you marry, as long as he's a mensch." Meshuggeneh — Crazy, ridiculous, insane, as in, "He must be meshuggeneh to think he can wear that getup to a funeral." (A related word is mishegoss, or craziness.) Mishpucha)— Family, or someone who is "like family" Nosh — To eat or nibble, as in "I'd like something to nosh on before dinner." Can also be used as a noun to mean any kind of food. Oy vey—An expression of woe, as in "Oy vey, we left the gefilte fish at the grocery store OMG Putz —A jerk, or a self-made fool, but this word literally means penis. Schlep — To carry or travel with difficulty, as in "We shlepped here all the way from New Jersey." Schmooze (shmooze)— Chat, make small talk, converse about nothing in particular. Schmuck (shmuck)—A jerk, or a self-made fool, but this word literally means penis. Scmendrick Shanda, shonda) — A scandal, embarrassment. Oy ve what a shandra Shmatte — A rag or old garment. Tachlis —Nuts and bolts, purpose," "substance," or "end". It can also be used as a colloquialism to mean "quickly get to the point".  Chatchke - Knick-knack, little toy, collectible or giftware. Tuches (tuchis) — Butt, behind, sometimes shortened to tush or tushy. Patch in the Tuchas.      

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Mar 1, 2025

Embed this episode

NOW PLAYING

634. Funny, You don't sound Yiddish. Let's learn some great Yiddish words with David.

0:00 13:47

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

No similar episodes found.

No similar podcasts found.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of You Just Have To Laugh?

This episode is 13 minutes long.

When was this You Just Have To Laugh episode published?

This episode was published on March 1, 2025.

Can I download this You Just Have To Laugh episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.
URL copied to clipboard!