Language

Mishmash is a Yiddish word that means “mixture” or “medley” or “jumble.” It comes from the Yiddish word mish, which means “mix.”

The word bupkis (more properly bobkes, באבקעס) means “nonsense” or “nothing.”

“Good Yontif” is the Yiddish-English traditionally extended by Ashkenazi Jews before or during a holiday. To understand the unique development of this phrase, which has been influenced by three languages, we must start in the beginning. In biblical Hebrew...

Just as a person may become farblunget during the course of a trip, a soul may blondje in its life journey on earth.

If your daughter cooks the most delicious chicken soup and kneidelach, you can tell her, "that was mamash geshmak (tasty).”

It is perfectly normal to say, “Oy gevalt, my cake flopped again!” even though there is no violence and not much of an emergency.

When a person is beset by troubles you can say that they are af tsaros.

In the parlance of American entertainment, which was built on the foundation of Yiddish theater, schmaltz came to refer to drippy, over-the-top dramatization.

The balabusta can host 20 guests for Shabbat dinner in an immaculately clean home, while keeping her kids entertained and well-behaved.

Whenever you feel like life is spinning out of control and metaphoric shpilkes begin to appear on your seat, remember that G‑d is right there at your side.