Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
Yiddishism

Yiddishism

1 9.9
A word or phrase from Yiddish used in another language
  • noun
  • /ˈjɪdɪʃɪzəm/
: yiddishismo
  • His use of Yiddishism adds a colorful, expressive quality to his writing.

Examples

  • The term Yiddishism reflects the influence of Yiddish on English language and culture.

  • Many New York newspapers feature at least one Yiddishism in their headlines every week.

  • The term Yiddishism refers to words borrowed from Yiddish.

  • Many people use Yiddishisms in everyday conversation.

  • In his speech, the politician included several Yiddishisms that resonated with the crowd.

  • The author skillfully used Yiddishisms to give the characters in his novel a unique cultural identity.

  • Many modern comedians incorporate Yiddishisms into their routines to connect with their audience.

Synonyms

dialecticism
vsYiddishism
  • Specialized
9.9

A word or expression used by a specific group of people

refers specifically to features from one language often adopted into other languages

Surface Forms

Yiddishism singular
Yiddishisms plural

Morphology

Yiddishism = Yiddish (transparent) = Yiddish + ism

Formed directly from the adjective/noun 'Yiddish' plus the productive suffix '-ism' meaning a feature or practice related to Yiddish, so the meaning is straightforward.

Etymology

Yiddishism comes from Yiddish, which means 'Jewish', plus the ending -ism, a small part that marks a 'feature' or 'practice'. So a Yiddishism is a word or expression taken from Yiddish — for example 'bagel' or 'chutzpah' — and the word names the influence of Yiddish on English.