nonkosher

1 8.1

Food or dishes not allowed by Jewish food rules

adjective
/nɒnˈkoʊʃər/

: no kosher

When I visited my friend's house, I was surprised to see a nonkosher meal being served.

Examples

He found it difficult to adapt to nonkosher dining options while traveling abroad.
And occasionally it was smart-alecky, empty, and irritating ("we don't eat nonkosher girls here").

Fiction book (1993)
Some Jewish families prefer to avoid nonkosher foods during holiday celebrations.

Synonyms

unkosher

vsnonkosher

1 8.2

Food that Jewish law does not allow you to eat

is mainly used for food rather than also describing objects

terefah

vsnonkosher

Specialized

1 9.9

Food that does not follow Jewish religious rules about what you can eat

is the same in meaning but appears as a different word form

tref

vsnonkosher

Jargon

9.9

Food not allowed by Jewish religious rules

is identical in sense but is another short word form

Antonyms

kosher

5 5.1

Food made or kept according to Jewish rules about which foods people may eat

How Kosher

kosher

5 5.1

nonkosher

1 8.1

forbidden

192 3.2

Surface Forms

nonkosher positive

Morphology

nonkosher = kosher (transparent) = non + kosher

The negative prefix 'non-' attaches directly to the adjective 'kosher' producing an obvious negation.

Etymology

Nonkosher is made from the common prefix non- meaning 'not' and kosher, which comes from Hebrew kasher meaning 'fit' or 'proper' to eat. So, nonkosher simply describes food that is 'not fit' under Jewish dietary rules, which explains its modern meaning.