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May 11, 2015
This week’s themeWords borrowed from Yiddish This week’s words shadchan gunsel tummler shicker heimisch Spread the Magic The magic of words Send a gift subscription It’s free. 
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu GargIf variety is the spice of life, exotic words might be the spice of language. The English language has a big pantry, overflowing with spices from all parts of the world. In fact, we have borrowed, stolen, and pilfered words from more than a hundred languages. Some of the more pungent among these are words from Yiddish. We have featured Yiddish borrowings many times in the past, but we aren’t going to run out any time soon. This week we’ll feature five words to describe people, words that are borrowed from Yiddish and are now part of the English language. shadchan
PRONUNCIATION:
(SHAHT-khuhn)
MEANING:
noun: A matchmaker or a marriage-broker.
ETYMOLOGY:
From Yiddish shadkhan, from Hebrew. Earliest documented use: 1890.
USAGE:
“Moss became a highbrow shadchan, matching freewheeling directors with
willing musicians to graft new theater onto old scores.” Justin Davidson; A Director Melds Classic Poetry and Music; New York; Jan 4, 2010. A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
It doesn't matter how beautiful your theory is, it doesn't matter how smart
you are. If it doesn't agree with experiment, it's wrong. -Richard Feynman,
physicist, Nobel laureate (11 May 1918-1988)
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