Yiddish Page 4

K
•Kaas (in kaas oyf) - Angry (with)
•Kabaret forshtelung - Floorshow
•Kabtzen, kaptsen - Pauper
•Kaddish - A mourner's prayer
•Kaddishel - Baby son; endearing term for a boy or man
•Kadoches - Fever
•Kadoches mit koshereh fodem! - Absolutely nothing! (Lit., fever with a kosher thread)
•Kaftan - Long coat worn by religious Jews
•Kain ein horeh - No evil eye! (Some say "don't give me a canary")
•Kakapitshi - Conglomeration
•Kalamutneh - Dreary, gloomy, troubled
•Kalleh moid - A girl of marriageable age
•Kallehniu - Little bride
•Kalta neshomeh - A cold soul
•Kalyekeh - Cripple; misfit; also, anybody not good at their craft or sport
•Kalyeh - Bad, wrong, spoiled
•Kam derlebt - Narrowly achieved (Lit., hardly lived to see)
•Kam mit tsores! - Barely made it! (Lit., with some troubles) The word "Kam," also is pronounced "Kom" or "Koim" depending on the region people come from.
•Kam vos er kricht - Barley able to creep; Mr. Slowpoke
•Kam vos er lebt - He's hardly (barely) alive.
•Kamtsoness - To be miserly
•Kaneh - An enema
•Kaporeh, (kapores) - Atonement sacrifice; forgiveness; (slang) good for nothing
•Karabeinik - Country peddler
•Karger - Miser, tightwad
•Kaseer - enema
•Kasheh - Groats, mush cereal, buckwheat, porridge; a mess, mix-up, confusion
•Kasheh varnishkes - Cooked groats and broad (or bowtie) noodles
•Kashress - Kosher condition; Jewish religious dietary law
•Kasnik, (keisenik) - Angry person; excitable person, hot head
•Kasokeh - Cross-eyed
•Katchka - Duck (quack, quack)
•Katshkedik (Americanism) - Ducky, swell, pleasant
•Katzisher kop - Forgetful (Lit., Cat head)
•Kazatskeh - Lively Russian dance
•Kein briere iz oich a breire - Not to have any choice available is also a choice.
•Kemfer - Fighter (usually for a cause)
•Ken zein - Maybe, could be
•Kenen oyf di finger - Have facts at one's fingertips
•Ketzele - Kitten
•(To) Kibbitz - To offer unsolicited advice as a spectator
•Kibbitzer - Meddlesome spectator
•Kiddish (Borai pri hagofen) - Blessing over wine on the eve of Sabbath or Festivals
•Kimpet-tzettel - Childbirth amulet or charm (from the German "kind-bet-tzettel" meaning childbirth label containing Psalm 121, names of angels, patriarchs
•Kimpetoren - Woman in labour or immediately after the delivery
•Kind un kait - Young and old
•Kinderlech - Diminutive, affectionate term for children
•Kish mir en toches - Kiss my backside (slang)
•Kishef macher - Magic-worker
•Kishkeh - Stuffed derma (Sausage shaped, stuffed with a mixture of flour, onions, salt, pepper and fat to keep it together, it is boiled, roasted and sliced) Also used to describe a person's innards. "You sweat your kishkehs out to give your children an good education, and what thanks do you get?"
•(A) Kitsel - Tickle
•Klainer gornisht - Little prig (Lit., A little nothing)
•Klemt beim hartz - Clutches at my heartstrings
•Klaperkeh - Talkative woman
•Klipeh - Gabby woman, shrew, a female demon
•Klogmuter - Complainer, chronic complainer
•(A) Klog iz mir! - Woe is me!
•Kloolye - A curse
•Klop - Bang, a real hard punch or wallop
•Klotz (klutz) - Ungraceful, awkward, clumsy person; bungler
•Klotz kasheh - Foolish question; fruitless question
•Kloymersht - Not in reality, pretended (Lit., as if it were)
•Knacker - A big shot
•Knackerke - The distaff k'nacker, but a real cutie-pie.
•Knaidel (pl., k'naidlech) - Dumplings usually made of matzoh meal, cooked in soup
•Knippel - Button, knot; hymen, virginity; money tied in a knot in a handkerchief
•Knish (taboo) - Vagina
•Knishes - Baked dumplings filled with potato, meat, liver or barley
•Kochalain - Summer boarding house with cooking privileges (Lit., cook by yourself)
•Kochedik - Petulant, excitable
•Kochleffel - One who stirs up trouble; gadabout, busy-body (Lit., a cooking ladle)
•Kolboynik - Rascally know-it-all
•(A) Kop oif di plaitses! - Good, common sense! (Lit., A head on the shoulders!)
•Komisch - Funny
•Kopvaitik - Headache
•Kosher - Jewish dietary laws based on "cleanliness". Also referring to the legitimacy of a situation. "This plan doesn't seem kosher".
•Koved - Respect, honour, reverence, esteem
•Krank - Sick
•Krank-heit - Sickness
•Krassavitseh - Beauty, a doll, beautiful woman
•Krechts - Groan, moan
•Krechtser - Blues singer, a moaner
•Kreplach - Small pockets of dough filled with chopped meat which look like ravioli, or won ton, and are eaten in soup; (slang) nothing, valueless
•Kroivim - Relatives
•Krolik - Rabbit
•Kuch leffel - A person who mixes into other people's business (cooking spoon)
•Kuck im on (taboo) - Defecate on him! The hell with him!
•Kuck zich oys! (taboo) - Go take a shit for yourself!
•Kugel - Pudding
•Kuk im on! - Look at him!
•Kukn durkh di finger oyf - Shut one's eyes to....., connive at......, wink at.....
•Kum ich nisht heint, kum ich morgen - If I don't come today, I'll come tomorrow (procrastinator's slogan)
•Kumen tsu gast - To visit
•Kuntzen - Tricks
•Kunyehlemel - Naive, clumsy, awkward person; nincompoop; Casper Milquetoast
•Kuppe drek- A piece of fecal matter (s--t)
•Kurveh - Whore, prostitute
•Kush in toches arein! (taboo) - Kiss my behind! (said to somebody who is annoying you)
•Kushinyerkeh - Cheapskate; woman who comes to a store and asks for a five cents' worth of vinegar in her own bottle
•K'vatsh - Boneless person, one lacking character; a whiner, weakling
•K'velen - Glow with pride and happiness, beam; be delighted
•K'vetsh - Whine, complain; whiner, a complainer
•K'vitsh - Shriek, scream, screech
L
•Lachen mit yash-tsherkes - Forced or false laugh; laugh with anguish
•Laidik-gaier - Idler, loafer
•Lamden - Scholar, erudite person, learned man
•Lamed Vovnik - Refers to the Hebrew number "36" and traditionally each generation produces 36 wise and righteous persons who gain the approbation of "lamed vovnik."
•Lang leben zolt ir! - Long may you live!
•Lange loksch - A very tall thin person , A long tall drink of water.
•Lantslaite - Plural of lantsman
•Lantsman - Countryman, neighbour, fellow townsman from "old country".
•Lapeh - Big hand
•Layseh mogen - Diarrhea
•(A) Lebedikeh velt! - A lively world!
•(A) Lebediker - Lively person
•(A) Leben ahf dein kop! - Words of praise like; Well said! Well done! (Lit., A long life upon your head.)
•Lebst a chazerishen tog! - Living high off the hog!
•Leck, shmeck - Done superficially (lick, smell)
•L'chei-im, le'chayim! - To life! (the traditional Jewish toast); To your health, skol
•Leffel - Spoon
•Leibtzudekel - Sleeveless shirt (like bib) with fringes, worn by orthodox Jews
•Leiden - To suffer
•Lemechel - Milquetoast, quiet person
•Lemeshkeh - Milquetoast, bungler
•Leshem shomaim - Idealistically, "for the sake of heaven."
•Leveiyeh - Funeral
•Lezem gayne - leave them be
•Lig in drerd! - Get lost! Drop dead! (Lit., Bury yourself!)
•Ligner - Liar
•Litvak - Lithuanian; Often used to connote shrewdness and skepticism, because the Lithuanian Jews are inclined to doubt the magic powers of the Hasidic leaders; Also, a person who speaks with the Northeastern Yiddish accent.
•Lobbus - Little monster
•Loch - Hole Loch in kop - Hole in the head.
•Loksch - An Italian gentleman.
•Lokshen - Noodles
•Lokshen strop - a "cat- o- nine tails"
•Lominer gaylen - Clumsy fool (a golem-Frankenstein monster -- created by the Lominer rbbe)
•Loz mich tzu ru! - Leave me alone! (Lit., Let me be in peace!)
•Luftmentsh - Person who has no business, trade, calling, nor income.
•Luch in kup - A hole in the head ( " I need this like a luch in kup").