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saba
(Heb.) grandfather |
sabra
(Heb.) prickly-pear fruit |
Sabra
native
Israeli
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sakanot nefashot
life-endangerment |
same'ach
(Heb.) happy |
savta
(Heb.) grandmother |
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Sanhedrin
ancient rabbinical council of 70 sages
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saychel
(Yid.) common sense |
s'chach
loose thatch used for succah roof, must be from
plants
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schav
cold soup of leafy vegetables |
schlaf
(Yid.) sleep [v] |
schlemazel
luckless one |
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schlemiel
bumbler, one who "can't do anything right"
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schlep
carry; drag, lug; drag one's feet; travel a great
distance [v], lazy one; unkempt person [n] |
schlump
(Yid.) flop [v]; stoop-shouldered person [n] |
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schmaltz
(Yid.) fat, grease, oil; maudlin sentimentality |
schmateh
(Yid.) rag; cheap piece of clothing |
schmeggege
disorganized one, one who "doesn't have it together" |
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schmeichl
(Yid.) smile; smooth-talk |
schmooze
(Yid.) intimate chat [n]; persuade [v] |
schmutz
(Yid.) filth, scum |
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schnook
unscrupulous one; cheater, crook |
schpiel
(Yid.) story; sales pitch |
schpilkes
lit.=pins: anxiousness |
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schtick
bit, piece; comic act; eccentricity |
schtickl(ach)
little bit(s) or piece(s) |
schtiebl
small synagogue, often a storefront or private home |
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schtreiml
round, fur-edged hat worn by chasidim |
seder
Pesach ceremonial meal |
sedrah
reading from Tanach |
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sefer
(Heb.) book, esp. of religious topic |
Sefer Torah
the Torah scroll itself |
sefirat haOmer
counting of the days of the Omer |
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Sephardi
of Mediterranean Jewish tradition |
se'udah
feast [n], esp. for Shabbat or holiday |
sha
"Shh! Quiet!" |
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Shabbat
the Sabbath
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shacharit
morning prayer |
shadchan
matchmaker |
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shailah
question, esp. on religious matters |
shaliach
messenger; representative; ambassador;
Israeli
delegate to community, youth group, synagogue, etc. |
shaliach tzibur (abbr.shatz)
lit.=messenger of (the) congregation: cantor |
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shalom
peace; "Hello/Goodbye"
|
shalom aleichem
lit.=peace to you: "Hello" (response is "aleichem,
shalom") |
shalom bayit
lit.=peace of the house: domestic harmony |
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shalosh se'udot
third and last meal of Shabbat |
shamos
assistant synagogue manager
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shamosh
candle that kindles the Chanukah candles |
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shanda
(Yid.) disgrace, scandal
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Shavuot
holiday for receiving the Torah, in autumn |
shayna maideleh
(Yid.) beautiful girl |
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Sh'china
G-d's presence
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shchita
kosher
slaughtering |
shecht
slaughter, esp. in a
kosher
manner; to defeat soundly, as in sports [slang] |
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Shehecheyanu
blessing for annual, lifetime, or historic events |
sheket
(Heb.) quiet, silence |
Shema
lit.=Hear (O, Israel): a key Jewish prayer
[read more...] |
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Sheva B'rachot
set of seven blessings said at weddings and at
parties for one week after |
sheytl
(Yid.) wig, esp. for married women |
shidduch
match (see shadchan) |
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shira (pl. shirim)
(Heb.) song
|
shiva
period of mourning observed for seven days after a
family member's funeral |
Shiv-asor B'Tamuz
17th of Tamuz, summer fast day for destruction of
Holy Temple |
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shloshim
period of mourning observed for thirty days after a
family member's funeral |
Sh'mini Atzeret
eighth day of Succot, a holiday |
shmita
Shabbat of the land: every seventh year, when
Israeli
land lies fallow |
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Shmonah Esrei
lit.=18: 19-blessing (1 was added later) shacharit
Amidah |
Shmot
Exodus (2nd bk. of Torah) |
Shoah
lit.=destruction: The Holocaust |
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shochet
slaughterer who slaughters
in the
kosher
manner
|
shofar
ram's horn, blown like a bugle on holidays |
shok’l
sway meditatively during prayers |
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shul
synagogue Jewish House of prayer. |
shtetl
Eastern European Jewish village |
Shulchan Aruch
lit.=set table: Code of Jewish Law |
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shvach
(Yid.) weak; tepid, unsubstantial |
sh'varim
shofar blast of three short sounds |
Shvat
5th Jewish month (Jan-Feb), 15th is Tu B'Shvat |
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shvitz
sweat [v]; sauna [n] |
siddur
daily prayerbook |
simcha
happiness; special happy occasion, esp. bris,
wedding, etc |
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Simchat Torah
holiday celebrating the Torah, in autumn |
Sivan
9th Jewish month (May-Jun), 5th and 6th are Shavuot
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sivivon
(Heb.) dreidle, esp. in Israel |
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siyum
completion of the study of a section of scripture; a
celebration thereupon |
slicha
forgiveness; "Forgive me/Pardon me"
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Slichot
prayers of repentance said around High Holidays
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smicha
rabbinic ordination
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sofer
scribe; author |
S.S.
the Nazi infantry, "Brownshirts" |
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succah (pl. succot)
outdoor booth lived in on Succot |
Succot
harvest holiday, in autumn |
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tachlis
(Yid.) essence, substance; worth; basics, "brass
tacks" |
takkah
(Yid.) really |
talit (pl. taliot)
prayer shawl |
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|
Talmud (התלמוד) is
considered an authoritative record of rabbinic discussions on Jewish law,
Jewish ethics, customs, legends and stories.
read more... |
Tamuz
10th Jewish month (Jun-Jul), 17th is Shiv-asor
B'Tamuz |
Tana'im
lit.=teachers: compilers of Mishna |
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tante
(Yid.) aunt |
tarfos
that which is trayf
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Tashlich
Rosh HaShanah practice of throwing bread, etc. into
water, symbolically casting away our sins
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techina
sesame paste, a Mid-Eastern food
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tefillah
prayer |
tefillin
biblical passages on parchment scrolls, placed in
small boxes and affixed with leather straps, worn
during prayer |
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Tehillim
Psalms
|
Temple - a Jewish Place to worship |
teiglach
small, fruit- or nut-filled pastries, dipped in
honey
teretz
reason, explanation |
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Tevet
4th Jewish month (Jan), 10th is Asoroh B'Tevet
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Three Weeks
period of mourning from Shiv-asor B'Tamuz to Tisha
B'Av |
thirty-nine melochot
39 categories of "work" prohibitted on Shabbat
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tichel
kerchief; headcovering, esp. for married women
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tikun
study book for layning
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tikun layl Shavuot
all-night study session on the eve of Shavuot |
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tikun olam
the repair or completion of the world |
tikva
(Heb.) hope |
Tisha B'Av
the 9th of Av, a major fast day for the destruction
of the Holy Temples, in summer |
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Tishrei
1st Jewish month (Sep-Oct), 1st is Rosh HaShanah,
10th is Yom Kippur, 15th is Succot, 22nd is Sh'mimi
Atzeret, 23rd is Simchat Torah |
t'kia
shofar blast of one long sound |
todah (rabbah)
"Thank you (very much)" |
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Torah
the written Jewish law |
tractate
section of the Talmud
|
trayf
lit.=torn: not
kosher
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trop
marks indicating musical notes for chanting the
Torah, etc. |
tru'a
shofar blast of nine staccato sounds |
truma
tenth of a crop, given to kohanim |
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Tu B'Shvat
the 15th of Shvat, Jewish Arbor Day |
tuchus
lit.=under: buttocks |
tzadik
righteous person, esp. a rabbi. |
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tzadreit
(Yid.) mixed up |
tzar ba'aleh chaim
the suffering of living things |
tzedakah
lit.=justice: charity |
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tzibur
congregation |
tzimis
carrot/pineapple compote, usu. with raisins or
prunes; a hullabaloo [slang]
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tzitzit
fringes worn on the corners of a four-cornered
garment; the garment and fringes together
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tzniut
modesty, esp. of dress |
tzom
day of fasting
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tzuros
(Yid.) pains; troubles, problems, distresses
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tzutzik
(Yid.) ambitious or energetic person |
Tzvah Haganah L'Yisrael (Tzahal)
Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Israel's army |
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yad (pl. yaddayim)
lit.=hand: Torah pointer |
Yad VaShem
lit.=hand and name:
Israeli
Holocaust Museum |
yam
pron. "yom": (Heb.) sea |
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Yam HaMelech
(...of salt) the Dead Sea |
Yam HaGadol
(...the large one) the Mediterranean Sea
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Yam Kinneret
(...shaped like a harp) Sea of Galilee |
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Yam Suf
(...the final one) the Red Sea |
yarmulke
pron. "yamaka": (Yid.) skullcap |
yartzeit
anniversary of a death |
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yasher ko'ach
lit.=(go) straight, (as) strong: "Good job! Keep up
the good work!" |
yente
gossipy one [n] |
yerusha
inheritance; heritage |
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Yerushalayim
(Heb.) Jerusalem |
yeshiva (pl. yeshivot)
Talmudic seminary |
yeshiva boch'r
seminary student |
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yeshuv
Israeli
town |
yetzer tov/harah
good/evil impulse |
Yetziat Mitzrayim
(Heb.) Exodus from Egypt |
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Yiddishkeit
Jewishness |
yisrael
member of a tribe other than Levi; thus a member of
the nonpriest class |
Yisrael
(Heb.) Israel |
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Yizkor
communal service for personal mourning |
yom
pron. "yome": (Heb.) day |
Yom HaAtzma'ut
Israel Independence Day |
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Yom HaShoah
Holocaust Memorial Day |
Yom HaZikaron
Israel Memorial Day |
Yom Kippur
Day of Atonement, in autumn |
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yom tov
lit.=good day: holiday |
Yom Yerushalayim
Jerusalem Reunification Day |
Yomim Nora'im
High Holidays, Rosh HaShanah & Yom Kippur
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yored (pl. yordim)
lit.=descender: emigrant from Israel (considered
impolite) |
Yovel
every 50th yr.; see shmita (trans. Jubilee)
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