Scrabble now includes fun Yiddish words
Feel free to use 'schmutz,' 'tuchas' and other terms thanks to a change to Merriam-Webster’s Official Scrabble Players’ Dictionary.
Terms such as these are frequently used these days, not just by Jews, but by comedians, actors, overall funnymen, and anyone with a little bit of chutzpah.
But, are these words recognized as actual terms we can use in the dictionary, or at least while we're playing a game of Scrabble?
They are now.
Yes, it is official. According to the JTA, next time you’re playing Scrabble you can put down "schmutz," "schtum" or even "tuchas" (or "tuchases") without any challenges. These are just some of the new Yiddish words to be added to Merriam-Webster’s Official Scrabble Players’ Dictionary.
"Schmutz," for one, is one of the few new words to be highlighted in a promotional video on Merriam-Webster’s YouTube channel. Jewish comedian Judy Gold shares examples of how you could use the word (which means dirt) in a sentence.
The dictionary’s new fifth edition will be published this month and includes more than 5,000 new words in total. Some of the recently included words are "beatbox," "hashtag" and "chillax."
Makes sense.
In addition, words like "mitzvah," "aliyah" and "tallis" are also now accepted. Not to mention all your favorite Yiddish "s" or "sh" starting words, from shmuck to shlep to shlub. What's even better, you can choose if you want to spell them with a 'c' or not.
Reprinted with permission from Shalom Life .
