Word of the Day: Nebbish

     I first heard this Yiddish word last year from my pal Suzanne as she was describing various boyfriend candidates who had not quite cut the mustard, so I was pleased when Grotto wordsmith Amo sent it along to worldwide headquarters, Word-of-the-Day division.

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Nebbish

Pronunciation: 'ne-bish
Function: noun
Etymology: Yiddish nebekh poor, unfortunate, from Czech nebohý
: a timid, meek, or ineffectual person

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     Amo's sample sentence is short, sweet, and incontrovertibly accurate:

     "Mike Dukakis was a nebbish."

Comments

[Suzanne Strasser]

hmmmm....nebish is usually reserved for people who are jewish..however, I am willing to share the term with all to which this applies...better example would be Woody Allen.