Words at Play : Favorite Words From Foreign Languages
#3: Chutzpah
Language of Origin:
Yiddish
About the Word:
Chutzpah comes from the Yiddish khutspe, meaning "impudence."
In American English, chutzpah describes a particular kind of nerve, or gall. It refers to the supreme self-confidence that allows a person to do or say things that may seem shocking to others.
In one classic illustration of the concept, a man convicted of killing his parents asks the court for mercy because he's an orphan. That's chutzpah!
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