chutzpah

English

WOTD – 23 June 2008

Alternative forms

Etymology

Originated 1890–95 from Yiddish חוצפּה‎ (khutspe), from Mishnaic Hebrew חֻצְפָּה‎ (khutspá), from חָצַף‎ (khatsáf, “to be insolent”). Ultimately from Aramaic חוצפא‎ (ḥuṣpāʾ), חֲצַף‎ (ḥaṣap, “to be insolent”).

Pronunciation

  • (Received Pronunciation) enPR: ᴋʜo͝otsʹpă, IPA(key): /ˈxʊts.pɑ/
  • (US) enPR: ᴋʜo͝otsʹpə, IPA(key): /ˈxʊts.pə/
  • Audio (US)(file)

Noun

chutzpah (usually uncountable, plural chutzpahs)

  1. (informal) Nearly arrogant courage; utter audacity, effrontery or impudence; supreme self-confidence; exaggerated self-opinion.
    • 22/01/2007, The Times, Modern Manners
      If the service is rotten and the meal a disaster, we should withhold a tip and explain why we are doing so. Few of us have the chutzpah to do this.
    • 12/11/2007, John Scalzi, Whatever, Your Creation Museum Report
      But seriously, the ability to just come out and put on a placard that the Jurassic era is temporally contiguous with the Fifth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom of Egypt — well, there’s a word for that, and that word is chutzpah.
    • 2015 November 15, John Oliver, “Daily Fantasy Sports”, in Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, season 2, episode 34, HBO:
      Okay, okay, okay… First of all, “shutspah” is actually pronounced “khootspah”. But, but-but-but the idea, the idea that daily fantasy sites are using this law to claim they’re not gambling is not chutzpah, it’s khorseshit!

Translations

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Further reading

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