chutzpah

English

WOTD – 23 June 2008

Alternative forms

Etymology

Originated 1890–95 from Yiddish חוצפּה (khutspe), which was either borrowed via Medieval Hebrew or directly came from Aramaic חוּצְפָּא (ḥuṣpā, “audacity, boldness”), derived from חֲצַף (ḥăṣap̄, “to be impudent, arrogant”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈxʊts.pə/, [ˈχʊts.pə], [ˈhʊts.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.
    Synonyms: balls, cheek, gall, nerve, boldness, audacity, insolence
    • 2007 January 22, Philip Howard, “Modern Manners”, in The Times‎[1]:
      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.
    • 2007 December 11, John Scalzi, “Your Creation Museum Report”, in Whatever‎[2]:
      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, Tim Carvell [et al.], “Daily Fantasy Sports”, in Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, season 2, episode 34, John Oliver (actor), Warner Bros. Television, via 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!

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