Yiddish

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Etymology

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Cognate to German quetschen, and more distantly to English squeeze.

Pronunciation

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Verb

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קוועטשן (kvetshn) (past participle געקוועטשט (gekvetsht))

  1. to squeeze, press, pinch
    • 1912, Sholem Aleykhem, Oreme un freylekhe (Poor and Happy), p. 109 (in modernised orthography):
      איך קוועטש דיר די האַנט מיט גרויס ליבשאַפֿט און בלײַב אויף אייביק דײַן געטרײַע, געטרײַע כּלה...
      ikh kvetsh dir di hant mit groys libshaft un blayb oyf eybik dayn getraye, getraye kale...
      I squeeze your hand with a great deal of love and forever remain your faithful, faithful bride...
  2. (especially US) to bother, kvetch, complain

Conjugation

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Derived terms

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Descendants

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  • English: kvetch