JEW — (Heb. יְהוּדִי, Yehudi). Semantics The word Jew passed into the English language from the Greek (Ioudaios) by way of the Latin (Judaeus), and is found in early English (from about the year 1000) in a variety of forms: Iudea, Gyu, Giu, Iuu, Iuw,… … Encyclopedia of Judaism
jew — jew; jew·el·er; jew·el·lery; jew·el·ry; jew·ely; jew·ess; jew·ish·ness; jew·ism; jew·ry; jew·el; jew·ish; jew·el·ler; jew·el·ly; jew·ish·ly; … English syllables
jew — ‘Jew’, used as a term of address, now tends to be aggressive but was not always so. In literature it occurs from time to time. especially in plays or books like The Merchant of Venice where a Jewish character is important to the plot. Shylock… … A dictionary of epithets and terms of address
jew — (v.) to cheat, to drive a hard bargain, 1824, from JEW (Cf. Jew) (n.) (Cf. GYP (Cf. gyp), WELSH (Cf. welsh), etc.). The campaign to eliminate it in early 20c. was so successful that people began to avoid the noun and adjective, too, and started… … Etymology dictionary
Jew — (n.) late 12c. (in plural, giwis), from Anglo Fr. iuw, O.Fr. giu, from L. Judaeum (nom. Judaeus), from Gk. Ioudaios, from Aramaic jehudhai (Heb. y hudi) Jew, from Y hudah Judah, lit. celebrated, name of Jacob s fourth son and of the tribe… … Etymology dictionary
jew — [jo͞o] vt. [< JEW, by assoc. with occupation of Jews as moneylenders in Middle Ages] Slang to swindle; cheat; gyp to swindle; cheat; gyp jew someone down to get or bargain for better terms from someone in a business transaction, esp. in a… … English World dictionary
Jew|ry — «JOO ree», noun, plural ries. 1. Jews as a group; Jewish people. 2. Archaic. a district where Jews live; ghetto. 3. Archaic. the land of the Jews: »Alexas did revolt, and went to Jewry On affairs of Antony (Shakespeare). ╂[< Old French juerie… … Useful english dictionary
jew|el — «JOO uhl», noun, verb, eled, el|ing or (especially British) elled, el|ling. –n. 1. a precious stone; gem. 2. a) a valuable ornament to be worn, set with precious stones: »Like a rich jewel in an Ethiop s … Useful english dictionary
Jew — [dʒu:] n [Date: 1100 1200; : Old French; Origin: gyu, from Latin Judaeus, from Greek Ioudaios, from Hebrew Yehudhi, from Yehudhah Judah, Jewish kingdom ] someone whose religion is Judaism, or who is a member of a group whose traditional religion… … Dictionary of contemporary English
Jew — [ dʒu ] noun count * 1. ) a member of the group of people who lived in Israel and believed in Judaism in ancient times, and who now live in many places all over the world, including Israel 2. ) someone who believes in Judaism … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
