simcha

English

Alternative forms

• simchah

Etymology

From Yiddish שׂמחה (simkhe), from Hebrew שִׂמְחָה (simkhá, literally “happiness”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsɪmhə/

Noun

simcha (countable and uncountable, plural simchas)

1. (Judaism, uncountable) joy
   • 2001, Moshe Goldberger, 100 Brachos: Counting Your Blessings 100 Times a Day, The Judaica Press, Inc., →ISBN, page 58:

     Each and every one of these blessings is a reason to be full of simcha.

   • 2017, Velvel Pasternak, Behind the Music, Stories, Anecdotes, Articles and Reflections, page 223:

     The return to a meaningful and vibrant Judaism, he felt, must contain an ingredient too long denied it. This ingredient was simcha (joy), and it became the cornerstone of the Hasidic movement.

2. (Judaism, countable) a joyous occasion, celebration
   • 1994, Helping Hands Information Services, It's Your Affair: The Guide to Making a Simcha:
   • 2017, Velvel Pasternak, Behind the Music, Stories, Anecdotes, Articles and Reflections, page 41:

     After the wedding, I received a letter from the bride and her family with profuse thanks for enabling them and the Jewish community of Sheboygan to witness and participate in a "wonderful, traditional simcha"

Related terms

• Simchat Torah

Anagrams

• Michas, chiasm, machis, samich