lehavdil

English

Alternative forms

• l'havdil, lehavdel, lehavdl

Etymology

From Yiddish להבֿדיל (lehavd(i)l), from Hebrew לְהַבְדִּיל (l'havdíl), the infinitive of הִבְדִּיל (hivdíl, “to separate, to distinguish”).

Pronunciation

• (Ashkenazi) IPA^(key): /ləˈhɑv.dɪl/, /ləˈhɑv.dəl/
• IPA^(key): /lə.hɑvˈdil/

Interjection

lehavdil

1. (Jewish English) excuse the comparison

• 2005, Michael Wex, Born to Kvetch: Yiddish Language and Culture in All of Its Moods, St. Martin's Press, →ISBN, pages 62-3:

  "Gandhi and, lehavdl, Hitler were twentieth-century political figures"; "the cow and, lehavdl, the pig...."

Usage notes

Put in a parenthetical phrase when mentioning two items, one of which is sacred, great, or happy, and the other of which is profane, inconsequential, or sad. It is commonly placed between the items to separate them, but is also used at the end or beginning of a sentence.