schlimazel

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Yiddish שלימזל (shlimazl), from Middle High German slim (“crooked”) and Hebrew מזל (mazzāl, “luck”)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʃləˈmɑːzəl/

Noun

schlimazel (plural schlimazels)

2. (colloquial, chiefly US) A chronically unlucky person.
   • 1962, Philip K. Dick, “The Man in the High Castle”, in Four Novels of the 1960s, Library of America, published 2007, page 46:

     I must have pressed two buttons at once, he decided; jammed the works and got this schlimazl’s eye view of reality.

   • 2004 August 30, Michael Morrissey, “METS GET SLAMMED AGAIN – VENTURA GRANNY KEYS DODGER ROUT”, in New York Post‎^[2]:

     On Jewish Heritage Day, there was ample time to debate whether the Mets are schlemiels or schlimazels with the home team down 8-1 after five. Fans were given shirts that read “Let’s Go Mets” in Hebrew, but “Oy vey!” was more appropriate.

   • 2024 May 16, “Who Wants 30,000 Used Teslas?”, in Intelligencer‎^[3], retrieved 2024-05-16:

     Hertz is an early contender for Wall Street’s schlimazel of the decade, the big unlucky lemon that just can’t seem to get anything right.

Alternative forms

• schlemazel, schlemozzle, schlimazl, shlimazel, shlimazl, shlemozzle

Related terms

• schlemiel, shemozzle

Translations

a chronically unlucky person

• Danish: ulykkesfugl c
• Dutch: pechvogel (nl), schlemiel (nl)
• German: Pechvogel (de) m
• Italian: sfigato (it) n
• Serbo-Croatian: баксуз n (baksuz)
• Spanish: gafe (es) m
• Yiddish: שלימזל m (shlimazl)