Schmuck (pejorative)

Schmuck, or shmuck, is a pejorative term meaning one who is stupid or foolish, or an obnoxious, contemptible or detestable person. The word came into the English language from Yiddish (Yiddish: שמאָק‎, shmok), where it has similar pejorative meanings, but where its literal meaning is a vulgar term for a penis.[1]

Etymology

The Yiddish word shmok derives from Old Polish smok "grass snake, dragon."[2][3][4]

In the German language, the word Schmuck means "jewelry, adornment."[5] It is a nominalization of the German verb schmücken "to decorate" and is unrelated to the word discussed in this article.[2] The same is true for the Danish word smuk, a loanword from German that means "beautiful".[6][7]

Euphemisms

Because of its generally being considered a vulgarity,[8] the word is often euphemized as schmoe, which was the source of Al Capp's cartoon strip creature the shmoo.[9] Other variants include schmo and shmo.

In Jewish-American culture

Leo Rosten writes in The Joys of Yiddish that schmuck is commonly viewed among Jews as an obscene word that shouldn't be said lightly.[10] Lenny Bruce, a Jewish stand-up comedian, wrote that the use of the word during his performances in 1962 led to his arrest on the West Coast, "by a Yiddish undercover agent who had been placed in the club several nights running to determine if [his] use of Yiddish terms was a cover for profanity".[11]

Although schmuck is considered an obscene term in Yiddish, it has become a common American idiom for "jerk" or "idiot". It can be taken as offensive, however, by some Jews, particularly those with strong Yiddish roots. Allan Sherman explained in his book The Rape of the A*P*E* that, if a word is used frequently enough, it loses its shock value and comes into common usage without raising any eyebrows.[12]

The term was notably used in the 2010 comedy film Dinner for Schmucks, in which the plot centered on a competition among businessmen to see who could invite the biggest idiot to a monthly dinner. In her review of the film for the New York Times, film critic Debbie Schlussel took issue with the movie's use of the term "schmuck", and with its use of Yiddish at all, adding: “The more correct title would have been ‘Dinner for Schlemiels'.”[13] She added, "At The New York Times, where the word is still considered potentially offensive, the title of [the] film may be mentioned only sparingly. Still, advertisements for the movie would probably pass muster", and suggested that the main characters in the film might be more appropriately called "shmendriks".[13]

In bodybuilding
See also: Muscle worship

In bodybuilding culture, the term "schmoe", or "smos", is used to describe a person, often a wealthy man who is less muscular and weaker than bodybuilders, who pays bodybuilders money for private posing sessions, wrestling, and prostitution.[14][15][16]

gollark: This is... strange?
gollark: Er, what?
gollark: osmarks.tk's servers are something like 95% reliable.
gollark: This would be a poor decision.
gollark: If so please do not as lyric bad and may take it seriously.

See also

References
  1. Gross, David C. English-Yiddish, Yiddish-English Dictionary: Romanized Hippocrene Books, 1995. p.144. ISBN 0-7818-0439-6
  2. "Schmuck". Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 17 Jan 2011.
  3. "Schmuck". American Heritage Dictionary. Retrieved 5 Dec 2018.
  4. Gold, David L. (1982). "More on Yiddish shmok". Comments on Etymology. 11 (15): 33–37.
  5. "Schmuck". Leo – Online German-English Dictionary. pp. 360–362. Retrieved 13 Mar 2010.
  6. "smuk". Ordbogen.com. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
  7. Den Danske Sprog- og Litteraturselskab (2018). "smuk". Den Danske Ordbog. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
  8. Rosten, Leo. The Joys of Yiddish. New York, Pocket Books, 1968. pp. 360-362
  9. "Schmuck". dictionary.com. Retrieved 17 Jan 2011.
  10. Rosten, Leo. The New Joy of Yiddish. Crown Publishers, New York, 2001. pgs. 78, 162. ISBN 0-609-60785-5
  11. Paley, Maggie. The Book of the Penis New York: Grove Press, 2000. p.78. ISBN 0802136931
  12. Sherman, Allan. The Rape of the A*P*E*; the Official History of the Sex Revolution, 1945–1973. Chicago: Playboy, 1973. Print.
  13. Cieply, Michael (May 3, 2010). "Much Movie Title Meshugas". The New York Times. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
  14. "Schmoes In Bodybuilding". muscle-insider.com.
  15. Hildebrand, Bryan. "P.J. Braun: The Other Fans". www.rxmuscle.com.
  16. "IFBB Pro Undercover #16". 15 January 2003.
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