Pronunciations
Definitions
adv. On the contrary, rather.
interj. 'Excuse the comparison'; 'no comparison intended'.
interj. An expression to distinguish sacred from non-sacred discourse.
interj. (ironic) An expression of one's superiority over another.
- View More
Example Sentences
-
"Which one excites you more, that your child knows Gemoro by heart or l'havdil that he knows Shakespeare…" (source)
-
“I’m only starting in business, but l’havdil, at some point Rockefeller was only ‘starting in business.'” (NJY)
-
“'Rabbi, you speak as beautifully as that rabbi over on Thirteenth Street.' 'L’havdil.'” (NJY)
-
"As for this idea of the unborn child knowing the Torah, I recall some-
thing similar in Plato, lehavdil." (Glinert)
- View More
Languages of Origin
- Textual Hebrew
- Yiddish
Etymology
TH להבדיל lehavdíl 'to separate or distinguish (especially between sacred and profane)' > Y להבֿדיל lehávdl 'to make a distinction'
- Religious: Jews who are engaged in religious observance and have some Jewish education
- Older: Jews who are middle-aged and older
- Ashkenazim: Jews with Ashkenazi heritage
- Sephardim: Jews with Sephardi or Mizrahi heritage
- View More
- North America
- Great Britain
- South Africa
- The New Joys of Yiddish, by Leo Rosten and Lawrence Bush (New York, 2003[1968]).
- Yiddish and English: A Century of Yiddish in America, by Sol Steinmetz (Tuscaloosa, 1986).
- The Joys of Hebrew, by Lewis Glinert (New York, 1992).
- Dictionary of Jewish Usage: A Popular Guide to the Use of Jewish Terms, by Sol Steinmetz (Lanham, MD, 2005).
- View More
Who Uses This
Regions
Dictionaries
Alternative Spellings
lhavdil, lehavdil, l'havdl
Edit Something missing from this entry? Inaccurate? Feel free to suggest an edit.
