The Comprehensive English-Yiddish Dictionary, both the print and on-line versions, is a project of the League for Yiddish.

Containing nearly 50,000 entries and 33,000 subentries, the Comprehensive English-Yiddish Dictionary emphasizes Yiddish as a living language that is spoken in many places around the world. The late Mordkhe Schaechter collected and researched spoken and literary Yiddish in all its varieties, and this landmark dictionary reflects his vision for present-day and future Yiddish usage. The richness of dialectal difference and historical development are noted in the breadth of entries ranging from “agriculture” to “zoology” these words and expressions can be found in classic and contemporary literature, newspapers, and other sources of the written word, and have long been used by professionals and tradesmen, in synagogues, in schools, at home, in intimate life, and wherever Yiddish-speaking Jews have lived and worked. This dictionary will serve all who are interested in the Yiddish language: professors, researchers, students, writers and actors, as well as those who simply want to speak Yiddish on a regular basis.

Gitl Schaechter-Viswanath is Yiddish-language editor for Afn Shvel magazine and a poet whose works include “Plutsemdiker Regn/Sudden Rain”. She worked with her father Mordkhe Schaechter on his numerous Yiddish publications, including collaborating with him in compiling this dictionary.

Paul Glasser is former Dean of the Max Weinreich Center for Advanced Jewish Studies at the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. He spent many years working with Mordkhe Schaechter as a student and colleague.

Harry Bochner developed this website, and handles the on-going maintenance. Write to him at shames@englishyiddishdictionary.com if you have questions about using the website, including errors or omissions in the dictionary, as well as for institutional subscriptions.