Pronounced: AHN-uh-muhs, adj
Notes: I was quite interested to read about the origin of this word that is unknown to me
Yesterday’s word
The word schlemiel is “an unlucky bungler; chump”
First usage
Our word came into English in the late 1800s
Background / Comments
Our word came from the Yiddish word shlemil. It is thought to come from Peter Schlemihl, the hero of a story about an unlucky man who wold his shadow to the devil. The word may come from Shelumiel, who is mentioned is the Bible in Numbers 1:6. The Talmud describes him as a man whose behavior earned derision. Our word is often paired with another Yiddish word: “schlimazel” (an unlucky or bungling person). It has been said that a schlemiel is someone who spills his soup, and a “schlimazel” is the person it lands on. As I noted yesterday, I remember hearing our word: in the opening of the 1970s sitcom Laverne & Shirley, both schlemiel (and “schlimazel”) are used.
Richard's Vocabulary Word-of-the-Day 