A caller who grew up in New Jersey remembers hearing a neighbor use the expression Hak mir nisht ken tshaynik whenever she wanted to shush someone. He’s sure the phrase is Yiddish, but he’s never been able to figure out the literal meaning.
We solve the mystery for him. Hint: It has to do with teakettles. You’ll find more details about this colorful expression in Michael Wex’s book Born to Kvetch on Michael’s web site.
More from this show
If you speak a second or third language, you may remember the first time you dreamed in that new tongue. But does this milestone mean you’re actually fluent? And a couple’s dispute over the word regret: Say you wish you’d been able...