utzy adj. uncomfortable, bothered, uneasy. Etymological Note: Probably from the Yiddish utz ‘to tease, bother, nag,’ related to the German uzen ‘to tease, to kid,’ and perhaps reinforced by antsy. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
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A flashlight doesn’t flash. It provides a steady beam of light. So why is it called a flashlight? The earliest versions lit up only briefly before the batteries gave out and required a recharge, so they were literally “flash lights...
I’m not familiar with the Yiddish word “utz”. Which Yiddish dictionary or thesaurus did you find it in?
I’m not sure which one I pulled it from, but when researching Yiddish words, I tend to consult the following:
Modern English-Yiddish Yiddish English Dictionary, Uriel Weinreich (YIVO, New York, 1968).
Harkavy’s Manual Dictionary (Hebrew Publishing Co., New York, 1894).
Anglish/Yinglish, 2e, Gene Bluestein (U. of Neb. Press, Lincoln, 1998).
Hooray for Yiddish!, Leo Rosten (Simon & Schuster, New York, 1982).
The Joys of Hebrew, Lewis Glinert (Oxford University Press, New York, 1992).
Frumspeak: The First Dictionary of Yeshivish, Chaim M. Weiser (Rowman & Littlefield, Maryland, 2004).
The Oxford English-Hebrew Dictionary (Oxford University Press, New York, 1998).
Also, the Harper Collins German Dictionary, Unabridged Second Edition (New York, 1995).
Interesting word. My dad often uses the variant “utchly” to describe being mildly ill tempered for no descernable reason. He got it from his mother, who was a first generation American from German parents. I currently use it to warn my husband as in, “Be nice to me; I’m in an utchly mood.” What I’m meaning is, don’t push me or I’ll go from a mildly bad mood to a really bad mood.