Vol. 09 · Loanwords ·Yiddish ·1880s
Meshuga
from meshuge
- Meaning
- Crazy, mad.
- Source word
- meshuge
- Route into English
- Hebrew *meshuggaʿ* (insane) → Yiddish → American English slang. Often spelled *meshugga* or *meshugge*; English has not settled on one form.
- Arrived
- 1880s
From Yiddish
Mass migration from Ashkenazi Eastern Europe to New York (1880–1920) funnelled Yiddish into American English, from where it diffused globally.
English borrows.
Browse the full loanword atlas or explore another source language.