Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web

kosher

 - 7 dictionary results

ko⋅sher

[koh-sher]
–adjective
1. Judaism.
a. fit or allowed to be eaten or used, according to the dietary or ceremonial laws: kosher meat; kosher dishes; a kosher tallith.
b. adhering to the laws governing such fitness: a kosher restaurant.
2. Informal.
a. proper; legitimate.
b. genuine; authentic.
–noun
3. Informal. kosher food: Let's eat kosher tonight.
–verb (used with object)
4. Judaism. to make kosher: to kosher meat by salting.
5. keep kosher, to adhere to the dietary laws of Judaism.
Also, kasher.


Origin:
1850–55; 1920–25 for def. 2; < Yiddish < Heb kāshēr right, fit
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To kosher
ko·sher   (kō'shər)   
adj.  
  1. Judaism

    1. Conforming to dietary laws; ritually pure: kosher meat.

    2. Selling or serving food prepared in accordance with dietary laws: a kosher restaurant.

    3. Legitimate; permissible: "consolidating noneditorial functions of the papers, which is kosher" (Christian Science Monitor).

    4. Genuine; authentic.

  2. Slang

    1. Legitimate; permissible: "consolidating noneditorial functions of the papers, which is kosher" (Christian Science Monitor).

    2. Genuine; authentic.

tr.v.   ko·shered also ka·shered, ko·sher·ing also ka·sher·ing, ko·shers also ka·shers
To make proper or ritually pure.

[Yiddish kosher, from Ashkenazi Hebrew kóšer, from Hebrew kāšēr, fitting, proper, from kāšēr, to be fitting, to succeed; see kṯr in Semitic roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Cultural Dictionary

kosher

Food that is permitted according to a set of dietary restrictions found in the Old Testament. For many Jews, foods that are not kosher cannot be eaten. The term can also be used colloquially to mean anything acceptable: “I don't think it's kosher to yell at your chess opponent when he is thinking about his next move.”


kosher

The descriptive term in Judaism for food and other objects that are clean according to its laws. These laws are contained in the Torah and forbid, for example, the eating of pork or shellfish, the mixing of dairy products and meat, and certain methods of slaughtering animals.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Slang Dictionary
kosher [ˈkoʃɚ] or [ˈkoʒɚ]

  1. mod.
    and koshe. acceptable; cricket. (From Hebrew kasher,“proper,” via Yiddish. Koshe is a slang clipping.) : Is it kosher to do this?
  2. tv.
    to make something acceptable. : Do you want me to kosher it with the boss for you?
  3. mod.
    having to do with undiluted alcohol. : I'll take mine kosher with a little ice.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

kosher 
"ritually fit or pure" (especially of food), 1851, from Yiddish kosher, from Heb. kasher "fit, proper, lawful," from base of kasher "was suitable, proper." General sense of "correct, legitimate" is from 1896.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Encyclopedia

kosher

("fit," or "proper"), in Judaism, the fitness of an object for ritual purposes. Though generally applied to foods that meet the requirements of the dietary laws (kashruth), kosher is also used to describe, for instance, such objects as a Torah scroll, water for ritual bathing (mikvah), and the ritual ram's horn (shofar). When applied to food, kosher is the opposite of terefah ("forbidden"); when applied to other things, it is the opposite of pasul ("unfit").

Learn more about kosher with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see kosher on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us: