Nebbish
Definition, Meaning & Examples
Pronunciation /ˈnɛ.bɪʃ/ · Part of speech noun
Quick meaning: Nebbish is a noun meaning One who is fearful, indecisive and timid, especially in making decisions and plans, in discussions, debates, arguments, and confrontations, and in taking responsibility.
Meaning
One who is fearful, indecisive and timid, especially in making decisions and plans, in discussions, debates, arguments, and confrontations, and in taking responsibility.
Example Sentences
Actor Rick Moranis often plays a nebbish.
“I don't consider myself a nebbish,” Woody told interviewers early in his career, “but everyone else does.”
“Having a camera in my hands transformed a nebbish into someone who could make New York into a better place,” he said. “To help others do the same is important to us.”
But as Lisa Schwarzbaum, the former movie critic for Entertainment Weekly, pointed out in an email interview, “‘Manhattan’ was always about a middle-aged man with a high school girlfriend. Back then, ‘Manhattan’ was made by Woody the Lovable Neurotic Nebbish, and now it has been made by Allen the Monster. And it’s the same movie.”
Word Forms
- nebbishes
- nebech
- nebesh
- nebish
- nebbisch
- nebbich
Related Words
Related dictionary entries include namby-pamby, scaredy-cat, fledgling, feebling, enfeebler, faltering.
Related Dictionary Tools
Sources & Attribution
FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0
Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.