shaila

Pronunciations

shaila (SHAY-luh) listen
she'elah (sheh-ay-LAH) listen

Definitions

  • n. A question, especially to a rabbi regarding a religious matter.

Example Sentences

  • "I asked my Rov a shaila about the brocha on sushi."

  • "What, you're calling the rabbi at 11 P.M. with a she'ela about a turkey!" (Glinert)

Languages of Origin

  • Textual Hebrew
  • Yiddish

Etymology

  • TH שְׁאֵלָה she'elá > Y שאלה shayle

    • Who Uses This

      • Orthodox: Jews who identify as Orthodox and observe halacha (Jewish law)

      Regions

      • Great Britain
      • South Africa
      • Australia / New Zealand

      Dictionaries

      • Yiddish and English: A Century of Yiddish in America, by Sol Steinmetz (Tuscaloosa, 1986).
      • The Joys of Hebrew, by Lewis Glinert (New York, 1992).
      • Frumspeak: The First Dictionary of Yeshivish, by Chaim Weiser (Northvale, 1995).

      Alternative Spellings

      shayla, shaylah, shailah, shayle, she'ela, sheilah, sheela, shela

Notes

  • plural: 'shaylos' or 'she'elot'

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