# "Bobkes"

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bobkes/49774>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [January 12, 2001, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bobkes/49774 "2001-01-12T22:12:07Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![EnochF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/779978/32.png) [@EnochF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EnochF)\
**Post date:** [January 12, 2001, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bobkes/49774/1 "2001-01-12T22:12:07Z")

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“Bobkes,” Yiddish slang for “nothing, zilch, nada.” I never knew this word until I stumbled on it today.

So, now I know the origin of the word I’ve been hearing in American slang for quite some time, but pronounced a little different: “bup-kus.”

But the mystery still remains: how do I spell the Americanized version of the word? I’ve seen it spelled various ways in a number unreliable sources. “Bubkiss” seems to be a popular spelling, as does “bupkus” and “bupkiss.” I’ve looked in a few American and English slang dictionaries, but the word doesn’t appear. Is the word still spelled “bobkes,” even when spoken by an antisemitic Alabaman?

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**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\
**Post date:** [January 12, 2001, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bobkes/49774/2 "2001-01-12T22:27:46Z")

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Buy yourself a copy of Leo Rosten’s _The Joys of Yiddish_.

Not only is this a great book for spellings and meanings, but he illustrates each word with jokes. And what jokes!

Rosten says _either_ bobkes or bubkes is used. Bubkes would be preferred.

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**Author:** ![Shayna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shayna/32/17976_2.png) [@Shayna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shayna)\
**Post date:** [January 13, 2001, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bobkes/49774/3 "2001-01-13T00:33:23Z")

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Yiddish is written in Hebrew characters, which is why you see so many variations in the spelling of Yiddish (and Hebrew) words in English - it’s all phonetic.

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**Author:** ![funneefarmer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9fc348/32.png) [@funneefarmer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/funneefarmer)\
**Post date:** [January 13, 2001, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bobkes/49774/4 "2001-01-13T19:16:45Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by EnochF \*  
> \*\*Is the word still spelled “bobkes,” even when spoken by an antisemitic Alabaman? \*\*

No, that would be “Bubbakiss”, as in…  
My sister went out the other night and all she got was a Bubbakiss.