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*An alternate spelling for "ajita" is "agita."
Marjorie Gottlieb Wolfe
Syosset, New York
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William Safire ("On Language") asked this question:
Q. What's a tsunami of tsoris?
A. A tidal wave of trouble.
The headlines read:
DEAL! STRIKE AVERTED AS LIRR, MTA AGREE
(Newsday, July 18, 2014)
Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, after a tentative labor agreement, was asked a question by political reporter, Marcia Kramer: What was his message for Long Island commuters who suffered through a lot of "ajita"-- that is anxiety, stress, aggravation--over the last several weeks as the [Long Island Railroad] strike threat loomed.
"There was a high degree of agita over the past few weeks," Cuomo said...The good news is there could have been a lot more agita next week."
When Gov. Cuomo was asked about the meaning of 'ajita,' he replied with a Yiddish term meaning aggravation. "It's like tsuris,"...not to have to suffer during a future LIRR shutdown due to the lack of foresight or resources," he said.
Marcia Kramer reported the deal was especially important for Cuomo, who did not want to alienate potential voters.
"The Yiddish words 'tsuris' and 'nakhes' refer to two extreme emotions that only your son and daughter can invoke in you," said Howard Rheingold.
According to "The Yiddish Handbook: 40 Words You Should Know," the word 'tsores' (or 'tsuris') means: "Serious troubles, not minor annoyances:
Plagues of lice, gnats, flies, locusts, hail, death...now those were tsuris.
Another definition of "tsuris": A word referring to all problems, trouble, grief, aggravation and heartache. Examples: daughter pregnant with child of an unemployed bartender, adult son loses job and moves back home. MAJOR "TSURIS": Daughter and baby "Bridget" move back home too.
"Tsooris" (alternate spelling) is perhaps more serious than mere agita, but in many sentences they can be used interchangeably." (Source: bubbygram.com/Yiddishglossary.htm)
Rabbi Susan Schnur of the Progressive Sing of Pearls Congregation, said "The prayerbook is really a catalog of Jewish tsuris, a catalog of misery. Good thing don't happen to Jews overtly, and when they do, it feels dangerous."
www.word-detective.com, Dec. 18, 2000, contained this letter:
Dear Word Detective:
What is the Italian or Yiddish word for heartburn? I grew up hearing my
parents saying 'agada,' but since I've moved to the South no one seems
to believe it's actually a word. Help!
Kelly, via the internet
Reply:
Tell me about it. Ever since I moved to rural Ohio from New York City a few years ago, I've been getting funny looks from people whenever I use standard New-Yorkisms such as 'go figure' or 'fugeddaboutit.' Of course, they also think 'bialy' is a breed of dog, so I guess it's hopeless.
In any case, the word your parents were using was almost certainly 'agita.' You won't find 'agita' in most dictionaries, although it is a quintessential Italian-American slang word. Strictly speaking, 'agita' is a stomach upset or heartburn. But 'agita' can also mean that special kind of existential dyspepsia of the soul you get when absolutely everything goes wrong. Comedian Jackie Mason has eplained 'agita' as 'when you have a serious migraine headache throughout your whole body.' 'Agita' is thus more or less the Italian-American equivalent of the Yiddish 'tsuris' (misery), an equation not lost on Woody Allen, who made a song about 'agita' the centerpiece of his 1984 film, 'Broadway Danny Rose.'"
One TV REVIEWER wrote about a perfect example of "tsores": "Two and a Half Men" characters, Walden (Ashton Kutcher) and Alan (Jon Cryer) aren't gay, but getting married is seen as a way to reach Walden's goal of adopting a child.
Walden realizes it's very difficult to adopt as a single, straight man. So he decides, 'I'm going to propose to Alan. We're going to get married and adopt a child as a gay couple."
OY VEY!!!! "Nit do gedakht!" (May it never happen here.)
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MARJORIE WOLFE'S FAVORITE "TSORES" STORY:
Grossman got a call from his doctor with the results of his blood test.
"Grossman, we've got tsores. I've got bad news and worse news" said
the doctor. "The bad news is you have only hours to live."
"Oh, no," said Grossman. "What could be worse news than that?"
"I've been trying to reach you since yesterday."
(Source: "The Real Yiddish Your Bubbe Never Taught You" by Yetta Emmes.)
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