Chutzpah
HOOT-spah • Noun
חוצפּה
Audacity, nerve, or absolute shameless guts (can be positive or infuriating depending on context).
Standard guts is brave. Chutzpah is a tenant suing his landlord for unpaid rent after stealing the landlord's car. It defies expectations.
The 'C' is fully silent! It is absolutely NOT 'chutney'. Start with breathy throat friction, shift into 'hoots', finish with a clean 'pah'.
Standard YIVO transliteration: khutspe
Dialects: HOOTS-pah (Anglo-American) vs. KHUTS-peh (YIVO).
Etymology: From Hebrew chutzpah (חוצפה). 'Ch' in popular spelling represents a voiceless velar fricative — the same sound as the end of 'Bach.'
"He has the chutzpah to ask for a second portion after complaining about the cooking."
"Our intern had the absolute chutzpah to correct the CEO's grammar in a public Slack channel."