tchotchke

American  

[chahch-kuh] / ˈtʃɑtʃ kə /

Or chotchke

noun

Slang.

1. an inexpensive souvenir, trinket, or ornament.

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Usage

What does tchotchke mean? A tchotchke is a small, cheap, ornamental trinket or souvenir; a knickknack. Tchotchke is taken from Yiddish, a dialect of German based on Hebrew. It has several English spellings, including chotchke, tchachke, and chachki. In Yiddish, it is also sometimes used as a term for a young girl or pretty woman. Example: My mother can’t go on vacation without coming back with a few tchotchkes.

Etymology

Origin of tchotchke

First recorded in 1965–70, from Yiddish tshatshke, from Polish czaczko “bibelot, knickknack” (now obsolete; compare modern cacko with same sense, originally dialect); of expressive origin

Explanation

A tchotchke is a small, decorative object that's not valuable or precious. When you travel to a foreign country, you might buy some tchotchkes to give as gifts to your friends back home. A tchotchke is some kind of trinket or bauble, like inexpensive jewelry or the prize you get in a cereal box. Less often, tchotchke is used to mean "pretty girl or woman." The word comes, via Yiddish, from a Slavic root, and over the years it's been spelled in numerous different ways. When you pronounce tchotchke, the first t is silent.

Example Sentences

“I look around at my relatives and my parents and like, what’s good taste? Tchotchke stuff,” she says.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 9, 2022