challah
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of challah
From the Hebrew word hallāh
Explanation
Challah is an eggy yeast bread that's traditionally eaten by Jewish people on Shabbat and other holidays. Braided challah is the most common type. Not only is challah a tasty kind of bread, it's also highly significant in Judaism. Having two loaves at a meal symbolizes the manna, or food, that fell from heaven when the Israelites wandered through the desert. A piece of dough set aside before baking represents a tithe, or religious contribution, and salting the challah is an important part of blessing the meal, as salt symbolizes an eternal bond with God.
Vocabulary lists containing challah
Stairway To Leaven: Baking Vocabulary
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World Cuisine - Introductory
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World Cuisine - Middle School and High School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Rabbi Nadav Caine and his family gathered in their Michigan home to break challah bread for their weekly Shabbat meal, a brief respite from the acrimonious midterm election campaign dividing Jewish voters in their state.
From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2026
Falafel and hummus, with varying recipes and consistencies, flow freely across countries of several faiths and backgrounds, while pizza bagels are a frozen food staple and challah French toast is seemingly everywhere.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
Like many Jews, Wagner prepares for Shabbat by going to buy a challah, a braided bread, from a kosher bakery.
From BBC ● May 2, 2026
Over delicious homemade challah, we discussed classic graphic novels, many of which he edited.
From Salon ● Nov. 28, 2024
Clara grabbed the first bread she could get her hands on, the half a loaf of challah sitting on the counter, and a well of salt before rushing to her sister’s side.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
