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dybbuk

American  
[dee-book, dib-uhk] / diˈbuk, ˈdɪb ək /
Or dibbuk

noun

Jewish Folklore.

plural

dybbuks, dybbukim

  1. a demon, or the soul of a dead person, that enters the body of a living person and directs the person's conduct, exorcism being possible only by a religious ceremony.

dybbuk British  
/ diˈbuk, ˈdɪbək /

noun

  1. Judaism (in the folklore of the cabala) the soul of a dead sinner that has transmigrated into the body of a living person

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of dybbuk

First recorded in 1900–05; from Yiddish dibek, from Hebrew dibbūq, derivative of dābhaq “cleave (to)”; spelling dybbuk is a Polish transliteration of the Hebrew word

Vocabulary lists containing dybbuk

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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.

This is the secluded organization that this season astonished and stirred the population with The Dybbuk.

From Time Magazine Archive

Last week the Tamkin Dybbuk finally found fulfillment, and Manhattan's City Center Theater was packed for the world premi�re.

From Time Magazine Archive

This time The Dybbuk was having its U. S. premiere as an opera, which has had considerable success during the past two years in Europe.

From Time Magazine Archive

Over the years, The Dybbuk inhabited several other composers, among them Hollywood's Dimitri Tiomkin.

From Time Magazine Archive

Opening with S. Ansky's well-known Dybbuk,* the Habimah confirmed the impression they made on Broadway in 1925: that they are a distinguished acting company.

From Time Magazine Archive

Definitions 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.