To drag, haul, carry, lug, tug, pull, draw (with reflexive zikh [זיך] - to trudge, plod along).

Pronunciation: Click here to hear a native Yiddish speaker use this word in conversation.

Synonyms: shepn (שעפן), tsien (ציען), tsupn (צופן).

German equivalents: fördern, schleifen, tragen, zerren, ziehen.

Etymology: The word derives from Middle High German “sleppen,” related to Old High German “sleifen, slifan” (to slide, drag). Cognates include Dutch “slepen,” Middle English “slippen,” Modern (American) English “to schlep,” New High German “schleppen,”Norwegian “slepe,” and Swedish “släpa.”

Derivatives of shlepn: avekshlepn (אוועקשלעפן) - to drag away; dershlepn zikh (דערשלעפן זיך) - to arrive with difficulty; farshlepn (פארשלעפן) - to drag along, protract; farshlepn zikh(פארשלעפן זיך) - to be protracted; nokhshlepn zikh (נאכשלעפן זיך) - to trail after; shleper(שלעפער) - a poorly dressed person, tramp, vagabond, hobo, vagrant (for more on theshleper, see Wex); nokhshleper (נאכשלעפער) - a hanger-on, unwanted fellow (for more on the nokhshleper, see Blech); shlep (שלעפ) - a pull, jerk, the train of a dress; shleperay(שלעפעריי) - vagrancy; shlep-khaye (שלעפ-חיה) - a beat of burden; shlep-kleyd (שלעפ-קלייד) - a dress with a train; shlepkraft (שלעפקראפט) - (aeronautic) drag, pulling power; shlepnets(שלעפנעץ) - a dredge; shlepoyto (שלעפאויטא) - a tow truck; shleppost (שלעפפאסט) - snail mail; farshlept (פארשלעפט) - drawn-out, long, chronic.

Phrases with shlepn: a shlep ton (א שלעפ טאן) - to jerk, yank; nokhshlepn zikh nokh(נאכשלעפן זיך נאך) - to trail after; shlepn far der tsung (שלעפן פאר דער צונג) - to draw the words out of (someone; lit., to tug at the tongue); shlepn di ku oyfn boydem aroyf (שלעפן די קו אויפן בוידעם ארויף) - to do things in a roundabout (lit., to drag the cow onto the roof [where the hay is drying, rather than carry the hay down to where the cow is]); shlepn mit di fis (שלעפן מיט די פיס) - to stagger (lit., to drag one’s feet); shlepn zikh arum vi a Yid oyf di Nayn Teg (שלעפן זיך ארום ווי א ייד אויף די ניין טעג) - to be downcast (lit., to drag oneself around like a Jew during the Nine Days); a farshlepte krenk (א פארשלעפטע קרענק) - a chronic ailment (sometimes used to describe nasty people or situations as well).

Expressions with shlepn: 
1. A gutn shlepn di hint avek (א גוטן שלעפן די הינט אוועק) - Nice guys finish last (lit., Dogs carry a good person away).
2. Az men leygt zikh in klayen, shlepn avek di khazeyrem (אז מען לייגט זיך אין קלייען, שלעפן אוועק די חזירים) - He who lies with dogs gets up with flees (lit., When you lie in bran, pigs drag you away).
3. Mit vos eyner handlt shlept zikh es im nokh (מיט וואס איינער האנדלט שלעפט זיך עס אים נאך) - Whatever you deal with leaves telltale signs (lit., drags after you).
4. A Yid shlept di goles (א ייד שלעפט די גלות) - A Jew drags the exile (an expression which reflects the pain Jews suffered throughout their long history).
5. Nokh dem oreman shlept zikh der shlimazl/dales (נאך דעם ארעמאן שלעפט זיך דער שלימזל/דלות) - Misfortune/Poverty dogs (lit., drags after) the pauper.
6. Ver a betler eyder a shleper (ווער א בעטלער איידער א שלעפער) - Rather become a beggar than a vagrant. Similarly, Zay nisht keyn shleper, nor a betler (זיי נישט קיין שלעפער, נאר א בעטלער) - ibid.
7. A keml trinkt men on mit vaser eyder er shlept di mase (א קעמל טרינקט מען אן מיט וואסער איידער ער שלעפט די משא) - You water a camel before it drags its burden.
8. A mentsh ken oyf zikh mer dertrogn eyder tsen oksn kenen dershlepn (א מענטש קען אויף זיך מער דערטראגן איידער צען אקסן קענען דערשלעפן) - A person can bear more [sorrows, troubles, responsibilities, etc.] than ten oxen can drag.
9. Dos ershte vayb shlept dem vogn, dos tsveyte rayt oyfn zotl (דאס ערשטע ווייב שלעפט דעם וואגן, דאס צווייטע רייט אויפן זאטל) - lit., The first wife pulls the wagon, the second wife sits in the saddle (i.e. after realizing why his first marriage fell apart - because he put his wife to work all the time - a man will make sure to seat his second wife in the lap of luxury).
10. Iber di hayzer zolstu zikh shlepn mit kindskinder oyf doyrey doyres! (איבער די הייזער זאלסטו זיך שלעפן מיט קינדסקינדער אויף דורי דורות) - May you go begging from door to door with your descendants for many generations! 
11. Aroysshlepn zol men im di kishkes fun boykh un arumviklen zey ibern haldz!(ארויסשלעפן זאל מען אים די קישקעס פון בויך און ארומוויקלען זיי איבערן האלדז) - May his guts be torn out of his belly and wrapped around his neck!

Shlepn in East European and American Jewish culture:
1. Because so many Eastern European Jews lived in desperately poor conditions, begging became a way of life. As such, and as pointed out by the YIVO Encyclopedia article on Beggars and Begging, the shleper became a prominent figure in that society. 
2. One of the Yiddish names for the game “Blind Man’s Buff” is ”Shlepe-bobe” (another is “Blinde ku”), but although it looks like it’s related to the Germanic shlepn, it in fact derives from Polish “Slepa Baba.”
3. The common phrase shepn nakhes (שעפן נחת) - lit., to scoop up satisfaction - was often misheard by some Yiddish speakers as shlepn nakhes (שלעפן נחת) - lit., to drag satisfaction. Philologos thoroughly investigates what he sees as the true origins of this phrase and mix-up here.
4. As quoted by Gold, shlepn seems to have entered American English as “schlep” some time in the ’20s and ’30s, when Yiddish-speaking Jews became very prominent in the garment and jewelry businesses.