Fentster - פענצטער
Fentster - פענצטער \FENTS-ter\ Noun \ Masculine \ Pl. Fentster:
A window.
Alternate spelling: fenster (פענסטער).
Alternate spelling: fenster (פענסטער).
Pronunciation: Click here to hear a native Yiddish speaker use this word in conversation.
German equivalent: das Fenster.
Etymology: The word derives from Middle High German “venster,” from Old High German “venstar,” which itself comes from Latin “fenestra.” Cognates include Afrikaans “venster,”Albanian “fënjeshtër,” Aromanian “fireastrã,” Breton “prenestr,” Catalan “finestra,” Dalmatian “finiastra,” Dutch “venster,” French “fenêtre,” Italian “finestra,” Luxembourgish “Fënster,” New High German “das Fenster,” Portuguese “fresta,” Romanian “fereastră,” Spanish “fenestra, finiestra,” Swedish “fönster,” and Welsh “ffenest.”
Derivatives of fentster: fentsterbret (פענצטערברעט) - a windowsill/ledge; fentsterlokh(פענצטערלאך) - a window opening; fentster-putser (פענצטער-פוצער) - a window cleaner;fentstershoy (פענצטערשוי) - a storefront; vayzfentster (ווייזפענצטער) - a show window.
Phrases with fentster: aroysnemen a shoyb fun eyn fentster un araynshteln in a tsveyter(ארויסנעמען א שויב פון איין פענצטער און אריינשטעלן אין א צווייטער) - to waste one’s time (lit., to remove a pane from one window and install it in the next one); krikhn in di hoykhe fentster(קריכן אין די הויכע פענצטער) - to try to enter high society/the upper echelons (lit., to crawl up to the high windows); varfn gelt durkhn fentster (ווארפן געלט דורכן פענצטער) - to throw money out the window.
Expressions with fentster:
1. In mayn fentster vet oykh a mol araynkukn di zun (אין מיין פענצטער וועט אויך א מאל אריינקוקן די זון) - The sun will shine down my street, too; while there is life, there is hope (lit., The sun will peep into my window, too, sometime).
2. Az men krikht durkh a fentster, vakst men nisht (אז מען קריכט דורך א פענצטער, וואקסט מען נישט) - If you climb through a window, you won’t grow. The expression related originally to a folk belief about children - namely that if a child climbs through a window, he won’t grow anymore - but has come to mean that if you steal (presumably by climbing through a window), you won’t gain any benefit from what you’ve stolen.
3. A shtub on fentster iz keyn gute dire nisht, un a kapote on kneplekh iz keyn sheyn beged nisht (א שטוב אן פענצטער איז קיין גוטע דירה נישט, און א קאפאטע אן קנעפלעך איז קיין שיין בגד נישט) - A house without windows is not a good domicile, and a caftan without buttons is not a nice garment. The expression refers euphemistically to a buried corpse, who “lives” in a house without windows and whose pall has no buttons. The point of the expression is that it’s not good to be dead.
4. Di kishke hot nisht keyn fentster (די קישקע האט נישט קיין פענצטער) - The guts have no windows. To quote Harshav, the expression means that you can eat all the junk you want so long as you fill your stomach. Similarly, In boykh zaynen keyn fentster nishto (אין בויך זיינען קיין פענצטער נישטא) - There are no windows into the stomach.
5. A tir tsu der gas iz a fentster tsum himl (א טיר צו דער גאס איז א פענצטער צום הימל) - A door [that opens on]to the street is a window to heaven. (Back in the day, and I guess to a certain extent today as well, having a private home whose front door opens onto the street was a really big deal.)
6. Tsulib tsvey fentster, makht men nisht khorev dem gantsn binyen (צוליב צוויי פענצטער, מאכט מען נישט חרב דעם גאנצן בנין) - Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater (lit., Over two faulty windows you don’t raze the entire structure).
7. Ale meshugoim shlogn yenem di fentster oys (אלע משוגעים שלאגן יענעם די פענצטער אויס) - All crazy people knock out other peoples’ windows (not their own; an apt response to someone who always tears other people down without ever reflecting on his own faults). Similarly, A meshugener shlogt fremde fentster, nisht keyn eygene (א משוגענער שלאגט פרעמדע פענצטער, נישט קיין אייגענע) - A crazy person knocks out others’ windows, not his own.
8. Az men zetst eynem on [gelt], zetst yener oys [di fentster] (אז מען זעצט איינעם אן [געלט], זעצט יענער אויס [די פענצטער) - If you pawn someone’s property, he’ll knock out your windows. The expression involves a nice wordplay on two different uses of zetsn - “to pawn” and “to jab.”
9. Az Got zol voynen oyf der erd, voltn im di mentshn di fentster oysgeshlogn (אז גאט זאל וווינען אויף דער ערד, וואלטן אים די מענטשן די פענצטער אויסגעשלאגן) - Were God to live on earth, people would knock His windows out. Similarly, Dayn mazl, Got, vos du voynst azoy hoykh; anisht, volt men dir di fentster oysgezetst (דיין מזל, גאט, וואס דו וווינסט אזוי הויך; אנישט, וואלט מען דיר די פענצטער אויסגעזעצט) - You’re lucky, God, that You dwell so high up; otherwise, people would knock Your windows out. Both of these are somewhat irreverent, but thereby classically Jewish, expressions of frustration at adversity in life.
For additional expressions using fentster, check out the YWOTW edition of tir.
1. In mayn fentster vet oykh a mol araynkukn di zun (אין מיין פענצטער וועט אויך א מאל אריינקוקן די זון) - The sun will shine down my street, too; while there is life, there is hope (lit., The sun will peep into my window, too, sometime).
2. Az men krikht durkh a fentster, vakst men nisht (אז מען קריכט דורך א פענצטער, וואקסט מען נישט) - If you climb through a window, you won’t grow. The expression related originally to a folk belief about children - namely that if a child climbs through a window, he won’t grow anymore - but has come to mean that if you steal (presumably by climbing through a window), you won’t gain any benefit from what you’ve stolen.
3. A shtub on fentster iz keyn gute dire nisht, un a kapote on kneplekh iz keyn sheyn beged nisht (א שטוב אן פענצטער איז קיין גוטע דירה נישט, און א קאפאטע אן קנעפלעך איז קיין שיין בגד נישט) - A house without windows is not a good domicile, and a caftan without buttons is not a nice garment. The expression refers euphemistically to a buried corpse, who “lives” in a house without windows and whose pall has no buttons. The point of the expression is that it’s not good to be dead.
4. Di kishke hot nisht keyn fentster (די קישקע האט נישט קיין פענצטער) - The guts have no windows. To quote Harshav, the expression means that you can eat all the junk you want so long as you fill your stomach. Similarly, In boykh zaynen keyn fentster nishto (אין בויך זיינען קיין פענצטער נישטא) - There are no windows into the stomach.
5. A tir tsu der gas iz a fentster tsum himl (א טיר צו דער גאס איז א פענצטער צום הימל) - A door [that opens on]to the street is a window to heaven. (Back in the day, and I guess to a certain extent today as well, having a private home whose front door opens onto the street was a really big deal.)
6. Tsulib tsvey fentster, makht men nisht khorev dem gantsn binyen (צוליב צוויי פענצטער, מאכט מען נישט חרב דעם גאנצן בנין) - Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater (lit., Over two faulty windows you don’t raze the entire structure).
7. Ale meshugoim shlogn yenem di fentster oys (אלע משוגעים שלאגן יענעם די פענצטער אויס) - All crazy people knock out other peoples’ windows (not their own; an apt response to someone who always tears other people down without ever reflecting on his own faults). Similarly, A meshugener shlogt fremde fentster, nisht keyn eygene (א משוגענער שלאגט פרעמדע פענצטער, נישט קיין אייגענע) - A crazy person knocks out others’ windows, not his own.
8. Az men zetst eynem on [gelt], zetst yener oys [di fentster] (אז מען זעצט איינעם אן [געלט], זעצט יענער אויס [די פענצטער) - If you pawn someone’s property, he’ll knock out your windows. The expression involves a nice wordplay on two different uses of zetsn - “to pawn” and “to jab.”
9. Az Got zol voynen oyf der erd, voltn im di mentshn di fentster oysgeshlogn (אז גאט זאל וווינען אויף דער ערד, וואלטן אים די מענטשן די פענצטער אויסגעשלאגן) - Were God to live on earth, people would knock His windows out. Similarly, Dayn mazl, Got, vos du voynst azoy hoykh; anisht, volt men dir di fentster oysgezetst (דיין מזל, גאט, וואס דו וווינסט אזוי הויך; אנישט, וואלט מען דיר די פענצטער אויסגעזעצט) - You’re lucky, God, that You dwell so high up; otherwise, people would knock Your windows out. Both of these are somewhat irreverent, but thereby classically Jewish, expressions of frustration at adversity in life.
For additional expressions using fentster, check out the YWOTW edition of tir.
Fentster in a sentence: Zumertsayt, muz ikh farmakhn mayne fentster tsulib di hoykhe muzik vos shpilt zikh in di gasn fun Voshington Hayts (זומערצייט, מוז איך פארמאכן מיינע פענצטער צוליב די הויכע מוזיק וואס שפילט זיך אין די גאסן פון וואשינגטאן הייץ) - In the summer, I have to shut my windows because of the loud music playing in the streets of Washington Heights.
Use fentster in your own sentence today!
