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Chutzpah ( - ) is the quality of Boldness, for good or for bad. The word derives from the Hebrew language (חֻצְפָּה), meaning "insolence", "cheek" or "audacity". Thus, the original Yiddish word has a strongly negative connotation, but the form which entered English language as a Yiddishism in American English has taken on a broader meaning, having been popularized through vernacular use in film, literature, and television. In American English the word is sometimes interpreted—particularly in business parlance—as meaning the amount of courage, mettle or ardor that an individual has.
In Hebrew, chutzpah is used , to describe someone who has overstepped the boundaries of accepted behavior. In traditional usage, the word expresses a strong sense of disapproval, condemnation and outrage.
Leo Rosten in The Joys of Yiddish defines chutzpah as "gall, brazen nerve, effrontery, incredible 'guts', presumption plus arrogance such as no other word and no other language can do justice to". In this sense, chutzpah expresses both strong disapproval and condemnation. In the same work, Rosten also defines the term as "that quality enshrined in a man who, having killed his mother and father, throws himself on the mercy of the court because he is an orphan".
Chutzpah amounts to a total denial of personal responsibility, which renders others speechless and incredulous.
The cognate of ḥuṣpāh in Classical Arabic, (حصافة), does not mean "impudence" or "cheekiness" or anything similar, but rather "sound judgment".
As an example, Schulweis cites a case where Moses argues with God about the justice of His commands:
Similarly, the German form of "chutzpah" is Chuzpe. In Czech, chucpe is commonly used with a sharply negative connotation. The Dutch noun gotspe is also related and refers to a brazen or shameless act or situation. (2026). 9780802190949, Grove Press. ISBN 9780802190949
A Hindi-language streaming television series titled Chutzpah premiered on Sony Liv in 2021.
Jewish American Senator Ron Wyden wrote a book, It Takes Chutzpah, advocating for progressivism.
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