The Greatest Yenta the World Has Ever Known

Scientific American takes a look at online dating.
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Frank Krausz's picture

You're making the common error of assuming that "yente" or "yenta" (transliterations vary) means "matchmaker." Actually, the Yiddish word for matchmaker is "shadchen." "Yenta" derives from a word for a duck (compare German "ente") and means a talkative woman -- very similar in sense and barnyard origins to the English "biddy." By the way, "kibitzer" also derives from a word for a duck of some kind. ("To kibitz" is a back-formation.)

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