bubkes

noun

bub·​kes ˈbəp-kəs 

ˈbu̇p-

variants or less commonly bupkes or bupkus

plural in form but singular in construction

: the least amount : beans

won't win bubkes this year

—Ivan Maisel

also : nothing

received bubkes for their efforts

Synonyms

• beans
• continental
• damn
• darn
• durn
• diddly [slang]
• diddly-squat [slang]
• doodley-squat
• doodly-squat
• fig
• ghost
• hoot
• iota
• jot
• lick
• modicum
• rap
• squat [slang]
• syllable
• tittle
• whit
• whoop

Examples of bubkes in a Sentence

she always eats out and proudly admits that she doesn't know bubkes about cooking

Word History

Etymology

Yiddish (probably short for kozebubkes, literally, goat droppings), plural of bubke, bobke, diminutive of bub, bob bean, of Slavic origin; akin to Polish bób bean

First Known Use

1937, in the meaning defined above