The Chutzpah Chronicles

← Glossary

schmear

Yiddish

also: shmear

the cream cheese on a bagel, or the whole works

Literally the cream cheese spread on your bagel, ordered by amount ("light schmear," "extra schmear"). It also means the whole deal, everything included, as in "give me the schmear," which is how one word ends up covering both breakfast and a business negotiation.