Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
adjective
- Judaism.
- fit or allowed to be eaten or used, according to the dietary or ceremonial laws: kosher meat; kosher dishes; a kosher tallith.
- adhering to the laws governing such fitness: a kosher restaurant.
- Informal.
- proper; legitimate.
- genuine; authentic.
noun
- Informal. kosher food: Let’s eat kosher tonight.
verb (used with object)
- Judaism. to make kosher: to kosher meat by salting.
- keep kosher, to adhere to the dietary laws of Judaism.
adjective
- Judaism conforming to religious law; fit for use: esp, (of food) prepared in accordance with the dietary lawsSee also kasher, kashruth
- informal
- genuine or authentic
- legitimate or proper
“ritually fit or pure” (especially of food), 1851, from Yiddish kosher, from Hebrew kasher “fit, proper, lawful,” from base of kasher “was suitable, proper.” Generalized sense of “correct, legitimate” is from 1896.
Food that is permitted according to a set of dietary restrictions found in the Old Testament. For many Jews (see also Jews), foods that are not kosher cannot be eaten. The term can also be used colloquially to mean anything acceptable: “I don’t think it’s kosher to yell at your chess opponent when he is thinking about his next move.”
The descriptive term in Judaism for food and other objects that are clean according to its laws. These laws are contained in the Torah and forbid, for example, the eating of pork or shellfish, the mixing of dairy products and meat, and certain methods of slaughtering animals.