matzo

noun

Etymology: When stressed on the first syllable, from Yiddish מצה (matse), from Hebrew מַצָּה (matsá); pronunciations stressed on the second syllable are borrowed directly from Hebrew.

1. Thin, unleavened bread in Jewish cuisine.

   “Matzo is eaten by Jews on Passover.”

   “Like the Kopelmans, they have a Christmas tree with dreidel ornaments and a menorah, which they light each night. Pham learned to cook matzo ball soup.”

2. A piece of the above bread.

   “[W]hen a Hamas spokesman recently stood by his statement that Jews used the blood of non-Jewish children for their matzos – one of the oldest anti-Semitic canards around – European elites were largely silent.”