Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1800-1900
Language: Yiddish
Origin: Late Hebrew huspah

chutzpah

 noun
     
chutz‧pah [uncountable] informal
a lot of confidence and courage to do something, especially something that might involve being impolite to someone in authority - used to show approval [= nerve]:
It took a lot of chutzpah to talk to your boss like that.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.
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