Ingrid LawDiane Wood MiddlebrookSusan Reed and Doris Bacon
Did you know?
Just as trinkets can dress up your shelves or coffee table, many words for "miscellaneous objects" or "nondescript junk" decorate our language. Knickknack, doodad, gewgaw, and whatnot are some of the more common ones. We also have gimcrack, bauble, and bibelot. While many such words are of unknown origin, we know that tchotchke comes from the Yiddish word tshatshke of the same meaning, and ultimately from a now-obsolete Polish word, czaczko. Tchotchke is a pretty popular word these days, but it wasn't commonly used in English until the 1970s.
Examples of tchotchke in a Sentence
ArsTechnica, 29 Oct. 2025
Blasena emphasizes that lighting and draping that eliminates unsightly walls can make a space feel intimate, while a focal bar, signature cocktails, a photo booth, and late-night tchotchkes, such as glow sticks, flashing glasses, and flip flops, can amp up the atmosphere.
—Shelby Wax, Vogue, 24 Oct. 2025
This simple yet stylish monogrammed jewelry dish—personalized with her initial—is the perfect spot for her everyday jewelry or little tchotchkes.
—Christa Joanna Lee, Glamour, 13 Oct. 2025
On the desk that my character sits at in the movie, there [were] all these little tchotchkes and baubles decorating the desk.
—Vincent Perella, IndieWire, 10 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tchotchke
Cite this Entry
“Tchotchke.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tchotchke. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
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