Kibitzer is a

Yiddish Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ver ...

term for a spectator, usually one who offers (often unwanted) advice or commentary. The term can be applied to any activity, but is most commonly used to describe spectators in games such as contract bridge, chess and Schafkopf. In card games, a kibitzer simply refers to a spectator watching a player's hand; kibitzers are expected to remain silent and not impact the game. Kibitz and kibitzer are derived from German kiebitzen, to look over a card-player's shoulder, perhaps derived from Kiebitz, a lapwing or peewit.

Other uses

The verb kibitz can also refer to idle chatting or side conversations. In computer science the term is the title of a programming language released by

NIST The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce whose mission is to promote American innovation and industrial competitiveness. NIST's activities are organized into physical sci ...

, as a sub-project of the Expect programming language, that allows two users to share one shell session, taking turns typing one after another. There is a 1930 film called '' The Kibitzer'' which is based on the 1929 three-act comedy play by the same name. Jane Jacobs describes a kibitzer as someone who keeps a look-out on a street, and seeing suspicious activity, intervenes to help the victim. In this way, kibitzers help keep streets safe.'' The Death and Life of Great American Cities'' by Jane Jacobs

References

Game terminology Yiddish words and phrases {{game-stub

Other uses

See also

References