Schmear
Schmear is a word of Germanic origin, equivalent to 'smear' or 'spread'. In some Germanic languages, the cognate of
smear itself means butter. Origin: Before 900; Middle English:
smeren,
smirien to rub with fat, anoint; Old English:
smirian,
smerian,
smerwan; cognate with Dutch:
smeren; German:
schmieren, Old Norse:
smyrja,
smyrwa; in current senses derivative of the verb; compare obsolete
smear: fat, grease, ointment; Middle English:
smere; Old English:
smeoru; cognate with Dutch:
smear; German:
Schmer, Old Norse:
smjǫr, Danish:
smør - butter; Greek:
σμύρις - rubbing powder. The use and spelling
schmear or
shmear in American English is a direct loanword from Yiddish, where its original usage referred to cheese. In modern usage it has extended to anything that can be spread, such as cream cheese spread upon a bagel. In some cases, it refers to "an entire set or group of related things", or the expression "the whole shmear".