noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
Received-Pronunciation:/ˈkuːɡl̩/
General-American:/ˈkuɡ(ə)l/
General-American:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
General-South-African:/ˈkʊɡ(ə)l/
rhymes with -uːɡəl
rhymes with -ʊɡəl
CMU ARPABET:K UW1 G AH0 L
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
A traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish consisting of a baked pudding of pasta, potatoes, or rice, with vegetables, or raisins and spices.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
A wealthy young Jewish woman characterized as materialistic and selfish.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: JAP
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
A traditional hanging ornament of German origin, made of thin glass with a metal coating, usually spherical but also produced in other shapes such as bunches of grapes and drops.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
History
Etymology
Borrowed from Yiddish קוגל (kugl), from Middle High German kugel(e) (“ball”), referring to the roundish appearance of some puddings. Further etymology uncertain; see German Kugel for more.
Borrowed from German Kugel (“solid ball”). Further identical to etymology 1 above, which see. The German term is Weihnachtskugel or Christbaumkugel, but the simplex can be used for short in context.
Across languages
Translations
28 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Arabic:
كوجل
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Cebuano:
kugl
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Finnish:
kugel
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
French:
kugel
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
German:
Kugel
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Hebrew:
קוּגֶל
(kúgel)
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Italian:
kugel
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Japanese:
クーゲル
(kūgeru)
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Korean:
쿠겔
(kugel)
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Lithuanian:
kugelis
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Persian:
کوگل
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Polish:
kugel
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Polish:
kugiel
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Polish:
gugiel
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Russian:
кугель
(kugelʹ)
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Spanish:
kugel
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Swedish:
kugel
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Tagalog:
kugl
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Urdu:
کوگل
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Yiddish:
קוגל
(kugl)
— traditional savoury or sweet Jewish dish
Finnish:
itsekäs juutalaisnainen
— wealthy young Jewish woman characterized as materialistic and selfish
Finnish:
kugel
— traditional hanging ornament of German origin
German:
Weihnachtskugel
— traditional hanging ornament of German origin
German:
Christbaumkugel
— traditional hanging ornament of German origin
German:
Weihnachtsbaumkugel
— traditional hanging ornament of German origin
German:
Tannenbaumkugel
— traditional hanging ornament of German origin
Polish:
bombka
— traditional hanging ornament of German origin
Russian:
ёлочный ша́рик
(jóločnyj šárik)
— traditional hanging ornament of German origin
