Meanings
Jewish Standard time1
- derogatoryslangsometimesuncountableA notional system of time or time zone which others sometimes derogatorily ascribe to Jewish people, and which they sometimes jocularly ascribe to themselves, to account for their supposed tendency to be leisurely, not rigorous about scheduling, and often tardy.
Jewish Standard Time2
- humorousuncountablelater than the agreed-upon time
The kid was on time, which would have been fine except that the students were on Jewish Standard Time.
2014, Faye Kellerman, chapter 2, in Murder 101: A Decker/Lazarus Novel2 more examples
It is my conviction that the notion of Jewish Standard Time is essentially a canard. It is not that Jewish events universally start when they are announced. They don't. The point is, that neither do anyone else's. Well, almost anyone: The Germanic descendants of the Anglos and the Saxons and occasional eccentrics among widely scattered ethnic groups do, and that tends to intimidate the rest of us.
1993, Richard J. Israel, The Kosher Pig: And Other Curiosities of Modern Jewish LifeI don't believe in Jewish Standard Time. That's complete bullshit and part of an agenda to advance the interests of inconsiderate assholes who can't keep time.
2015, Tasha Kaminsky, “Your Judaism”, in Jewish Noir: Contemporary Tales of Crime and Other Dark Deeds
Cite this entry
Jewish Standard time. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Jewish%20Standard%20time
“Jewish Standard time.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Jewish%20Standard%20time. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Jewish Standard time,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Jewish%20Standard%20time.
Source: Jewish Standard time on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.