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ma·zel tov also ma·zal tov

(mäzəl tôf′, tôv′, tōv′)

interj.

Used to express congratulations or best wishes.

[Mishnaic Hebrew mazzāl ṭôb, good luck : mazzāl, constellation, destiny (ultimately from Akkadian manzaltu, mazzaztum, position of a star, from izuzzu, to stand; see ḏwḏ¹ in the Appendix of Semitic roots) + ṭôb, good; see ṭyb in the Appendix of Semitic roots.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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