What does “imale” mean in Hebrew?

אימאל'ה (imale) is one of the most-used everyday exclamations in Israeli Hebrew. It comes from ima (“mom”) plus the Yiddish-style ending -le (“little”), so it literally translates as “little mom!” Israelis use it the way English speakers say “oh my!” or “geez!”, at moments of awe, dismay, surprise, or sheer cuteness. The Yiddish -le ending survived into modern Hebrew, and imale is one of its clearest traces.

In this clip, a family at home tries a tube of Rolaps crunchy ice cream and someone gets to the surprise core. “אימאל'ה!” drops out as pure delight. The exclamation bypasses the more formal הו אלוהים (“oh God”) that Hebrew sometimes uses for the same feeling.