Yiddish is a language spoken mainly by Jews in Europe and America, and is a mixture of German, Hebrew, and Slavic languages. Yiddish has contributed many distinctive words to English; many of these remain slang words used primarily in the US. A group of loan words from Yiddish and German have a characteristic `sh' sound at the beginning: shemozzle, schmuck, schlep, schlock, schmaltz, schmooze, shtick, shlub. Schmooze, literally `chat', means to talk to someone for the purpose of self-promotion, e.g. This was his chance to schmooze producers, distributors, and agents. Its onomatopoeic quality and similarity to `ooze', have perhaps given schmooze connotations of insincere flattery, but it can simply mean to hobnob or mingle. Another word which has entered English from Yiddish is schmaltz. Literally `melted fat', it refers to an animal fat used in cookery. It also means excessive sentimentality, especially in the arts, e.g. Finally, a boxing movie that doesn't descend into schmaltz or heroism. The widespread use of this word has also spawned the adjective schmaltzy. It is interesting to note that many of the synonyms for sentimental also refer to fatty, sweet, or creamy foodstuffs, e.g. cheesy, gooey, syrupy, saccharine. This food metaphor is often exploited in text: writers talk about drowning in schmaltz, and generous helpings of schmaltz, showing that its double meaning is still known.