bar mitzvah

[bahr mits-vuh, bahr, bahr meets-vah] / bɑr ˈmɪts və, bɑr, ˌbɑr mitsˈvɑ /

NOUN

jewish rite of passage

Synonyms

WEAK

bar mizvah bas mitzvah bat mitzvah

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Jacobs: I started my first business when I was 23 years old in 1979 with $5,000 left over from my bar mitzvah money, and that business grew to a billion dollars.

From MarketWatch • May 6, 2026

Bandel came with his entire family to celebrate his grandson's upcoming bar mitzvah, the Jewish coming-of-age ritual.

From Barron's • Apr. 9, 2026

As a child in New Orleans, Nicholas Lemann never attended a bar mitzvah or heard Hebrew.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 26, 2026

My brother had his bar mitzvah at the mountaintop fortress of Masada overlooking the Dead Sea.

From Salon • Nov. 30, 2025

Not even Danny, who was hoping for a miracle, right up to the day of his bar mitzvah.

From "The Wednesday Wars" by Gary D. Schmidt