אוֹטוֹטוֹ (ototó) — any second now, in a moment
Etymology
The word אוֹטוֹטוֹ is one of several Hebrew expressions for nearness in time, and its Yiddish origin makes it stand out from the predominantly biblical and talmudic company it keeps. In Yiddish, the phrase אָט-אָט דאָ (ot-ot-do) is composed of two elements: אָט (ot, "here/behold") used twice for emphasis, and דאָ (do, "here"). The full phrase thus means literally "here-here-now" but is used idiomatically to mean "any moment now" — the same as its Hebrew descendant. An early example of the Yiddish usage appears in the New York Yiddish newspaper "Yudishe Gazeten" in June 1914: "אָט-אָט דאָ קומט דאָס אינטערעסאַנטע... און ער האָט ווייטער געלייענט" ("any moment now comes the interesting part… and he kept reading").
The phonetic journey from Yiddish to Hebrew is transparent: אָט-אָט-דאָ (ot.ot.do) became אוֹטוֹטוֹ (o.to.to) by regular phonological adaptation. The first known written use in Hebrew dates to October 1956, when the newspaper "Sha'arim" columnist Menachem Ben-Arye wrote of a scene in which "it seemed to us when we were there that 'ototó' the wheel was in their hands" — the quotation marks around the word signaling that it was still perceived as relatively new slang.
This word exists in the broader context of Hebrew temporal nearness expressions, most of which have ancient roots. The biblical כְּפֶסַע ("as close as a single stride," from Samuel 1:20:3) expresses closeness metaphorically through space. עוֹד מְעַט ("in a little while"), מִיָּד ("immediately," from "in the hand"), and תֶּכֶף ("right after") all have Mishnaic pedigree. The phrase חִישׁ קַל ("swiftly") derives from an anonymous Ashkenazic liturgical poem, itself inspired by Psalms 90:10 and Isaiah 5:26. עוֹד רֶגַע ("in another moment"), meanwhile, is a loan translation from German/Yiddish (noch ein Augenblick / נאָך אַ מינוט). אוֹטוֹטוֹ is thus the most recent addition to this family of temporal idioms.
Key Quotes
"ונדמה היה לנו כשהיינו שם שהנה ׳אוטוטו׳ ההגה בידיהם" — מנחם בן אריה, שערים, אוקטובר 1956
Timeline
- June 1914: Yiddish phrase "אָט-אָט דאָ" documented in New York Yiddish press
- By 1950s: אוֹטוֹטוֹ enters Hebrew colloquial speech
- October 1956: First written Hebrew attestation, still with quotation marks indicating new slang
- Modern Hebrew: fully standard colloquial word for "any moment now"
Related Words
- מִיָּד — immediately (Mishnaic Hebrew; lit. "from the hand")
- תֶּכֶף — instantly, right after (Mishnaic Hebrew)
- עוֹד מְעַט — in a little while (biblical phrase)
- עוֹד רֶגַע — in another moment (loan translation from German/Yiddish)
- כְּפֶסַע — a hair's breadth away (biblical metaphor)
- חִישׁ קַל — swiftly (liturgical Hebrew phrase)