My American-Polish family says this word all the time! It sounds something like 'shnoodek'

My family has always used a word to describe someone, or someone's personality, that sounds something like shnoodek (that's the phonetical spelling of it.....the way they say it or something along those lines). They say that they call someone this, that is hard-headed, ornery, or a 'pistol' or stubborn. I'm trying to figure out if this is just something that my American-Polish family has made up, or if it is a real or slang word and how to spell it. My grandmother and her family has always said it, and she spoke Polish all her life because her parents came over to the US before my grandmother was

born. Please help! Thank you!!!!

szmondak ? slang expression, not really Polish but imported from jiddish, usual meaning: petty thief or ******* :-)

I was told that it literally means a loose string or thread from clothing. Figuratively, it is used to describe someone who is a bit annoying or a nuisance, but in a harmless way. Children are often described as "shnoodeks" by adults who love them.

sznurek