Five Ways To Be Silent
A fourth word for quiet is “hass.” This verb means making others quiet (i.e., hushing them). The etymology of this word might be an onomatopoeic adaptation of the sound used to quiet others (like “shh…”).
Learning The Ropes
In this passage, three different words are used for “rope” or “string”: chevel, tikvah, and chut. This essay attempts to trace the etymology of those words, seeking to clarify exactly how they relate to one another.
A Real Toss Up
Not all appearances of “hashlachah” carry a negative connotation. Some connote throwing something deliberately to bring about certain results.
Sleep Tight
...the Torah is telling us that Og was so big and strong even as a baby that he needed a metal crib to contain him; otherwise he would have broken his bed.
Just Winging It
Rabbi Wertheimer further notes that wings create shade and thus serve as a metaphor for offering protection.
Purim: Words For Wine (Part I)
Although some Bible scholars claim that tirosh is an archaic Hebrew word for wine that was later replaced with the more modern word yayin in the Bible, this explanation does not really account for the difference between the two terms and why the newer term did not just completely replace the older term.
An Utter Embarrassment
According to Rabbi Bedersi, klimah is the most intense type of embarrassment: it results from somebody doing something that he was not supposed to do, or somebody being called out for his misdeeds.
Seeking Completion
After banning Jews from being augurs, diviners, sorcerers, and necromancers, the Torah commands that one should be “tamim with G-d” (Deut. 18:13).
Where’s The Gold?
Rabbi Pinchas Eliyahu Horowitz (1765-1821) writes that Ophir is Peru, where large deposits of gold are supposedly concentrated.
Famishing Famines
Various permutations of this word appear around 130 times throughout the Bible.
Getting Stoned (Part Two)
As mentioned last week, the Bible actually uses both regimah and sekilah in the case of Achan (Joshua 7:25). Rashi explains that this is because Achan himself was subjected to regimah, while the animals he took as booty were subjected to sekilah (see also Targum and Radak there).
Blemished Imperfections
Rabbi Dr. Ernest Klein explains that this word originally referred to a dot or speck on an otherwise pristine background and was later expanded to mean any type of blemish or defective imperfection.
How Many Foreheads?
The Mishnah and the Talmud do not explain what “padachat” means, so how do we know it means “forehead”?
The Year of Seven (Part II)
Another word related to both sheviit and sheva is shavua, but this word bears two distinct meanings in both Biblical Hebrew and Mishnaic Hebrew.
The Many Names Of Moshe Rabbeinu
Rabbi Chaim Shmuelevitz (1902-1979) explains that each of Moses’ ten names reflects a different facet of his personality and teaches us something different about his greatness.
Laws And Orders
Classical writing requires ink and paper, which are technically separable. In engraving, the material being engraved becomes the writing.
More Cheese Please
The word gvinah only appears once in the Bible: Is it not like milk that You have poured me, and like cheese [gvinah] that You have solidified me? (Job 10:10).
Through The Looking Window
We now turn our attention to “eshnav.” This rather obscure word only appears twice in the entire Bible.
And Before Creation, Nothing
Both of these words are commonly translated as “nothingness,” but understanding the nuances expressed by these ostensible synonyms will help us better understand what exactly the Torah means to teach us about the state of the world before Creation.
Disgraceful Disparagement
Selling low or engaging in wasteful spending shows that one’s assets are not so valuable and important to him, so zal/zollel came to also refer to something that has a lowered value.
Fake Faces
Rabbi Shlomo Pappenheim of Breslau (1740-1814) writes that “masveh” and “suto” are related to “stav” (autumn or fall) and refer to soft, spongy fabrics worn to insulate oneself from cold weather.
Pick Your Poison
Dr. Kohut was the first to note that Rashi’s explanation of eches as snake venom was likely informed by the Greek word echis (viper).
The Year Of Slipping Away (Part I)
How does the literal meaning of “slipping away” relate back to laws of the sabbatical year?
Big Fish, Little Fish, Boy Fish, Girl Fish
According to the explanation that dag means “male fish” while dagah means “female fish,” it is hard to understand why the Jews in Egypt would have specifically eaten female fish and why the Plague of Blood would have only killed female fish.
Into The Wild
The word midbar appears approximately 270 times in the Bible and is often attached to a proper place-name, like Midbar Sinai, Midbar Sin, Midbar Paran, Midbar Shur, Midbar Kadesh, Midbar Damesek, Midbar Ein-Gedi, and Midbar Yehuda.
Single Guys
In this article, we explore the etymologies of ravak and two other Hebrew terms for an unmarried or single man – panui and bachur – try to zone in on the nuances they express.
Stealing And Robbing
The gaNav steals at Night [i.e., when nobody is looking] while the gazLan steals in the Light [i.e., out in the open].
To Be A Wise Guy (Part I)
Rabbi Pappenheim also argues that “cheich” [palate] comes from “chakah” because the open fish net resembles a person’s mouth opened wide in anticipation of food.
The Power To Hold Back
In Cheshek Shlomo, Rabbi Pappenheim connects “eitan” to the biliteral root aleph-tav, which he further reduces to the monoliteral root tav. He explains that this root means connections and linking.
Saving Survivors
In Modern Hebrew, the term miklat came to refer to a bomb shelter, which likewise receives those fleeing air raids and protects them.
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