אִוֶּלֶת
ʼivveleth · H200 · Hebrew · 25 occurrences
Meanings
-
folly
State of being regarded as foolish, because of lack of fear of God, unwillingness to listen to advice, talking too much, and being unable to conceal one's temper
ExamplesProverbs 5:23 He will die for lack of instruction, And in the greatness of his foolishness he will go astray.
Proverbs 12:23 A prudent person conceals knowledge, But the heart of fools proclaims foolishness.
Proverbs 13:16 Every prudent person acts with knowledge, But a fool displays foolishness.
How it’s used In 7 roles
Every occurrence, grouped by the words it is grammatically related to.
the word studied the word it goes with
Whose, or of whatGenitive or possessive
11 occurrences in 4 groups
- הוּhis 6
- כְּסִילfool, foolish 2
- יmy 2
- אָדָםhuman, humankind, human being(s) 1
What it doesIt is the subject
4 occurrences in 4 groups
- הָרַסto tear down, to overthrow 1
- סוּרto turn aside, to depart, to remove 1
- סָלַףto subvert, to overthrow 1
- קָשַׁרto conspire, to bind 1
What is done to itIt is the object
7 occurrences in 7 groups
- נָבַעto gush 1
- נָחַלto inherit, to possess 1
- עָשָׂהto do, to make 1
- פָּרַשׂto spread out 1
- קָרָאto call, to cry out 1
- רוּםto be high, to raise, to lift up 1
What it is said to bePredicate
3 occurrences in 3 groups
- אִוֶּלֶתfolly 1
- מִרְמָהfalsehood 1
- שִׂמְחָהjoy 1
What is said to be itIt is the predicate
3 occurrences in 3 groups
- הוּאhe, she, it 1
- אִוֶּלֶתfolly 1
- מוּסָרdiscipline, instruction 1
After prepositionsPrepositional phrases
5 occurrences in 3 groups
- כlike/as 4
- בin/on/with 3
- לto/for 2
In phrases “… of it”It is the genitive
3 occurrences in 3 groups
- זִמָּהlewdness, wickedness 1
- פָּנִיםface, presence, before 1
- רֹבmultitude, abundance, numerous 1
When two words share a role, as in “Paul and Barnabas said”, the verse appears under each, so a section’s counts can add up to more than the number of occurrences.
MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Near synonyms 6 words
- הוֹלֵלָה hôwlêlâh · H1947 · madness
- Both denote mental or moral deficiency—הוֹלֵלָה (hôwlêlâh, H1947) madness, אִוֶּלֶת (ʼivveleth, H200) folly—overlapping in the general sense of irrationality or foolishness.
- סִכְלוּת çiklûwth · H5531 · folly, foolishness
- Both words denote the abstract noun "folly, foolishness," as two distinct words that can substitute for each other in expressing the same concept.
- כִּסְלָה kiçlâh · H3690 · confidence, trust, foolishness
- Both overlap in the sense of "folly," though כִּסְלָה (kiçlâh, H3690) also carries a broader sense of trust; where their meanings align, both denote foolishness.
- נְבָלָה nᵉbâlâh · H5039 · foolishness, folly, foolish actions
- Both denote folly or foolishness as abstract nouns, overlapping in the same specific semantic field rather than merely belonging to a broad category.
- הוֹלֵלוּת hôwlêlûwth · H1948 · madness
- Both denote mental or behavioral irrationality—madness and folly—two distinct Hebrew words for overlapping concepts of irrational thought or behavior.
- פְּתִי pᵉthîy · H6612 · simpleton
- Both words denote foolishness or folly as core meanings (אִוֶּלֶת (ʼivveleth, H200) as the abstract noun "folly," פְּתִי (pᵉthîy, H6612) as a "simple, foolish" person or quality), as distinct Hebrew words overlapping in sense.
Contrasting words 1 word
- חָכָם châkâm · H2450 · wise, intelligent, able
- The direct lexical opposite of אִוֶּלֶת, denoting wisdom rather than folly.
In the other Testament 2 words
- ἀφροσύνη aphrosýnē · G877 · to be a fool, foolishness
- Greek ἀφροσύνη renders Hebrew אִוֶּלֶת as the direct translation equivalent for 'folly/foolishness' in LXX contexts, denoting senseless or reckless behavior characteristic of the fool.
- ἄνοια ánoia · G454 · to lack understanding, absence of understanding, extreme fury
- Greek ἄνοια (ánoia, G454) serves as the standard LXX rendering of Hebrew אִוֶּלֶת (ʼivveleth, H200), both denoting foolishness or folly as a moral-intellectual deficiency, with Greek ἄνοια potentially extending to rage/madness as a manifestation of such folly.
Semantic domains 1 entry
- Foolish002001002010
- אִוֶּלֶת names folly itself, as the greatness of foolishness that leads a person astray in Proverbs.
Word family 3 words
Words formed from the same root. They share a form, not always a meaning.
Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon H200. ivveleth אִוֶּ֫לֶת25 noun feminine folly. — absolute Pro 12:23 +; construct Pro…
אִוֶּ֫לֶת25 noun feminine folly. — absolute Pro 12:23 +; construct Pro 14:8 +; suffix אִוַּלְתִּי Psa 38:6, etc.; — folly, special product of כְּסִילִים (see כֶּסֶל) Pro 12:23 + (12 t.); with מְּתָאִים Pro 14:18; with אֱוִלִיים only Pro 16:22; Pro 27:22 for alliteration. It is bound up in mind of boy, to be removed only by rod of discipline Pro 22:15; ׳א personified tears down house built by נָשִׁים חַכְמוֺת Pro 14:1; it is contrasted with תְּבוּנָה Pro 14:29; Pro 15:21.
II. איל אול, (be in front of, precede, lead; see Thes NöMBA 1880, 774; SBA 1882, 1175, who compare Arabic for , אוולא ᵑ7; compare Sabean אול DHMEpigr. Denkm. 33. 34; see on the other hand LagOr ii. p. 3; M i. p.100 & below I. אלה below) **Arabic , etc., from , see Lane.
Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), public domain
Topical studies with this word 1 entry
Meanings adapted from the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament, © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0 and the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew (from the Semantic Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew), © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0; MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Sources
eRhema lexical overview, based on the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew and the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament (© United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Macula Hebrew and Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0); released under CC BY-SA 4.0
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