אִישׁ
ʼîysh · H376 · Hebrew · 2,187 occurrences
This name belongs to 2 people
Meanings
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person, someone, man
Member of a community or group of human beings, consisting either of men and women or of men only; as opposed to God and animals
ExamplesGenesis 4:1 Now the man had relations with his wife Eve, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain, and she said, “I have obtained a male child with the help of the LORD.”
Genesis 4:23 Lamech said to his wives, “Adah and Zillah, Listen to my voice, You wives of Lamech, Pay attention to my words, For I have killed a man for wounding me; And a boy for striking me!
Genesis 6:4 The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of mankind, and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.
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people, men
Singlular only: a specific group of people united for a common purpose, distinguishing this group from other groups referred to in the same context
ExamplesDeuteronomy 27:14 “The Levites shall then respond and say to all the people of Israel with a loud voice,
Joshua 9:6 And they went to Joshua at the camp at Gilgal and said to him and to the men of Israel, “We have come from a far country; now then, make a covenant with us.”
Joshua 9:7 But the men of Israel said to the Hivites, “Perhaps you are living within our land; how then are we to make a covenant with you?”
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man, male, husband
A male adult animal or human being
ExamplesGenesis 2:23 Then the man said, “At last this is bone of my bones, And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called ‘woman,’ Because she was taken out of man.”
Genesis 2:24 For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.
Genesis 3:6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took some of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband with her, and he ate.
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Benjaminite
Member of the tribe of Benjamin
Examples2 Samuel 20:1 Now a worthless man happened to be there whose name was Sheba, the son of Bichri, a Benjaminite; and he blew the trumpet and said, “We have no share in David, Nor do we have an inheritance in the son of Jesse; Every man to his tents, Israel!”
Esther 2:5 There was a Jew at the citadel in Susa whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjaminite,
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each
Referent referring to each and every individual in a group of people or objects
ExamplesGenesis 9:5 “I certainly will require your lifeblood; from every animal I will require it. And from every person, from every man as his brother I will require the life of a person.
Genesis 10:5 From these the people of the coastlands of the nations were separated into their lands, every one according to his language, according to their families, into their nations.
Genesis 11:3 Then they said to one another, “Come, let’s make bricks and fire them thoroughly.” And they used brick for stone, and they used tar for mortar.
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to be advanced in years
Literally: to come among people; hence, probably: state in which people have reached an advanced age, meaning, among other things, that they are too old for military duty
Examples1 Samuel 17:12 Now David was the son of the Ephrathite of Bethlehem in Judah, the man whose name was Jesse, and he had eight sons. And Jesse was old in the days of Saul, advanced in years among men.
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person wearing a linen apron
Literally: a person wearing a linen ephod; hence: an adult member of a priestly family who are easily recognizable because of the white linen apron that they are wearing
Examples1 Samuel 22:18 Then the king said to Doeg, “You, turn around and attack the priests!” And Doeg the Edomite turned around and attacked the priests, and he killed on that day eighty-five men who wore the linen ephod.
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man of God
Literally: person of God; hence: a person who is in a special relationship with God and has prophetic gifts
ExamplesDeuteronomy 33:1 Now this is the blessing with which Moses the man of God blessed the sons of Israel before his death.
Joshua 14:6 Then the sons of Judah approached Joshua in Gilgal, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know the word which the LORD spoke to Moses the man of God on account of you and me in Kadesh-barnea.
Judges 13:6 Then the woman came and told her husband, saying, “A man of God came to me, and his appearance was like the appearance of the angel of God, very awesome. So I did not ask him where he came from, nor did he tell me his name.
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inspired man
Literally: person of spirit; hence: a person endowed with the Spirit of God and has prophetic gifts
ExamplesHosea 9:7 The days of punishment have come, The days of retribution have come; Let Israel know this! The prophet is a fool, The inspired person is insane, Because of the grossness of your wrongdoing, And because your hostility is so great.
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champion
Literally: person of in between; hence: a soldier who fights in single combat on behalf of the entire army
Examples1 Samuel 17:4 Then a champion came forward from the army encampment of the Philistines, named Goliath, from Gath. His height was six cubits and a span.
1 Samuel 17:8 He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel and said to them, “Why do you come out to draw up in battle formation? Am I not the Philistine, and you the servants of Saul? Choose a man as your representative and have him come down to me.
1 Samuel 17:10 Then the Philistine said, “I have defied the ranks of Israel this day! Give me a man, so that we may fight together.”
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warrior
Literally: person of battle; person of military age, trained and experienced in warfare; associated with strength and bravery
ExamplesExodus 15:3 “The LORD is a warrior; The LORD is His name.
Deuteronomy 2:14 “Now the time that it took for us to come from Kadesh-barnea until we crossed over the Wadi Zered was thirty-eight years, until all the generation of the men of war perished from within the camp, just as the LORD had sworn to them.
Joshua 5:6 For the sons of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, until all the nation, that is, the men of war who came out of Egypt, perished because they did not listen to the voice of the LORD, to whom the LORD had sworn that He would not let them see the land which the LORD had sworn to their fathers to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey.
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swordsman
Literally: person drawing the sword; hence: soldier armed with a sword
ExamplesJudges 8:10 Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor, and their armies with them, about fifteen thousand men, all who were left of the entire army of the people of the east; for the fallen were 120,000 swordsmen.
Judges 20:2 And the leaders of all the people, all the tribes of Israel, took their stand in the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand foot soldiers who drew the sword.
Judges 20:15 From the cities on that day the sons of Benjamin were counted, twenty-six thousand men who drew the sword, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah who were counted, seven hundred choice men.
How it’s used In 10 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
567 occurrences in 135 groups
- אֱלֹהִיםGod, gods 76
- יִשְׂרָאֵלIsrael 59
- מִלְחָמָהwar, battle 40
- הּher 39
- הוּhis 38
- יְהוּדָהJudah 35
- Other words · 100 groups that occur once or twice (121) 121
Words describing itAdjectives, demonstratives, participles
597 occurrences in 206 groups
- אֶחָדone 37
- שְׁנַיִםtwo 23
- שָׁלוֹשׁthree 22
- אֵלֶּהthese 19
- וֹhim 19
- הוּאhe, she, it 18
- Other words · 141 groups that occur once or twice (174) 174
Named alongside itApposition
242 occurrences in 132 groups
- אִישׁman, person, each 46
- בֵּןson 14
- מֹשֶׁהMoses 10
- גִּבּוֹרmighty man, warrior 9
- אָחbrother 7
- מִצְרִיEgyptian 7
- Other words · 108 groups that occur once or twice (126) 126
What it doesIt is the subject
688 occurrences in 205 groups
- בּוֹאto come, to go in, to bring 47
- אָמַרto say 42
- הָיָהto be, to become 34
- הָלַךְto go, to walk 26
- מוּתto die 22
- עָלָהto go up 20
- Other words · 148 groups that occur once or twice (180) 180
What is done to itIt is the object
245 occurrences in 84 groups
- לָקַחto take, to receive 27
- שָׁלַחto send, to send away 24
- הָיָהto be, to become 19
- נָכָהto strike, to strike down 18
- יָדַעto know 9
- מָצָאto find 8
- Other words · 63 groups that occur once or twice (75) 75
Second object ofSecond object
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- רָאָהto see 1
What it is said to bePredicate
115 occurrences in 58 groups
- אַיִןthere is no, not 23
- וֹhim 10
- מִיwho? 8
- מֵאָהhundred 7
- יֵשׁthere is, there are 4
- עִירcity, town 4
- Other words · 49 groups that occur once or twice (58) 58
What is said to be itIt is the predicate
74 occurrences in 39 groups
- אַתָּהyou 11
- הוּאhe, she, it 9
- הֵםthey, them 6
- אָנֹכִיI 6
- אֵלֶּהthese 4
- אָבfather 3
- Other words · 32 groups that occur once or twice (36) 36
After prepositionsPrepositional phrases
339 occurrences in 13 groups
- לto/for 222
- אֵלto, toward 82
- כlike/as 68
- בin/on/with 59
- מִןfrom 48
- עַלon, upon, over, against 37
In phrases “… of it”It is the genitive
157 occurrences in 70 groups
- בֵּןson 13
- פָּנִיםface, presence, before 10
- יָדhand, power 9
- שֵׁםname 8
- בַּיִתhouse, household 7
- לֵבheart, mind 7
- Other words · 56 groups that occur once or twice (68) 68
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.
In the other Testament 3 words
- ἀνήρ anḗr · G435 · man, (in the singular) person, human being
- Greek ἀνήρ (anḗr, G435) serves as the primary cross-linguistic equivalent for Hebrew אִישׁ (ʼîysh, H376), both denoting an individual man or male person, with the Greek term often paralleling the Hebrew in contexts distinguishing adult males from women, children, or collective groups.
- ἄνθρωπος ánthrōpos · G444 · people, persons, mankind, man
- Greek ἄνθρωπος (ánthrōpos, G444) (literally 'man-faced,' i.e. a human being) and Hebrew אִישׁ both denote 'man' or 'human being' as their core sense, functioning as direct translation equivalents across the Septuagint with robust, consistent alignment.
- ἕκαστος hékastos · G1538 · each
- אִישׁ (ʼîysh, H376) אִישׁ typically denotes an individual male person or man in general contexts, while ἕκαστος (hékastos, G1538) ἕκαστος specifically emphasizes distributive individuality ('each one,' 'every single one'), making it a natural translation equivalent when אִישׁ (ʼîysh, H376) appears in distributive or universal quantifier constructions.
Semantic domains 8 entries
- People001001003
- אִישׁ is the ordinary word for a man or person, as Adam naming the woman taken out of man.
- Groups001001003004
- The word can refer distributively to "each" or "every one" within a group, not only a single individual.
- Names of Groups003001006
- אִישׁ can specify members of a particular people or company, functioning almost as a group designation.
- Object Referents003001
- The word also serves as a general referring term pointing back to a previously named male individual.
- Old002001001041
- In some constructions the word can specify an elder or senior man, tied to age or seniority within a group.
- Priests001001003008
- אִישׁ can specify a man serving in priestly office, identified by his function rather than by name.
- Prophets001001003010
- The word likewise can specify a man recognized as a prophet, "a man of God" or similar prophetic designation.
- Soldiers001001003013
- אִישׁ can specify a fighting man or soldier, a man identified by his role in battle.
Word family 10 words
Words formed from the same root. They share a form, not always a meaning.
Also from the root אָנַשׁ
Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon H376. ish אִישׁ2166 noun masculine man ( = vir) (MI, SI, Phoenician אש, perhaps also…
אִישׁ2166 noun masculine man ( = vir) (MI, SI, Phoenician אש, perhaps also Sabean אסם compare Prätl.c, but DHMZMG 1883, 330) — ׳א absolute Gen 2:23 +; construct Gen 25:27 +; suffix אִישִׁי Gen 29:32 +, etc.; plural אִישִׁים Psa 141:4 Psa 141:2t. (Phoenician אשם); usually אֲנָשִׁים Gen 12:20 +, from √ אנשׁ q. v.; construct אַנְשֵׁי Jdg 6:27 +; suffix אֲנָשַׁי 1Sa 23:12 etc.; — man, opposed to woman Gen 2:23-24, Lev 20:27; Num 5:6; Deu 17:2f; Jos 6:21; Jos 8:25; Jer 40:7, emphasis on sexual distinction & relation Gen 19:8; Gen 24:16; Gen 38:25; Exo 22:15; Lev 15:16 (זָרַ֑ע שִׁכְבַת) Lev 15:18 (שׁ אֹתָהּ אִישׁ יִשְׁכַּב ׳זֿ׳אֲשֶׁר וְאִשָּׁה) Lev 20:10 f; Num 5:13f; Deu 22:22f; Isa 4:1 +; thence = husband, especially with suffix Gen 3:6, Gen 3:16; Gen 16:3; Gen 29:32, Gen 29:34; Lev 21:7; Num 30:7f; Deu 28:56; Jdg 13:8f; Rth 1:3f; 1Sa 25:19; Jer 29:6; Eze 16:45 +; figurative of ׳י as husband of Israel אִישִׁי Hos 2:18 (opposed to בַּעְלִּי); man as procreator, father Ecc 6:3; of male child Gen 4:1 compare אֲנָשִׁים זֶרַע 1Sa 1:11; man, opposed to beast Exo 11:7; Lev 20:15 (compare אָדָם); compare figurative Psa 22:7 but also of male of animals Gen 7:2 (twice in verse) (וְאִשְׁתּוֺ אִישׁ); man, opposed to God Gen 32:29; Num 23:19 וִיכַזֵּב אֵל אִישׁ לֹא (|| וְיִתְנֶחָ֑ם וּבֶןאָֿדָם); Job 9:32; Job 32:13; Hos 11:9 compare Isa 31:8; Job 12:10 (אִישׁ כָּלבְּֿשַׂר רוּחַ); hence in phrases to denote ordinary, customary, common אֲנָשִׁים שֵׁבֶט 2Sa 7:14 (|| אָדָם בְּנֵי נִגְעֵי); אֲנָשִׁים לֶחֶם Eze 24:17, Eze 24:22 [**אֲנָשִׁים Eze 24:17; Eze 24:22 is textual error; We (apparently Sm) אֲנֻשִׁים; ToyHpt אוֺנִים (Hos 9:4).] (compare Isa 8:1); אַמַּתאִֿישׁ Deu 3:11; but also contracted אָדָם Psa 49:3; Psa 62:10; man, as valiant 1Sa 4:9 (twice in verse) (לַאֲנָשִׁים וִהְיוּ) so 1Ki 2:2 compare 1Sa 26:15; so חַיִל אִישׁ 1Sa 31:12; 2Sa 24:9; 1Ki 1:42 +; also מִלְחָמָה אִישׁ Num 31:49; Deu 2:14, Deu 2:16; Jos 5:4, Jos 5:6 +; even of ׳י Exo 15:3 מִלְחָמָה אִישׁ יהוה; often prefixed to other nouns in apposition ׳א אָדוֺן Gen 42:30, Gen 42:33, ׳א וְשֹׁפֵט שַׂר Exo 2:14, ׳א כֹּהֵן Lev 21:9, ׳א סָרִיס Jer 38:7; particular before adjective, of a people מִצְרִי אִישׁ Gen 39:1; Exo 2:11, Exo 2:19 compare Gen 37:28; Gen 38:1-2, Gen 39:14; 1Sa 17:12; 1Sa 30:11, 1Sa 30:13 +; a man as resident in, or belonging to a place or people Num 25:6; Jdg 10:1 + (so Phoenician); usually plural יִשְׂרָאֵל אַנְשֵׁי 1Sa 7:11; 1Sa 31:7 (twice in verse) compare Jos 7:4-5, +; also singularcollective Deu 27:14; Jos 9:6-7, Jdg 20:11; 1Sa 11:8 (see Dr) +; 2Sa 10:6, 2Sa 10:8 (׳א טוֺב); (so MI10; MI13); men = retainers, followers, soldiers 1Sa 18:27; 1Sa 23:3; f 1Sa 24:3; 1Sa 25:13 +? Deu 33:8 singular collective see Di; אֱלֹהִים אִישׁ man of God = prophet Deu 33:1; Jos 14:6; 1Sa 9:6f; 1Ki 12:13f + (see אלהים); in phrase followed by abstract ׳א מִלְחָמָה חַיִל, אִישׁ see above; ׳א שֵׂיבָה Deu 32:25, ׳א הַדָּמִים 2Sa 16:7 compare see 8, ׳א הַבְּלִיַּעַל 2Sa 16:7, ׳א מָוֶת 1Ki 2:26, ׳א חָמָס Psa 140:12; Pro 3:31 +; followed by word of occupation, etc. שָׂדֶה׳א Gen 25:27, הָאֲדָמָה׳א Gen 9:20 (compare Zec 13:5), הַבֵּנַיִם ׳א champion 1Sa 17:4 (compare Dr) 1Sa 17:23, ׳א בְּשׂרָה 2Sa 18:20, עֲצָתוֺ אִישׁ his counsellor Isa 40:13, compare חֶרְמִי אִישׁ 1Ki 20:42, ׳א רֵעִים Pro 18:24; often distributive = each, every Gen 9:5; Gen 10:5; Gen 40:5 (twice in verse); Exo 12:3 +; including women Job 42:11; 1Ch 16:3 כִּכַּרלֶֿחֶם לְאִישׁ אִשָּׁה וְעַד מֵאִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל לְכָלאִֿישׁ וַיְחַלֵּק; of inanimate things 1Ki 7:30, 1Ki 7:36; also אִישׁ אִישׁ Exo 36:4; Num 4:19, Num 4:49; Eze 14:4, Eze 14:7 +; any one Exo 34:3 (twice in verse); Exo 34:24 +; also אִישׁ אִישׁ Lev 15:2; Lev 22:4, Lev 22:18 +; of gods 2Ki 18:33 = Isa 36:18; one...another אֶתקְֿרֹבוֺ וְאִישׁ אֶתרֵֿעֵהוּ וְאִישׁ אֶתאָֿחִיו אִישֿׁ וְהִרְגוּExo 32:27, אָחִיו ֗֗֗ אִישׁ Deu 1:16; Mic 7:2 (see אָח), אִישׁרֵ֗֗֗עֵהוּ Gen 11:3, Gen 11:7 + (see רֵעַ) of inanimate things Gen 15:10.
Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), public domain
Topical studies with this word 8 entries
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
New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org.