מַיִם
mayim · H4325 · Hebrew · 581 occurrences
This name belongs to 2 places
- Egyptfirst named in Numbers 34:58 verses
- Meribahfirst named in Numbers 20:135 verses
Meanings
-
water
Water as the indispensible liquid on which the existence of all life depends, used for drinking, preparing food, washing, irrigating, etc.; found under the earth, on the earth, and above the earth; sometimes used as a euphemism to denote certain body liquids; associated with abundance and refreshment, but also with instability, and danger, etc
ExamplesGenesis 1:2 And the earth was a formless and desolate emptiness, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.
Genesis 1:6 Then God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.”
Genesis 1:7 God made the expanse, and separated the waters that were below the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse; and it was so.
-
Water Gate
One of the gates of Jerusalem
ExamplesNehemiah 3:26 Now the temple servants living in Ophel made repairs as far as the front of the Water Gate toward the east and the projecting tower.
Nehemiah 8:16 So the people went out and brought them and made booths for themselves, each on his roof, and in their courtyards and in the courtyards of the house of God, and in the public square at the Water Gate, and in the square at the Gate of Ephraim.
-
urine
A euphemish; literally: water of the feet; hence: the pale yellowish liquid passed from the bladder
Examples2 Kings 18:27 But Rabshakeh said to them, “Has my master sent me only to your master and to you to speak these words? Has he not also sent me to the men who sit on the wall, doomed to eat their own dung and drink their own urine with you?”
Isaiah 36:12 But Rabshakeh said, “Has my master sent me only to your master and to you to speak these words, and not to the men who sit on the wall, doomed to eat their own dung and drink their own urine with you?”
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
103 occurrences in 43 groups
- מְרִיבָהdispute 9
- יַרְדֵּןJordan 8
- הוּhis 7
- יָםsea 6
- נִדָּהimpurity 6
- יְאֹרriver Nile 4
- Other words · 32 groups that occur once or twice (45) 45
Words describing itAdjectives, demonstratives, participles
76 occurrences in 27 groups
- רַבmany, great 30
- חַיalive, living 12
- אֵלֶּהthese 5
- יְאֹרriver Nile 3
- אָרַרto curse 3
- Other words · 22 groups that occur once or twice (30) 30
Named alongside itApposition
17 occurrences in 11 groups
- מַיִםwater 4
- לַחַץoppression 3
- אָרַרto curse 3
- Other words · 8 groups that occur once or twice (8) 8
What it doesIt is the subject
100 occurrences in 54 groups
- הָיָהto be, to become 10
- בּוֹאto come, to go in, to bring 7
- יָצָאto go out 6
- גָּבַרto become powerful 4
- כָּסָהto cover 4
- שׁוּבto return, to turn back 4
- Other words · 45 groups that occur once or twice (56) 56
What is done to itIt is the object
121 occurrences in 50 groups
- שָׁתָהto drink 37
- נָתַןto give, to put, to set 13
- שָׁאַבto draw (water) 7
- יָצָאto go out 4
- מָצָאto find 4
- נָכָהto strike, to strike down 4
- Other words · 41 groups that occur once or twice (43) 43
Second object ofSecond object
19 occurrences in 5 groups
- שָׁקָהto give to drink, to water 13
- כּוּלto provide for, to contain 2
- אָכַלto eat, to devour 2
- גָּמָאto swallow 1
- נָתַןto give, to put, to set 1
What it is said to bePredicate
17 occurrences in 8 groups
- אַיִןthere is no, not 9
- חוֹמָהwall 2
- בְּלִיwithout, not 1
- מְלֹאgroup 1
- פָּנִיםface, presence, before 1
- רַעevil, bad 1
What is said to be itIt is the predicate
12 occurrences in 10 groups
- Other words · 10 groups that occur once or twice (12) 12
After prepositionsPrepositional phrases
169 occurrences in 9 groups
- בin/on/with 137
- עַלon, upon, over, against 43
- כlike/as 36
- לto/for 26
- מִןfrom 25
- אֵלto, toward 24
In phrases “… of it”It is the genitive
118 occurrences in 48 groups
- פָּנִיםface, presence, before 10
- מוֹצָאgoing out 6
- מַעְיָןspring 6
- פֶּלֶגchannel 6
- בְּאֵרwell 6
- עַיִןeye, sight 5
- Other words · 33 groups that occur once or twice (46) 46
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 1 word
- ὕδωρ hýdōr · G5204 · water
- Greek ὕδωρ (hýdōr, G5204) serves as the standard Septuagint rendering of Hebrew מַיִם (mayim, H4325), both denoting water in its literal and figurative senses with functionally equivalent semantic range across contexts (natural bodies of water, ritual washing, metaphorical usage).
Semantic domains 5 entries
- Liquids001002005007
- מַיִם is the ordinary word for water, the elemental liquid present "over the surface of the waters" from creation's very first description (Genesis 1:2, 6-7, 9-10).
- Waterbodies001002008
- The word is also used of the gathered bodies of water themselves, as when God "called the gathering of the waters... seas" (Genesis 1:10).
- Names of Constructions003001003
- The fact-packet data also assigns the Names of Constructions domain, likely reflecting the word's use in naming built water-related structures such as pools, cisterns, or aqueducts, though the sampled creation-narrative citations do not themselves illustrate this sense.
- Body Products001003001002
- The word's broader gloss also includes bodily fluid senses (such as urine, per the archaic "piss" gloss), classing it among terms for bodily products in that specific, euphemistic usage.
- Names of Locations003001010
- The fact-packet data also assigns the Names of Locations domain, likely reflecting the word's occurrence within compound place names built on "waters of..." (such as Me-jarkon, מֵי הַיַּרְקוֹן (Mêy hay-Yarqôwn, H4313)), though this is not illustrated by the sampled creation-narrative citations.
Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon H4325. mayim II. [מוֺ] = מַי water. [מַי]580 noun masculine2Sa 14:14 only plural מַ֫יִם…
II. [מוֺ] = מַי water.
[מַי]580 noun masculine2Sa 14:14 only plural מַ֫יִם waters, water (Late Hebrew id.; MI23 [ין]מ; SI5 המים; Aramaic מַיִּין מַיָּא,, Assyrian mû, plural mê, also mâmu DlHWB 394; Arabic Ethiopic , plural ; Sabean [מו], מום plural מון, Minaean [מה], plural מהן DHM6th Or. Congr. (Leiden) ii. 1, 451 f. (see on these forms BaZMG xiii.1888, 341 ff.)); — מַ֫יִם (מָ֑יִם) Gen 1:2 +; הַמַּ֫יְמָה Exo 7:15; Exo 8:16; construct מֵי Gen 7:7 71t.; מֵימֵי Exo 4:9-10t. + Qr 2Ki 18:27 = Isa 36:12; suffix מֵימַי Hos 2:7 + 1Sa 25:11 (but read here ᵐ5 יֵינִי Ew Th We Klo Dr Kit Bu); מֵימֶ֫יךָ Exo 23:25 Exo 23:3t.; מֵימָיו Num 20:8 Num 20:6t.; מֵימֶיהָ Jer 6:7; Jer 50:38; מֵימֵינוּ Lam 5:4; מֵימֵיהֶם Exo 7:19 Exo 7:4t.; — waters, water (c. adjective plural Gen 26:19; Exo 15:10; Lev 14:5-6, Lev 14:50 + often, so always with adjective; also with plural participle Num 5:18-19, Num 5:24; 2Ki 3:20 +; with plural pronoun Num 20:13; Num 27:14; 2Ki 2:21 +; compare suffix Jos 4:18; before plural verb Gen 1:9, Gen 1:20, Gen 1:21; Gen 7:17 + often; after plural verb Jos 3:13; Isa 28:17; Pro 9:17; Eze 31:4 +; rarely with singular verb; before, Gen 9:15; Lev 11:34; Num 20:2; Num 24:7; Num 33:14; 2Ki 3:9; after, Num 19:13, Num 19:20); —
1. a. water of a spring or well (בְּאֵר עַיִן,) Gen 16:7; Gen 24:11, Gen 24:13 (twice in verse); Gen 24:43; Exo 15:27 (twice in verse) (J), Gen 21:19, Gen 21:25; Num 20:17; Num 21:16 (E), etc.; for drinking, also Amo 4:8; Amo 8:11; Jon 3:7 + often; out of rock Exo 17:6 (E), Num 20:8 (twice in verse); Num 20:10-11, (P), Deu 8:15 etc.; מְרִיבָה מֵי (RSSemitic i. 165; 2nd ed. 181) Num 20:13, Num 20:24; Num 27:14 (P), Deu 33:8; Psa 81:8; Psa 106:32; compare Deu 32:51; Eze 47:19; Eze 48:28; for washing (hands, feet, person) Gen 18:4; Gen 24:32; Gen 43:24 (J), 2Ki 3:11; Exo 29:4; Exo 30:20; Lev 15:5-6, + (P); (victims) Lev 1:9, Lev 1:13; Lev 8:21 (P); (vessels) Lev 6:21; Leviticus 12:32; Leviticus 12:34 (P); (garments) Lev 15:17; Num 19:8 (P); for cooking Exo 12:9 (P), compare Isa 64:1; Eze 24:3 (symbolic); for purification Num 8:7 (חַטָּאת מֵי) Num 19:9 (נִדָּה מֵי), compare Num 19:13; Num 19:18; Num 19:20; Num 19:21; Numbers 19:31; Num 31:23 (twice in verse) (all P), Eze 36:25 (figurative).
b. of a river, Nile Exo 2:10; Exo 4:9 (twice in verse) (J), Jer 2:18 etc.; Jordan Jos 3:8 (D), Jos 3:15; Jos 3:16 (JE), etc.; Euphrates Isa 8:7 (figurative), Jer 2:18; Ezekiel's river Eze 47:1 (twice in verse); Eze 47:2 +, etc.; of streams, canals, etc., especially, as condition of fertility Deu 8:7; Deu 10:7; Isa 1:30; Pro 30:16; 2Ki 3:17 +, etc.
c. of sea Amo 5:8; Amo 9:6; Red Sea Exo 15:8, Exo 15:10, Exo 15:19 (song), Exo 14:21-22, Exo 14:26 + (P), Jos 2:10 (D), etc.
d. of flood Gen 7:7, Gen 7:10; Gen 8:3, Gen 8:7, Gen 8:8, Gen 8:9, Gen 8:11 (J), Gen 6:17; Gen 7:6, Gen 7:17, Gen 7:18 (twice in verse); Gen 7:19; Gen 8:5; Gen 9:11, Gen 9:15 (P); so מֵינֹֿחַ Isa 54:9 (twice in verse) waters of Noah.
e. subterranean Exo 20:4 (E), Deu 4:18; Deu 5:8, compare Job 26:5; Psa 136:6.
f. in clouds Jer 10:13; Job 26:8; Psa 29:3 (twice in verse); Psa 104:3; Psa 148:4, etc.
g. of rain Jdg 5:4; 2Sa 21:10; Deu 11:11; Psa 65:10; Job 5:10 (|| מָטָר), etc.
h. of dew Jdg 6:38.
i. primÊval deep Gen 1:2, Gen 1:6 (P).
2 with proper names, of location (q. v.), to denote springs, streams, or seas belonging to, near, such places: מִצְרַיִם מֵימֵי Exo 7:19; Exo 8:2; מְרִיבָה מֵי (see above 1a); מֵרוֺם מֵי Jos 11:5, Jos 11:7; עֵיןשֶֿׁמֶשׁ מֵי Jos 15:7; נֶפְתּוֺחַ מֵי Jos 15:9; Jos 18:15; יְרִיחוֺ מֵי Jos 16:1; מְגִּדּוֺ מֵי Jdg 5:19; נִמְרִ(י)ם מֵי Isa 15:6; Jer 48:34; דִימוֺן מֵי Isa 15:9; compare הַשִּׁלֹּחַ מֵי Isa 8:6; הָעֶלְיוֺן גִּיחוֺן מֵימֵי2Ch 32:30; compare also proper name, of a location מַיִם מִשְׂרְפוֺת Jos 11:8; Jos 13:6.
3 special uses are: רַגְלַיִם מֵי water of the feet = urine 2Ki 18:27 = Isa 36:12; compare בְּמֵי מַדְמֵנָה Isa 25:10 Kt in water of a dunghill (> Qr בְּמוֺ); לַחַץ מַיִם water (which is) distress, because drunk in imprisonment 1Ki 22:27 (|| לַחַץ לֶחֶם) = 2Ch 18:26; בְּמֵישָֿׁ֑לֶג in snow-water Job 9:30 Qr (Kt במו; Me Hoffm Siegf כְּמוֺ), שֶׁלֶג מֵימֵי Job 24:19; קְדשִׁים מַיִם Num 5:17 holy water (compare RSSem.165, 2nd ed.181, but text dubious, see Di); הַמָּרִים מֵי bitter water Num 5:18-19, Num 5:23, Num 5:24; compare Exo 15:23 (הֵם מָרִים כִּי), opposed to הַמַּיִם וַיִּמְתְּקוּ Exo 15:25 and the waters were sweetened; נִדָּה מֵי חַטָּאת, מֵי see above 1a; חַיִּים מַיִם living (i.e. running) water Lev 14:5-6, Lev 14:50, Lev 14:51, Lev 14:52; Num 19:17, also (figurative) Zec 14:8 (compare Ezekiel 47), and (figurative) Jer 2:13; Jer 17:13. See also below (compare Num 21:17-18, see RSSem.i.127.157; 2nd ed.135, 176).
4 among figurative uses are:
a. of distress Isa 43:2; Psa 66:12 (|| אֵשׁ), Psa 69:2; Lam 3:54; usually many waters 2Sa 22:17 = Psa 18:17, compare Job 22:11; Psa 32:6; Psa 144:7, or deep waters Psa 69:3; Psa 69:15, compare Psa 69:16; also מֵירֿאֹשׁ water of gall Jer 8:14; Jer 9:14; Jer 23:15.
b. מַיִם מֶּרֶץ 2Sa 5:20 = 1Ch 14:11 of outbursting force.
c. שְׁאוֺן מַיִם Isa 17:12-13, of rushing nations.
d. of what is impetuous, violent, overwhelming Isa 28:2, Isa 28:17; Hos 10:7; Job 27:20; Psa 124:4; Psa 124:5; Psa 88:18; simileof impetuousness ם כַּמַּיִ מַּחַז Gen 49:4.
e. (as running away) of heart in timidity Jos 7:5, compare Psa 22:16, of knees Eze 7:17; Eze 21:12.
f. of transitoriness Job 11:16; Job 24:18; Psa 58:8.
g. of refreshment Isa 32:2; Isa 49:10; spiritual Isa 12:3.
h. מְנֻחוֺת מֵי Psa 23:2 in figure of rest and peace, compare Jer 31:9.
i. of reckless bloodshed (poured out like water) Psa 79:3; compare pouring away (and not eating) blood Deu 12:16, Deu 12:24; Deu 15:23.
j. חַיִּים מַיִם בְּאֵר Son 4:15 figurative of bride; מִבּוֺרֶ֑ךָ מַיִם Pro 5:15 of enjoyment of one's own wife; of harlotry גְּנוּבִים מַיִם Pro 9:17 stolen waters.
k. of outpoured wrath of ׳י Hos 5:10.
1 of abundant justice Amo 5:24 masculine of outpoured feelings Job 3:24; לִבֵךְ כַמַּיִם שִׁפְכִי Lam 2:19. — Isa 48:1 read probably מִמְּעֵי for מִמֵּי ᵑ0, so Secker Du CheHpt Skinner, compare Di.
Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), public domain
Topical studies with this word 4 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
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