Word

מְעַט

mᵉʻaṭ · H4592 · Hebrew · 101 occurrences

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Meanings

few, little, small

Small quantity of objects or substance

Examples
Genesis 18:4 “Please let a little water be brought and wash your feet, and make yourselves comfortable under the tree;
Genesis 24:17 Then the servant ran to meet her, and said, “Please let me drink a little water from your jar.”
Genesis 24:43 behold, I am standing by the spring, and may it be that the young unmarried woman who comes out to draw water, and to whom I say, “Please let me drink a little water from your jar”;
few, little, short

Relatively low frequency of events or short duration of an event

Examples
Genesis 47:9 So Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The years of my living abroad are 130; few and unpleasant have been the years of my life, nor have they attained the years that my fathers lived during the days of their living abroad.”
Exodus 17:4 So Moses cried out to the LORD, saying, “What am I to do with this people? A little more and they will stone me!”
Leviticus 25:52 but if few years remain until the year of jubilee, he shall so calculate with him. In proportion to his years he is to refund the amount for his redemption.
a little, some, somewhat

Pertaining to happening with a low intensity

Examples
Exodus 23:30 “I will drive them out from you little by little, until you become fruitful and take possession of the land.
Deuteronomy 7:22 “And the LORD your God will drive away these nations from you little by little; you will not be able to put an end to them quickly, otherwise the wild animals would become too numerous for you.
2 Kings 10:18 Then Jehu gathered all the people and said to them, “Ahab served Baal a little; Jehu will serve him much.
trivial

State in which an event is of relatively limited importance

Examples
Genesis 30:15 But she said to her, “Is it a small matter for you to take my husband? And would you take my son’s mandrakes also?” So Rachel said, “Therefore he may sleep with you tonight in return for your son’s mandrakes.”
Numbers 16:9 Is it too small an honor for you that the God of Israel has singled you out from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to Himself, to perform the service of the tabernacle of the LORD, and to stand before the congregation to minister to them;
Numbers 16:13 “Is it not enough that you have brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey to have us die in the wilderness, but you would also appoint yourself as master over us?
easily

Pertaining to being very likely to take place

Examples
Genesis 26:10 And Abimelech said, “What is this that you have done to us? One of the people might easily have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.”
Psalm 2:12 Kiss the Son, that He not be angry and you perish on the way, For His wrath may be kindled quickly. How blessed are all who take refuge in Him!
Psalm 73:2 But as for me, my feet came close to stumbling, My steps had almost slipped.

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

Words describing itAdjectives, demonstratives, participles

2 occurrences in 2 groups

אֶחָדone 1
קַטvery 1

Named alongside itApposition

1 occurrences in 1 groups

אִישׁman, person, each 1

What it doesIt is the subject

1 occurrences in 1 groups

שָׁאַרto remain 1

What is done to itIt is the object

5 occurrences in 3 groups

הָיָהto be, to become 3
לָקַחto take, to receive 1
אָסַףto gather, to assemble 1

What it is said to bePredicate

3 occurrences in 1 groups

טוֹבgood 3

What is said to be itIt is the predicate

16 occurrences in 18 groups

Other words · 18 groups that occur once or twice (19) 19

After prepositionsPrepositional phrases

22 occurrences in 3 groups

כlike/as 28
לto/for 8
בin/on/with 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 1 word

מִצְעָר mitsʻâr · H4705 · a small one, a little one, few: Both terms denote smallness or fewness in quantity or significance, overlapping directly in the senses "little," "small," and "few."

In the other Testament 4 words

ὀλίγος olígos · G3641 · few, less, little: Greek ὀλίγος serves as the standard LXX rendering of Hebrew מְעַט across its core semantic range of smallness in quantity, degree, or extent, with both terms covering 'few', 'little', and 'small' in their respective languages.
μικρόν mikrón · G3397 · a small space of time or degree: Greek μικρόν (mikrón, G3397) serves as the standard Septuagint rendering of Hebrew מְעַט (mᵉʻaṭ, H4592) across both temporal ('little while') and quantitative ('few, small amount') senses, reflecting direct semantic equivalence in the 'smallness/fewness' semantic domain.
βραχύς brachýs · G1024 · few, limited number of, little: Hebrew מְעַט emphasizes smallness of quantity or degree across diverse contexts (few, little, small), while Greek βραχύς specifically denotes shortness in measurable dimensions (time, place, quantity, number), creating a partial semantic overlap where Hebrew's broad 'little/few' sense intersects with Greek's 'short/brief' register in quantitative contexts.
μικρός mikrós · G3398 · little, few, limited amount of: Hebrew מְעַט emphasizes quantitative smallness across amount, number, or duration ("few", "little while"), while Greek μικρός denotes smallness in physical size, quantity, or figurative dignity, both converging on the core semantic field of diminutive scale.

Semantic domains 5 entries

Quantity002001001046: מְעַט denotes a small quantity, as with the little water Abraham offers his visitors or the little water the servant asks Rebekah for at the well.
Frequency002001003009: This domain is not directly illustrated among the sampled citations, though מְעַט's broader range includes a "soon" or "little while" temporal sense elsewhere in its usage.
Lax002001003012: This domain is not directly illustrated among the sampled citations, which describe small quantities of water or matters rather than a slackened effort or attitude.
Trivial002001003016: מְעַט describes something as a small or trivial matter, as when Rachel accuses Leah of treating the taking of her husband as "a small matter."
Affirmers004001: This domain is not directly illustrated among the sampled citations; it likely reflects מְעַט's use in the idiomatic phrase "almost," qualifying a near-certain state elsewhere in its broader usage.

Word family 3 words

Words formed from the same root. They share a form, not always a meaning.

מָעַט mâʻaṭ · H4591 · to become few, to decrease, to make few · 22×מְעַטmᵉʻaṭ · H4592מָעֹט mâʻôṭ · H4593 · wrapped, sheathed · 1×

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon H4592. meat מְעַט101 substantive a little, fewness, a few; — ׳מ absolute and construct,…

H4592. meat
מְעַט101 substantive a little, fewness, a few; — ׳מ absolute and construct, מְעָ֑ט Isa 10:7 +, plural מְעַטִּים Psa 109:8; Ecc 5:1; —
1. a. Gen 30:30 לְפָנַי לך היה אשׁר מעט the little that thou hadst, Gen 47:9 חיי שׁני ימי היו ורעים מעט few and evil, Lev 25:52; Num 26:54 (compare Num 33:54) נחלתו תמעיט וְלַמְעַט and to the small (few) thou shalt make small his inheritance, Num 33:56; Num 35:8 תמעיטו ַהמְעַט וּמֵאֵת, Deu 7:7 העמים מכלֿ ַהמְעַט אתם וכי ye are the fewest out of all peoples, 1Sa 14:6 בִמְעָ֑ט אוֺ בְּרַב לְהוֺשִׁיעַ, Jer 42:2 מֵהַרְבֵּה מְעַט נִשְׁאַרְנוּ כִּי we are left as few out of many, Eze 5:3 בְּמִסְמָּר מְעַט מִשָּׁם וְלָקַחְתָּ, Hag 1:6 מְעָ֑ט וְהָבֵא הַרְבֵּה זְרַעְתֶּם (compare Hag 1:9), Psa 8:6 מאלהים מעט ותחסּרהו, Psa 37:16 לַצַּדִּיק מְעַט טוֺב (compare Pro 15:16; Pro 16:8), 2Ch 29:34 לִמְעָ֑ט הָיוּ הַכֹּהֲנִים רַק; as predicate Num 13:18 אִםרָֿ֑ב הוּא הַמְעַט, Jos 7:3 הֵמָּה מְעַט כִּי, Job 10:20; Rth 2:7; Neh 7:4; Isa 16:14 מִזְעָר מְעַט וּשְׁאָר. — Hos 8:10 מְעַט וַיָּחֵלּוּ and they begin as littleness ( = to be minished) because of, &c.; but read probably (ᵐ5) מִמְּשֹׁחַ מְעַט וְיֶחְדְּלוּ and they shall cease for a little (
d) from anointing, etc.
b. as substantive with following Genitive, Gen 18:4 מַיִם מְעַט a little of water, Gen 24:17, Gen 24:43, אֹכֶל מְעַט Gen 43:2; Gen 44:25; 1Sa 14:43; 1Sa 17:28 הָהֵ֫נָּה הַצּאֹן מְעַט literally the fewness of those sheep, Pro 6:10 +; as Genitive to a previous substantive, מְעָ֑ט מְתֵי men of fewness Deu 26:5; Deu 28:62; in apposition, Isa 10:7 מְעָ֑ט לֹא גּוֺיִם לְהַכְרִית, Ezr 9:8 מְעַט מִחְיָה, Neh 2:12 עִמִּי מְעַט וַאֲנָשִׁים, Ecc 9:4; either Genitive or appositive, Ecc 10:1; Dan 11:34 מְעָ֑ט עֵזֶר יֵעָֽזְרוּ with a help of smallness.
c. twice declined as an adjective , Psa 109:8 מְעַטִּים יָמָיו יִהְיוּ, Ecc 5:1 מְעַטִּים דבריך יהיו עלכֿן.
d. as adverb. accusative, of place, 2Sa 16:1 מְעַט עֹבֵר וְדָוִד; of time, Job 10:20 b; of degree, 2Ki 10:18 מְעָ֑ט אֶתהַֿבַּעַל עָבַד אַחְאָב, Eze 11:16 and have been to them for a sanctuary but little, Zec 1:15; repeated מְעַט מְעַט by little, by little = gradually, Exo 23:30; Deu 7:22.
e. phrases: — a. with the interr. הֲ, Gen 30:15 וְלָקַחַת אִישִׁי אֶתֿ קַחְתֵּךְ ַהמְעַט was thy taking my husband (too) little? and (wilt thou be) for taking also my son's love-apples? Num 16:9-10 כְּהֻנָּה גַּם וּבִקַּשְׁתֶּם ֗֗֗ הִבְדִּיל כִּי מִכֶּם ַהמְעַט is it too little for you that J. hath separated, etc., ... and do ye seek, etc.? Num 16:13 הִשְׂתָּרֵר גַּם תִשְׂתָּרֵר כִּי ֗֗֗ הֶעֱלִיתָנוּ כִּי ַהמְעַט, Jos 22:17f. וגו תָּשׁוּבוּ וְאַתֶּם ֗֗֗ לָנוּ ׳ַהמְעַט, Isa 7:13 וגו תַּלְאוּ כִּי אֲנָשִׁים הַלְאוֺת מִכֶּם ׳ַהמְעַט is wearying men too little for you, that you will weary also my God? Eze 34:18 (as Ew Co AV RV), Job 15:11 אֵל תַּנְחוּמוֺת מִמְּךָ ַהמְעַט. But Eze 16:20 (si vera lectio) was it (too) little because of thy whoredom? (was that insufficient for thee? Kö iii. 406 m). b. וְ מְעַט ׳עוֺד, Exo 17:4 וּסְקָלֻנִי מְעַט עוֺד yet a little, and they will stone me, Jer 51:33; Hos 1:4; Psa 37:10; וְ מִזְעָר מְעַט ׳עוֺד Isa 10:25; Isa 29:17; compare Hag 2:6; Job 24:24.
2 כִּמְעַט like a little: hence
a. within a little, almost (compare ὀλίγου), Gen 26:10 ֗֗֗ שָׁכַב כִּמְעַט almost had lain ..., Psa 73:2 Qr, Psa 94:17; Psa 119:87; Pro 5:14 (all followed by perfect); Eze 16:47 מֵהֶן וַתַּשְׁחִתִי קָט כִּמְעַט like a little, and thou hadst done more corruptly than they; Son 3:4 מֵהֶם שֶׁעָבַרְתִּי כִּמְעַט = hardly had I passed.
b. with imperfect, just, 2Sa 19:37 עבדך יעבר כמעט just would thy servant pass over; lightly, easily, quickly (compare δἰ ὀλίγου), Psa 2:12 אַמּוֺ כִּמְעַט יִבְעַר כִּי, Psa 81:15; Job 32:22.
c. = shortly, 2Ch 12:7.
d. = little worth, Pro 10:20 רשׁעים ולב כמעט. e. pleonastic for מְעַט, Isa 1:9 (accents) שָׂרִיר כִּמְעָ֑ט a little remnant, Psa 105:12 (= 1Ch 16:19) בָּהּ וְגָרִים כִּמְעַט; רֶגַע כִּמְעַט like the littleness of a moment = for a little moment, Isa 26:20; Ezr 9:8.

Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), public domain

Topical studies with this word 4 entries

Quantity43 occurrences Lax6 occurrences Trivial9 occurrences Affirmers3 occurrences

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