---
title: אָח — brother · The Tanakh dictionary
description: אָח (251), a word of Biblical Hebrew, used 629 times: brother. BDB 1906: n.m. brother. With 2 verses in Hebrew, word for word and JPS 1917.
---

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# אָח

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«אָח» in the Tanakh dictionary: **brother** — how often it is used, MACULA's glosses, its meanings in the printed dictionaries and why they were chosen, and 2 verses in layers.

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**Used:** 629 times · **Key:** 251 · **BDB:** אָח⁴

### Glosses

brother (183); brothers (166); relatives (94)

### Meaning (OSHB)

brother [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1488/251/#m1)

### Meaning (BDB 1906)

n.m. brother [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1488/251/#m2)

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**The whole BDB entry:** n.m. brother (Ph. אח, Arabic أَخٌ (cstr. أَخُو etc.), Sab. אחֿ (sf. אחֿיהו) CISiv, 1, 17 and 24 al., Ethiopic እኅው Assyrian aḫu cf. DlW, Aramaic אַח, ܐܰܚܳܐ; Palm., Nab. sf. אחוהי, אחיה);—abs. אָח Gn 24:29 + (Ez 18:10 del. Co cf. 𝔊 𝔖 𝔙; Ew Sm אַךְ; Dl Ba Ez x defends as = one cf. Assyrian aḫu) never c. art.; cstr. אֲחִי Gn 10:21 +; sf. אָחִי Gn 4:9 +; אָחִיךָ Gn 4:9 +; אָחִיו Gn 4:2 +; אָחִיהוּ Je 34:9 + 3 times etc.; pl. אַחִים Gn 13:8 +; so read Ho 13:15 v. DeCompl. Var. 23 cf. sub אָחוּ; cstr. אֲחֵי Nu 27:10 +; sf. אַחַי Gn 19:7 +; אֶחָ֑י 1 S 20:29 + (but 1 S 30:23 𝔊 We אַחֲרֵי for אֶחָ֑י את); אַחֶיךָ Gn 37:13 +; אֶחָיו Gn 44:14 + etc. brother, born of same mother (\& father) Gn 4:2, 8, 9, 10, 11; 27:6, 11; 44:20; 49:5; cf. 28:2; 29:10(×2) + Ex 4:14 + often; also of half-brother Gn 20:5, 13, 16 (on parentage cf. v 12) 37:2, 4, 5 +, 2 S 13:4, 7, 8 +. indef. = relative; Lot, of Abr. Gn 13:8; 14:14, 16; Jacob, of Laban 29:12, 15 (nephew); hence of kinship in wider sense; member of same tribe Nu 16:10; 18:2, 6 2 S 19:13; of same people Ex 2:11(×2); 4:18 Dt 15:12 Ju 14:3 Is 66:20 Ne 5:1, 5, 8 vid. especially Lv 19:17 cf. v 18 (extended to incl. sojourner גֵּר v 34); of Israel \& Judah 2 S 19:42; Isr. \& Edom Nu 20:14; cf. of Ishmael Gn 16:12; 25:18; of friend 2 S 1:26 1 K 9:13; 20:32, 33; of allies בְּרִית א׳ Am 1:9. fig. of resemblance Jb 30:29 אָח הָיִיתִי לְתַנִּים (‖ רֵעַ לִבְנוֹת יַעֲנָה) i.e. by reason of his crying, cf. Di; Pr 18:9 מִתְרַפֶּה בִּמְלַאכְתּוֹ אָח הוּא לְבַעַל מַשְׁחִית. in phr. one … another אִישׁ אָחִיו Gn 9:5 Jo 2:8 Zc 7:10; אָחִיו … אִישׁ Gn 13:11 + 25 times + Ex 32:27 (where also same phr. c. רֵעֵהוּ \& קְרֹבוֹ—v. these words—\& also אִישׁ, אֶחָד); for development of idiom cf. Dt 15:2 Is 19:2 Je 34:14 (cf. 15) 17 Ez 38:21 Hg 2:22; usually of men; of faces of golden cherubim Ex 25:20; 37:9; of scales of crocodile Jb 41:9. (אָח fire-pot v. sub ii. אחח.) On pr. names compounded with אָח, v. reff. given under אָב supr.

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Why these entries: BDB: headword, part of speech agrees, 73 of its verses cited, 1 words shared with the glosses, lists its Strong's number (11 candidates); OSHB: headword, part of speech agrees, 1 words shared with the BDB entry, 1 with the glosses (9 candidates)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every English meaning of «אָח» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1488/251/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.

### In the verses

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[1 Chronicles 11:38](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/ketuvim/1CH.11.38/)

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יוֹאֵל֙ אֲחִ֣י נָתָ֔ן מִבְחָ֖ר בֶּן־הַגְרִֽי׃ס

*Word for word:* Joel the.brother of.Nathan Mibhar the.son of.Hagri

*JPS 1917:* Joel the brother of Nathan, Mibhar the son of Hagri;

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[Genesis 19:7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/torah/GEN.19.7/)

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וַיֹּאמַ֑ר אַל־נָ֥א אַחַ֖י תָּרֵֽעוּ׃

*Word for word:* and he.said do.not please my.brothers my do.evil

*JPS 1917:* And he said: 'I pray you, my brethren, do not so wickedly.

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