---
title: שָׁנָה — year · The Tanakh dictionary
description: שָׁנָה (8141), a word of Biblical Hebrew, used 876 times: year. BDB 1906: n.f. year. With 2 verses in Hebrew, word for word and JPS 1917.
---

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# שָׁנָה

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«שָׁנָה» in the Tanakh dictionary: **year** — 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:** 876 times · **Key:** 8141 · **BDB:** שָׁנָה²

### Glosses

year\[s\] (304); year (217); years (150)

### Meaning (OSHB)

year [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1513/8141/#m1)

### Meaning (BDB 1906)

n.f. year [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1513/8141/#m2)

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**The whole BDB entry:** n.f. (on appar. except v. AlbrZAW xvi (1896), 46), year (etym. v. √);—abs. שׁ׳ Am 2:10 +; cstr. שְׁנַת Gn 41:50 +; sf. שְׁנָתוֹ Ez 46:13 +, שְׁנָתָהּ Lv 14:10 + 2 times; du. שְׁנָתַיִם Am 1:1 +, -תָ֑יִם 1 K 15:25 +; pl. שָׁנִים Ex 21:2 +, cstr. שְׁנֵי Gn 23:1 + 24 times, שְׁנוֹת Dt 32:7 + 8 times (poet. and late); sf. שָׁנָיו Lv 25:52 + 4 times sf.; שְׁנוֹתַי Is 38:15 ψ 31:11, שְׁנוֹתָם 78:33 + 8 times sf.;—year, as division of time, Ex 23:14, 17 3 times בַּשָּׁנָה +, etc.; רֵשִׁית הַשּׁ׳ Dt 11:12, opp. אַחֲרִית הַשּׁ׳ v 12, צֵאת הַשּׁ׳ Ex 23:16, תְּקוּפַת הַשּׁ׳ 34:22 2 Ch 24:23, תְּשׁוּבַת הַשּׁ׳ 2 S 11:1 +, etc.; בָּא שָׁנָה 2 K 13:20, read כְּבֹא שׁ׳ 𝔊 Bur, בארץ שׁ׳ בְשׁ׳ Kit, cf. שׁ׳ בְשׁ׳ = year by year 1 S 1:7 +; בַּשָּׁנָה Benz, cf. Ne 10:33; so שׁ׳ שׁ׳ Dt 14:22, שׁ׳ אַחֲרֵי שׁ׳ 2 S 21:1, בְּכָל־שׁ׳ וְשׁ׳ Est 9:21, 27; especially of duration of life; (יְמֵי) שְׁנֵי חַיֵּי פ׳ Gn 23:1; 25:7 + (P); שְׁנֵיהֶם Jb 36:11 +, שְׁנוֹתַי ψ 31:11 (‖ חַיַּי), etc.; of God Jb 10:5 ψ 102:25, 28; in phr. of age, v. בֵּן 9, בַּת 9; indef. שָׁנִים Ez 38:17 = for years, לְקֵץ שׁ׳ Dn 11:6; זֶה־יָמִים אוֹ זֶה שָׁנִים 1 S 29:3; specif. בִּשְׁנַת מוֹת הַמֶּלֶךְ Is 6:1; 14:28, בִּשְׁנַת בֹּא תַּרְתָּן 20:1, שְׁנַת הַשְּׁמִטָה Dt 15:9; 31:10, שְׁנַת הַיּוֹבֵל Lv 25:13 +, etc.; שְׁנֵי שָׂכִיר Is 16:14; 21:16 (v. שָׂכִיר); שְׁנַת פְּקֻדָּתָם Je 11:23 + 2 times; שׁ׳ רָצוֹן לְי׳ Is 61:2, etc.; שְׁנוֹת דֹּר־וָדֹר Dt 32:7, cf. Jo 2:2; most often c. num. card.: pl. after units, appos., Ex 21:2 +, so also שְׁתַּיִם שָׁנִים 2 S 2:10 +, but du. שְׁנָתַיִם Am 1:1 + 4 times, שְׁנָתַיִם יָמִים Gn 41:1 + 4 times; very rarely c. num. (certainly) cstr. שְׁתֵּי שָׁנִים 1 S 13:1 (corrupt), שְׁלשׁ שׁ׳ Lv 25:21; 8 + שָׁנָה †2 K 22:1; before unit (rare, late) 2 Ch 11:17(×2); Dn 1:5; sg. after 11–19, tens, and hundreds Gn 5:3, 9; 14:4 + often; so 90 + 9 years 17:24 +, rarely 30 + 3 years 1 K 2:11, etc.; but אֶלֶפ שָׁנִים ψ 90:4 1000 years, so (+ פַּעֲמַיִם) Ec 6:6 1000 years twice over; with cp. num. often repeated, 900 year + 30 year Gn 5:5, etc.; 100 year + 70 year + 5 years 25:7, etc.; c. num. card. = ord., בִּשְׁנַת אַרְבַּע לְ 1 K 22:41 in the fourth year of, etc., also בִּשְׁנַת חֲמִשִּׁים שָׁנָה לְ 2 K 15:23, etc.; but בְּאַרְבַּע עֶשְׂרֵה שׁ׳ לְ 2 K 18:13, etc. (often), and בַּשָּׁנָה הָאַחַת עֶשְׂרֵה 1 K 6:38, etc.; also (c. units), בַּשָּׁנָה הָֽרְבִיעִת Lv 19:24 +, etc., + לְ 2 K 17:6 the ninth year of, etc.; and even (Ges§ 134 p) בִּשְׁנַת הַתְּשִׁיעִית לְ 2 K 25:1, cf. Ezr 7:8; Je 46:2; 51:59 + (Kt) 28:1; 32:1 (Qr בַּשָּׁנָה).

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Why these entries: BDB: headword, part of speech agrees, 74 of its verses cited, 1 words shared with the glosses, lists its Strong's number (8 candidates); OSHB: headword, part of speech agrees, 1 words shared with the BDB entry, 1 with the glosses (5 candidates)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every English meaning of «שָׁנָה» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1513/8141/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.

### In the verses

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[Deuteronomy 15:1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/torah/DEU.15.1/)

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מִקֵּ֥ץ שֶֽׁבַע־שָׁנִ֖ים תַּעֲשֶׂ֥ה שְׁמִטָּֽה׃

*Word for word:* from.\[the\] end of.seven years you.will.observe a.remission

*JPS 1917:* At the end of every seven years thou shalt make a release.

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[Psalms 77:6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/ketuvim/PSA.77.6/)

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חִשַּׁ֣בְתִּי יָמִ֣ים מִקֶּ֑דֶם שְׁ֝נ֗וֹת עוֹלָמִֽים׃

*Word for word:* I.thought.about days from antiquity years of.antiquiti(es)

*JPS 1917:* I have pondered the days of old, the years of ancient times.

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