---
title: שָׂרַי — Sarai · The Tanakh dictionary
description: שָׂרַי (8297), a word of Biblical Hebrew, used 17 times: Sarai. BDB 1906: n.pr.f. With 2 verses in Hebrew, word for word and JPS 1917.
---

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# שָׂרַי

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«שָׂרַי» in the Tanakh dictionary: **Sarai** — 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:** 17 times · **Key:** 8297 · **BDB:** שָׂרַי²

### Glosses

Sarai (13); of.Sarai (3); \[was\].Sarai (1)

### Meaning (OSHB)

Sarai [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1513/8297/#m1)

### Meaning (BDB 1906)

n.pr.f. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1513/8297/#m2)

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**The whole BDB entry:** n.pr.f. wife of Abram (NöZMG xiii (1888), 484 Ges§ 801 Köii. 1, 427 make = foregoing, with old fem. ending י—ַ; \>LagBN 92, Anm.\*, emphasizing diff. in 𝔊, der.froma √ شرى, and cp. شراة, name of a barren mt.; cf. RS יִשְׂרָאֵל supr., sub I. שׂרה);—𝔊 Σαρα;—Gn 11:30 (J), v 31 (P), 12:5, 11, 17; 16:1, 2, 3, 5, 6(×2), 8(×2) (all J), 17:15 (P); שָׂרָ֑י 11:29 (J), 16:2 (J), 17:15 (P).

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Why these entries: BDB: headword, part of speech agrees, 13 of its verses cited, 0 words shared with the glosses, lists its Strong's number (22 candidates); OSHB: headword, part of speech agrees, 0 words shared with the BDB entry, 1 with the glosses (18 candidates)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every English meaning of «שָׂרַי» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1513/8297/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.

### In the verses

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[Genesis 11:30](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/torah/GEN.11.30/)

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וַתְּהִ֥י שָׂרַ֖י עֲקָרָ֑ה אֵ֥ין לָ֖הּ וָלָֽד׃

*Word for word:* and she.was Sarai barren there.\[belonged\].not to her a.child

*JPS 1917:* And Sarai was barren; she had no child.

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[Genesis 12:17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/torah/GEN.12.17/)

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וַיְנַגַּ֨ע יְהוָ֧ה ׀ אֶת־פַּרְעֹ֛ה נְגָעִ֥ים גְּדֹלִ֖ים וְאֶת־בֵּית֑וֹ עַל־דְּבַ֥ר שָׂרַ֖י אֵ֥שֶׁת אַבְרָֽם׃

*Word for word:* and he.struck Yahweh (et) Pharaoh plagues great and (et) house his on the.matter of.Sarai the.wife of.Abram

*JPS 1917:* And the LORD plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai Abram's wife.

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