---
title: אָתוֹן — she-ass · The Tanakh dictionary
description: אָתוֹן (860), a word of Biblical Hebrew, used 34 times: she-ass. BDB 1906: n.f. she-ass she-ass. With 2 verses in Hebrew, word for word and JPS 1917.
---

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# אָתוֹן

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«אָתוֹן» in the Tanakh dictionary: **she-ass** — 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:** 34 times · **Key:** 860 · **BDB:** אָתוֹן

### Glosses

donkey (14); she-asses (8); female.donkeys (5)

### Meaning (OSHB)

she-ass [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1488/860/#m1)

### Meaning (BDB 1906)

n.f. she-ass she-ass [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1488/860/#m2)

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**The whole BDB entry:** n.f. Gn 45:23 she-ass (Arabic أَتَانٌ, Aramaic אַתָּנָא, ܐܰܬܳܢܳܐ, Assyrian atânu)—אָתוֹן Nu 22:23 + 10 times; אֲתֹנְךָ Nu 22:30, 32; אֲתֹנוֹ Gn 49:11 + 2 times; pl. abs. אֲתֹנֹת Gn 12:16 + 2 times; אֲתֹנוֹת Ju 5:10 + 12 times; אֲתוֹנוֹת Jb 1:3; 42:12;—she-ass, as dam Gn 49:11 Zc 9:9; as property (constituting wealth) Gn 12:16; 32:16 Jb 1:3, 14; 42:12 cf. 1 Ch 27:30; so of the asses of Kish 8 times 1 S 9:3(×2), 5, 20; 10:2(×2), 14, 16; as beasts of burden Gn 45:23; for riding Ju 5:10 Nu 22:21, 22 2 K 4:22, 24; of Balaam’s ass 14 times Nu 22:21, 22, 23(×3), 25, 27(×2), 28, 29, 30(×2), 32, 33.

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Why these entries: BDB: headword, part of speech agrees, 28 of its verses cited, 1 words shared with the glosses, lists its Strong's number (10 candidates); OSHB: headword, part of speech agrees, 2 words shared with the BDB entry, 1 with the glosses (5 candidates)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every English meaning of «אָתוֹן» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1488/860/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.

### In the verses

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[Judges 5:10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/neviim/JDG.5.10/)

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רֹכְבֵי֩ אֲתֹנ֨וֹת צְחֹר֜וֹת יֹשְׁבֵ֧י עַל־מִדִּ֛ין וְהֹלְכֵ֥י עַל־דֶּ֖רֶךְ שִֽׂיחוּ׃

*Word for word:* O.riders of.female.donkeys tawny O.\[you.who\].sit on garments and O.walkers on \[the\].road tell.out

*JPS 1917:* Ye that ride on white asses, ye that sit on rich cloths, and ye that walk by the way, tell of it;

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[1 Chronicles 27:30](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/ketuvim/1CH.27.30/)

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וְעַל־הַ֨גְּמַלִּ֔ים אוֹבִ֖יל הַיִּשְׁמְעֵלִ֑י וְעַל־הָ֣אֲתֹנ֔וֹת יֶחְדְּיָ֖הוּ הַמֵּרֹנֹתִֽי׃ס

*Word for word:* and.\[was\] over the camels Obil the Ishmaelite and.\[was\] over the she-asses Jehdeiah the Meronothite

*JPS 1917:* and over the camels was Obil the Ishmaelite; and over the asses was Jehdeiah the Meronothite;

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