H0483 H0483
Mute, unable to speak; used literally of persons and figuratively of watchmen and idols.
An adjective describing the inability to speak, encompassing both physical muteness and figurative silence. In Exodus 4:11, God declares himself sovereign over who is made mute or seeing, grounding the word in the reality of human disability. Isaiah 35:6 promises the mute will sing for joy in the messianic age, while Isaiah 56:10 turns the image sharply: Israel's watchmen are 'mute dogs' who cannot bark — a devastating metaphor for prophetic failure. Habakkuk 2:18 applies the term to idols, exposing the absurdity of consulting a speechless teacher. The Spanish 'mudo' and French 'muet' both preserve the singular semantic focus on voicelessness.
Senses
1. mute, unable to speak — Describes the state of being unable to speak, whether as a physical condition (Exod 4:11; Ps 38:13; Prov 31:8, advocating for those who cannot speak for themselves) or as a figurative indictment — of negligent prophets likened to dogs that cannot bark (Isa 56:10), of the joyful reversal when the mute tongue sings (Isa 35:6), and of lifeless idols that are inherently voiceless (Hab 2:18). Across languages — Spanish 'mudo,' French 'muet,' English 'mute' — the translations uniformly converge on speechlessness, confirming a single tightly unified sense. 6×
AR["أَبْكَمَ", "أَخْرَسَ", "بُكماً", "خُرْسٌ", "لِ-الأَخْرَسِ", "وَكَ-أَبْكَمَ"]·ben["-বোবার-জন্য", "ও-যেমন-বোবা", "বোবা", "বোবার"]·DE["Elam", "[אלמים]", "[לאלם]", "mute", "und-wie-ein-stumm"]·EN["and-like-a-mute", "for-the-mute", "mute", "of-the-mute"]·FR["[אלמים]", "et-muet", "muet", "mute", "Élam", "à-לאלם"]·heb["אילם", "אילמים", "ו-כ-אילם", "ל-אילם"]·HI["और-जैसे-गूँगा", "गू̃गा", "गूँगी", "गूँगे", "गूँगे-की", "गूँगे-के-लिए"]·ID["bisu", "orang-bisu", "untuk-yang-bisu", "yang-bisu?"]·IT["Elam", "[אלמים]", "[וכאלם]", "mute", "per-per-il-mute"]·jav["bisu", "ilat", "kanggé-tiyang-bisu", "lan-kados-tiyang-bisu"]·KO["그리고-벙어리-같이", "말못하는", "벙어리를", "벙어리인", "벼어리의", "벼어리인을-위해"]·PT["e-como-mudo", "mudo", "mudos", "pelo-mudo"]·RU["за-немого", "и-как-немой", "немого", "немые", "немым", "немых"]·ES["del-mudo", "mudo", "mudos", "por-el-mudo", "y-como-mudo"]·SW["bubu", "kwa-bubu", "na-kama-bubu", "wa-bubu"]·TR["dilsiz", "dilsiz-için", "dilsizin", "ve-dilsiz-gibi"]·urd["اور-گونگے-کی-طرح", "کے-لیے-گونگے", "گونگا", "گونگے", "گونگے-کی"]
Related Senses
H7200 1. Qal: to see, perceive (1257×)G4771 2. you (singular address) (1077×)H8085 1. Qal: hear, perceive aurally (921×)H0859a 1. you (2nd person masculine singular pronoun) (743×)H0398 1. eat (consume food) (697×)H4191 1. die (Qal: natural/general death) (645×)G3708 1. see, perceive visually (419×)G0191 1. hear, perceive sound (360×)H???? 3. (352×)G3708 2. behold, look (exclamatory) (256×)H7272 1. foot (body part) (236×)H8354 1. drink, consume liquid (209×)H3205 1. Qal active: bear/give birth (female subject) (204×)H3205 2. Qal active: beget/father (male subject) (198×)H2421 1. Qal: live, be alive (177×)H8085 2. Qal: listen, heed, pay attention (172×)H2416a 1. alive, living (state/attribute) (146×)H2416e 1. life, lifespan, lifetime (145×)G2198 1. be alive, have life (133×)H8193 1. lip, lips (body part) (123×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† אִלֵּם adj. dumb, unable to speak; Ex 4:11 מִי שָׂם פֶּה לָֽאָדָם אוֹ מִי יָשׂוּם אִלֵּם; Is 56:10 כְּלָבִים אִלְּמִים fig. of false proph.; of idols אֱלִילִים א׳ Hb 2:18; as subst. Pr 31:8 ψ 38:14 Is 35:6.