אֵם221 H0517
Mother; a female parent of humans; also the dam or mother of an animal in legal and cultic contexts.
Em is among the most primal words in any language, and Hebrew is no exception. It names the biological and social mother — Eve as 'mother of all living' (Gen 3:20), Rebekah guiding Jacob (Gen 27:13), the grieving mothers of Jeremiah and Lamentations. In three specialized occurrences (Exod 23:19; 34:26; Deut 22:6-7), the word extends to animal mothers, grounding Israel's compassion laws in the bond between dam and offspring. Across languages — Arabic umm, Aramaic imma, Spanish madre, French mère — the word's warmth and weight are universally recognized.
1. mother, female parent — A human female parent, encompassing biological motherhood, social role, and figurative extensions. The 217 occurrences span from Eve as 'mother of all living' (Gen 3:20) to proverbial instruction ('do not forsake your mother's teaching,' Prov 1:8) and lament ('their mothers,' Lam 2:12). Spanish madre, French mère, German Mutter, and Arabic umm all preserve the same intimate familial sense. Pronominal forms (his mother, my mother) dominate, reflecting the deeply relational character of the word. 217×
AR["أُمُّهُ","أُمِّهِ"]·ben["তাঁর-মা","তাঁর-মায়ের","তাঁর-মার","তার-মাতার","তার-মায়ের","তার-মায়ের।","তার-মার","মা-তাঁর","মায়ের-তার"]·DE["sein-Mutter","seine-Mutter","seiner-Mutter"]·EN["his-mother","its-mother","mother-his"]·FR["mère-son","sa-mère","son-mère"]·heb["אימו","אם-ו","אמו"]·HI["अपनी-माँ","अपनी-माँ-के","अपनी-मां","अपनी-मां-के","अपनी-माता","उस-की-माता-ने","उसकी-माँ","उसकी-माँ-के","उसकी-माँ-ने","उसकी-मां-का","उसकी-माताने","माता-अपनी-की","माता-उसकी","माता-उसकी-के"]·ID["ibunya","induknya"]·IT["madre-suo","sua-madre","suo-madre"]·jav["biyungipun.","ibu","ibu-nipun","ibunipun","ibunipun.","ibunipun;","indukipun,","indukipun."]·KO["그-어머니-의","그-어미의","그의-어머니","그의-어머니가","그의-어머니의","그의-어미","그의-어미의","어머니-그의-의","어머니-그의-의-이"]·PT["mãe-dele","mãe-sua","sua-mãe"]·RU["матери-его","матери-своей","матерью-своей","мать-его"]·ES["madre-suya","su-madre"]·SW["la-mama-yake","mama","mama-yake","na-akasema","wa-mama-yake","ya-mama-yake"]·TR["anasının","annesi","annesinden","annesine","annesinin"]·urd["اس-کی-ماں-کے","اُس-کی-ماں-نے","اُس-کی-ماں-کا","اُس-کی-ماں-کے","اپنی-ماں-کی","اپنی-ماں-کے","ماں-اُس-نے","ماں-اُس-کی","ماں-اپنی","ماں-اپنی-کے"]
Gen 21:21, Gen 24:67, Gen 24:67, Gen 27:13, Gen 27:14, Gen 43:29, Exod 22:30, Exod 23:19, Exod 34:26, Lev 22:27, Lev 24:11, Num 12:12 (+38 more)
▼ 1 more sense below
Senses
2. mother animal, dam — The mother of an animal — a dam — used exclusively in compassion laws. 'Do not boil a kid in its mother's milk' (Exod 23:19; 34:26; Deut 14:21) and 'if you come upon a bird's nest, you shall let the mother go' (Deut 22:6-7). Korean distinguishes with a specific term for animal mothers, highlighting this semantic shift. These three rare occurrences extend maternal dignity beyond the human sphere, grounding cultic ethics in the natural bond between parent and young. 3×
AR["الْأُمَّ","وَالْأُمُّ"]·ben["এবং-মা","মাকে"]·DE["der-Mutter","und-der-Mutter"]·EN["and-the-mother","the-mother"]·FR["et-le-mère","le-mère"]·heb["ה-אם","ו-ה-אם"]·HI["और-माता","माता"]·ID["dan-induk","induk"]·IT["e-il-madre","il-madre"]·jav["induk","lan-induk"]·KO["그리고-어미가","어미를"]·PT["a-mãe","e-a-mãe"]·RU["-мать","и-мать"]·ES["la-madre","y-la-madre"]·SW["mama","na-mama"]·TR["anayı","ve-ana"]·urd["اور-ماں","ماں"]
Related Senses
H0376 1. man, person, human male (2130×)H0001 1. father, immediate male parent (1031×)H0251 1. brother (blood sibling) (573×)H0120 1. man, human being (individual/generic) (527×)H0802 1. woman, female person (519×)G0444 1. human being, person (469×)G3962 1. father or divine Father (413×)G0080 1. brother, fellow believer (343×)H0802 2. wife, spouse (255×)G0435 1. man, male person (202×)G1135 1. woman, adult female (190×)H2233 1. offspring, descendants (172×)H0001 2. ancestor, forefather (146×)H5288 1. Youth, young man (122×)H0269 1. sister (female sibling) (113×)H1755 1. generation, contemporaries (96×)G5043 1. child, offspring (89×)G0444 2. people, humankind (86×)H3206 1. child, boy, youth (86×)H2145 1. male (human being) (79×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
אֵם221 n.f. mother (Ph. אם, Arabic أُمٌّ, إِمٌّ, Ethiopic እም, Sab. אם (only in n.pr. cf. e.g. BaeRel. 118) Assyrian ummu COTGloss; Aramaic אֵם, אִימָּא, ܐܶܡܳܐ )—א׳ abs. Gn 32:12 +; cstr. Gn 3:20 +; sf. אִמִּי Gn 20:12 + etc.; †pl. only sf. אִמֹּתֵנוּ La 5:3; אִמֹּתָם Je 16:3 La 2:12(×2)— 1. lit. (human) mother, as parent Gn 20:12; 32:12; 44:20 Ex 2:8 ψ 51:7; 113:9 (opp. עֲקֶרֶת) Je 15:8, 10;…