H1172 H1172
Mistress, female owner; a woman who possesses or is characterized by something — a household, sorcery, or necromancy.
The feminine counterpart of בַּעַל ('master, owner'), used to describe a woman defined by what she possesses or practices. In 1 Kings 17:17, the 'mistress of the house' (בַּעֲלַת הַבַּיִת) is the widow of Zarephath who hosted Elijah — a dignified title of domestic authority. In 1 Samuel 28:7, the same construction identifies the famous 'mistress of a spirit' (בַּעֲלַת אוֹב), the medium at Endor whom Saul consulted. Nahum 3:4 applies it to Nineveh as 'mistress of sorceries' (בַּעֲלַת כְשָׁפִים), personifying the city as a seductive enchantress.
Senses
1. sense 1 — A woman who owns, possesses, or is characterized by a particular domain or skill. The construct בַּעֲלַת ('mistress of') links to a following noun to define the relationship: 'mistress of the house' in 1 Kings 17:17 (French 'maîtresse,' Spanish 'dueña-de'), 'mistress of a necromantic spirit' at Endor (1 Sam 28:7), and 'mistress of sorceries' describing Nineveh's seductive power (Nah 3:4). German 'mistress-von' and English 'mistress-of' both preserve the possessive construct. The word dignifies the woman's authority over her sphere — whether a household, a forbidden craft, or an empire's dark allure. 4×
AR["سَيِّدَةِ", "صاحِبَةَ", "صاحِبَةُ", "صاحِبَةِ"]·ben["কর্ত্রী-", "গৃহিণী", "মালিক-"]·DE["[בעלת]", "mistress-von"]·EN["mistress-of"]·FR["maîtresse", "mistress-de"]·heb["בעלת", "בעלת-"]·HI["भोओतनि-", "मालकिन", "स्वामिनी"]·ID["ahli", "pemilik", "pemilik-"]·IT["[בעלת]", "padrona-di"]·jav["ahli", "ingkang-kagungan", "ingkang-nggadhahi-"]·KO["주인", "주인-", "주인-의"]·PT["dona-de", "senhora", "senhora-de-"]·RU["госпожи", "хозяйка-", "хозяйки", "хозяйку-"]·ES["dueña-de", "dueña-de-"]·SW["bibi-wa", "mwenye"]·TR["sahibesi", "sahip-olan-"]·urd["جنّات-والی-", "مالکن", "مالکنِ"]
Related Senses
H3808 1. simple negation (not) (4839×)G1722 1. locative: in, within (2442×)H1004b 1. house, dwelling, building (2015×)G3756 1. not (negation particle) (1635×)H4480a 1. source or separation (1198×)H5892b 1. city, town (1093×)G1519 1. direction: into, to, toward (1061×)H3427 1. Qal: to dwell, inhabit (937×)G1537 1. from, out of (source/origin) (886×)H8034 1. Name (designation / identifier) (856×)G3361 1. subjective negation (not) (834×)G1909 1. on, upon (spatial surface) (757×)H0369 1. existential negation: there is not (738×)H5869a 1. in the eyes/sight of (evaluative) (734×)H5650 1. Servant, attendant, subject (723×)H0408 1. prohibitive negation do-not (712×)G2443 1. so that, in order that (purpose/result) (665×)G0575 1. from (649×)G1223 1. through, by means of (582×)H3541 1. thus, so, in this manner (569×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† I. [בַּעֲלָה] n.f. 1. mistress, בַּעֲלַת הַבַּיִת mistress of the house 1 K 17:17. 2. n. rel. ב׳ אוב necromancer 1 S 28:7(×2); ב׳ כשׁפים sorceress, Na 3:4.