H1639 H1639
To diminish, subtract, or reduce; in passive stems, to be withdrawn or deducted; also to shear hair; rarely, to restrain or draw up.
Gara' is a verb of subtraction and reduction whose primary force is the taking-away of something from a whole. Its most theologically charged use appears in the solemn warning of Deuteronomy 4:2 and 12:32: 'you shall not diminish from it' — a command not to subtract from God's word that mirrors the prohibition against adding to it. In the brick-making scenes of Exodus 5, Pharaoh refuses to 'diminish' the daily quota while demanding straw be gathered independently, and the multilingual evidence (Spanish disminuir, Arabic naqasa, Hindi ghatana, Swahili punguza) all consistently select reduction vocabulary. The Nifal passive extends this into property law — inheritances and land valuations 'shall be deducted' according to years remaining (Lev 27:18; Num 36:3). A strikingly different physical sense — shearing or clipping hair — appears in the passive participle describing mourning rituals (Isa 15:2; Jer 48:37), where the languages pivot to cutting vocabulary entirely.
Senses
1. diminish, reduce, subtract — The core Qal active sense of diminishing, reducing, or subtracting from a quantity. This dominates with 11 occurrences spanning legislative, narrative, and wisdom contexts. Pharaoh commands 'you shall not diminish the bricks' (Exod 5:8, 19); Deuteronomy twice forbids diminishing from God's commandments (Deut 4:2; 12:32); Ecclesiastes echoes that none can diminish from what God does (Eccl 3:14). The cross-linguistic evidence is remarkably uniform — Spanish disminuir/quitar, Hindi ghatana/kam karna, Arabic naqasa/qallala, Korean julida, and Swahili punguza all select core reduction vocabulary. Ezekiel 5:11 and 16:27 extend the sense to God diminishing provisions or territory as punishment. 11×
AR["أَحْسِمُ", "تَحْذِفْ", "تَنْقُصُوا", "تُنْقِصُوا", "وَ-تُقَلِّلُ", "وَمِنْهُ", "وَنَقَصْتُ", "يَسحَبُ", "يُنقِصُ"]·ben["আর-কমিয়ে-দিলাম", "এবং-হ্রাস-কর", "কমাবে", "কমাবে।", "কমিয়ে-দেব", "তিনি-সরিয়ে-নেন", "তোমরা-কমাও", "বাদ-দেওয়ার", "বাদ-দেবে"]·DE["[אגרע]", "[ואגרע]", "[ותגרע]", "[יגרע]", "[לגרע]", "[תגרע]", "du-soll-diminish", "du-soll-reduce", "er-soll-diminish"]·EN["I-shall-diminish", "and-I-diminished", "and-diminish", "he-shall-diminish", "he-withdraws", "to-take-away", "withhold", "you-shall-diminish", "you-shall-reduce"]·FR["[אגרע]", "[ואגרע]", "[תגרע]", "et-retrancher", "il---diminish", "retrancher", "tu---reduce", "tu-devra-diminish", "à-retrancher"]·heb["אגרע", "ו-אגרע", "ו-תגרע", "יגרע", "ל-גרוע", "תגרע", "תגרעו"]·HI["उससे", "और-कम-करता-है", "और-घटाया-मैंने", "कम-करना", "कम-करोगē", "घटा", "घटाएगा", "घटाओ", "घटाना", "मैं-कम-करूंगा", "हटाता-है"]·ID["Ia menarik", "akan-mengurangi", "boleh-kamu-kurangi", "dan-Aku-mengurangi", "dan-mengurangi", "ia kurangi", "kamu-kurangi", "kamu-mengurangi", "yang-dikurangi"]·IT["[אגרע]", "[ואגרע]", "[תגרע]", "e-e-diminish", "egli-shall-diminish", "egli-withdraws", "per-a-take-away", "tu-dovra-diminish", "tu-shall-reduce"]·jav["Kawula-ngurangi", "Panjenengan-ipun-nyingkiraken", "kangge-ngurangi", "lan-Aku-ngirangi", "lan-ngurangi", "ngurangi", "panjenengan-kenging-ngurangi", "panjenengan-sadaya-ngirangi", "piyambakipun-badhé-ngurangi.", "sami-ngurangi"]·KO["거두신다", "그리고-내가-줄였다", "그리고-줄이는구나", "너희는-감하지-않으리라", "덜기를", "덮으리라-네가", "빼지", "줄이라", "줄이리라", "줄이지"]·PT["diminuas", "diminuirei", "diminuireis", "diminuirá", "diminuirás", "e-diminuis", "e-diminuí", "para-diminuir", "retirará"]·RU["и-умаляешь", "и-уменьшил-Я", "отводит", "убавить;", "убавляй", "убавляйте", "умалит", "уменьшу-я"]·ES["disminuirá", "disminuiréis", "que-quitar", "quita", "quitarás", "quites", "reduciré", "y-disminuyes", "y-reduje"]·SW["ataondoa", "atapunguza", "kupunguza", "msipunguze", "na-nikapunguza", "na-unapunguza", "nitapunguza", "punguza", "punguze"]·TR["azaltacaksın", "azaltacaksınız", "cikarmak", "eksilt", "eksiltecek", "eksilteceksiniz", "kıracağım", "ve-azalttım", "ve-azaltırsın", "çekr"]·urd["اور-مَیں-نے-کم-کیا", "اور-کم-کرتا-ہے", "وہ ہٹاتا", "کم-کرو", "کم-کرو-گے", "کم-کروں-گا", "گھٹاؤ", "گھٹائے-گا", "گھٹانا", "گھٹانے-کو"]
2. be diminished, be withdrawn — The Nifal passive sense of being diminished, deducted, or withdrawn — 7 occurrences concentrated in legal and administrative contexts. In Exodus 5:11, the Israelites' straw supply 'shall not be diminished'; in Leviticus 27:18, a field's valuation 'shall be deducted' proportionally; in Numbers 27:4 and 36:3, tribal inheritances risk being 'withdrawn' through marriage arrangements. Spanish sera quitada, Hindi ghataya jayega, Arabic yunqasu, and Swahili utapunguzwa all shift to passive constructions, confirming a genuine voice-based sense distinction. The legal precision of these passages gives this passive cluster a distinctly juristic register. 7×
AR["نُمْنَعُ", "وَ-يُنْقَصُ", "وَيُنْقَصُ", "يُحْذَفُ", "يُنْقَصُ"]·ben["এবং-কমানো-হবে", "এবং-হ্রাস-পাবে", "কমানো-হচ্ছে", "বঞ্চিত-হব", "হ্রাস-পাবে", "হ্রাস-পাবে।"]·DE["reduced", "sollte-sein-withdrawn", "sollte-wir-sein-excluded", "und-soll-sein-deducted", "und-wird-sein-withdrawn", "wird-sein-withdrawn"]·EN["and-shall-be-deducted", "and-will-be-withdrawn", "reduced", "should-be-withdrawn", "should-we-be-excluded", "will-be-withdrawn"]·FR["et-devra-être-deducted", "et-fera-être-withdrawn", "fera-être-withdrawn", "reduced", "should-nous-être-excluded", "should-être-withdrawn"]·heb["ו-נגרע", "ו-נגרעה", "יגרע", "נגרע"]·HI["और-घटाया जाएगा", "कम-होगा", "घटाया-जाए", "घटाया-जाएगा", "तो-घटाया-जाएगा", "वंचित-हों"]·ID["dan-berkurang", "dari-penilaianmu", "dikurangi", "dikurangkan", "kami-dikurangi"]·IT["dovrebbe-essere-withdrawn", "dovrebbe-noi-essere-excluded", "e-dovra-essere-deducted", "e-fara-essere-withdrawn", "fara-essere-withdrawn", "reduced"]·jav["dipunkurangi", "kawula-sedaya-dipun-kurangi", "kawurungaken", "kesuda", "lan-dipun-suda", "lan-dipunkurangi"]·KO["감해지는", "그리고-줄어든다", "그리고-줄어들것이다", "빼앵겨지리요", "줄어든다", "줄어들겠느냐-우리가"]·PT["diminuído", "e-será-diminuída", "e-será-reduzido", "seremos-diminuídos", "será-diminuída", "será-tirado"]·RU["будем-лишены", "и-убавится", "исключится", "убавится", "убавления"]·ES["disminuido", "seremos-disminuidos", "será-quitada", "será-quitado", "y-será-quitada", "y-será-rebajado"]·SW["kupunguzwa", "liondolewe", "na-itapunguzwa", "na-utapunguzwa", "tunazuiwa", "utapunguzwa"]·TR["alıkonulduk", "azalacak", "azaltılmış", "eksilecek", "ve-düşürülecek", "ve-eksilecek"]·urd["اور-کم-کیا-جائے", "اور-گھٹے-گی", "کم-ہوگا", "کم-ہوں", "کٹ-جائے", "گھٹے-گی"]
3. shear, clip hair — The Qal passive participle describing the physical shearing or clipping of hair as a mourning ritual. Only two occurrences, both in parallel prophetic oracles against Moab (Isa 15:2; Jer 48:37), where beards are described as geru'ah — 'shorn' or 'cut off.' The multilingual evidence makes a sharp lexical pivot here: English shorn/cut-off, Spanish rapada/cortada, Hindi katana, and Swahili kunyolewa all abandon the reduction vocabulary of senses 1-2 in favor of cutting/shaving terms. BDB notes this connects to the Aramaic cognate gera' meaning 'to shave,' suggesting an archaic physical concrete sense from which the abstract 'diminish' may have developed. 2×
AR["مَجْزُوزَةٌ", "مَقْصُوصَةٌ"]·ben["কাটা"]·DE["[גרועה]", "[גרעה]"]·EN["cut-off", "is-shorn"]·FR["[גרועה]", "[גרעה]"]·heb["גרועה"]·HI["कटी-हुई"]·ID["dicukur"]·IT["[גרועה]", "[גרעה]"]·jav["dipuncukur", "dipunpangkas"]·KO["깎였고", "깎였도다"]·PT["raspada"]·RU["обрезана", "срезана"]·ES["cortada", "rapada"]·SW["zimekatwa"]·TR["kesilmis", "kesilmişi"]·urd["منڈی-ہوئی", "کتری-ہوئی"]
4. restrain, limit, hold back — A single Qal occurrence in Job 15:8 where Eliphaz asks Job whether he 'restrains' or 'limits' wisdom to himself. The sense is not numerical reduction but rather hoarding or monopolizing — holding wisdom back from others. Spanish retienes ('you retain/withhold'), Hindi simit ki ('limited'), and Arabic tahrusu ('you guard') all select control/withholding vocabulary rather than subtraction terms. This suggests a secondary metaphorical extension from 'diminishing others' share' to 'restricting access.' 1×
AR["وَ-تَحْتَكِرُ"]·ben["এবং-সীমাবদ্ধ-কর"]·DE["[ותגרע]"]·EN["and-you-limit"]·FR["et-retrancher"]·heb["ו-תגרע"]·HI["और-क्या-तूने-सीमित-की"]·ID["dan-engkau-membatasi"]·IT["e-e-you-limit"]·jav["lan-panjenengan-mendhet"]·KO["그리고-제한하느냐"]·PT["e-restringes"]·RU["и-отнимаешь"]·ES["y-retienes"]·SW["na-unazuia"]·TR["ve-sınırlarsın"]·urd["اور-روکتا-ہے-تُو"]
5. draw up, pull up — A single Piel occurrence in Job 36:27 where God 'draws up' water droplets that distill as rain. The physical upward-pulling sense is strikingly different from diminishment, and the translations confirm it: English 'draws up,' Hindi khinchta hai ('pulls'), Arabic yashhabu ('draws/pulls'), Swahili anavuta ('pulls'). The Piel intensive stem may preserve an older concrete meaning of 'pulling away/extracting' that underlies the more abstract 'diminish.' Elihu's hymn to God's meteorological power gives this rare sense a vivid natural-philosophy setting. 1×
AR["يَسحَبُ"]·ben["তিনি-টেনে-তোলেন"]·DE["[יגרע]"]·EN["he-draws-up"]·FR["retrancher"]·heb["יגרע"]·HI["खींचता-है"]·ID["Ia menarik"]·IT["egli-draws-su"]·jav["Panjenengan-ipun-narik-munggah"]·KO["그가-끊어올리신다"]·PT["atrai"]·RU["притягивает"]·ES["reduce"]·SW["anavuta-juu"]·TR["çeker"]·urd["وہ کھینچتا ہے"]
Related Senses
H3605 1. all, every, whole (5352×)H3808 1. simple negation (not) (4839×)G1722 1. locative: in, within (2442×)H0935 1. come, arrive (Qal) (2413×)G1473 1. first person singular pronoun (2084×)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×)H0259 1. one (cardinal numeral) (940×)H3427 1. Qal: to dwell, inhabit (937×)H3318 1. Qal: go out, depart, come forth (891×)G1537 1. from, out of (source/origin) (886×)H7725 1. to return, come/go back (Qal) (874×)H8034 1. Name (designation / identifier) (856×)G3361 1. subjective negation (not) (834×)H5927 1. go up, ascend (Qal) (779×)G1909 1. on, upon (spatial surface) (757×)H0369 1. existential negation: there is not (738×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† [גָּרַע] vb. diminish, restrain, withdraw (NH id., Aramaic גְּרַע, ܓܪܰܥ shave head, etc.; cf. جَرِعَ swallow)— Qal Impf. יִגְרַע Jb 36:7, יִגְרָ֑ע Ex 21:10; 2 ms. תִּגְרַע Dt 13:1 + 3 times; אֶגְרַע Ez 5:11 (but cf. infr.), וָאֶגְרַע Ez 16:27; תִּגְרְעוּ Ex 5:8 + 2 times; Inf. לִגְרֹעַ Ex 3:14; Pt. גְּרוּעָה Is 15:2 (so Baer; v. d. H. גְּדוּעָה v. גדע), גְּרֻעָה Je 48:37;— 1. diminish, usually…