H1710 H1710
Fish (collective feminine noun) — aquatic creatures as a class, especially of the sea and Nile
This feminine collective noun for fish stands alongside the more common masculine דָּג, but carries a distinctly collective, class-wide force. It appears at the very outset of Scripture when God grants humanity dominion over 'the fish of the sea' (Gen 1:26, 28). It surfaces again in the Exodus plagues when the Nile's fish die (Exod 7:18, 21), in Israel's nostalgic memory of Egyptian fish eaten freely (Num 11:5), and in Ezekiel's eschatological river whose waters teem with fish 'of many kinds' (Ezek 47:9–10). Deuteronomy's prohibition against fish-shaped idols (Deut 4:18) shows how theologically charged even this humble word could become.
Senses
1. fish (collective noun) — Feminine collective noun for fish as a zoological class of aquatic creatures, distinguished from the masculine דָּג which may denote individual fish. Used in the creation mandate (Gen 1:26, 28), the Nile plague (Exod 7:18, 21), the nostalgic food memory of Egypt (Num 11:5), the prohibition of fish idols (Deut 4:18), and Ezekiel's eschatological river (Ezek 47:9–10). All target languages render it straightforwardly: eng 'fish', spa 'pez/pescado', fra 'poisson', deu 'Fisch'. 15×
AR["السَّمَكَ", "الْ-سَمَكُ", "الْحُوتَةِ", "سَمَكَ", "سَمَكَ-", "سَمَكَةٍ", "سَمَكَهُم", "سَمَكُهَا", "سَمَكُهُمْ", "عَلَى-سَمَكِ", "كَ-سَمَكِ", "وَالسَّمَكُ"]·ben["-তাদের-মাছ", "-মাছ", "ও-মাছ", "তাদের-মাছ", "মাছ", "মাছে", "মাছের", "মাছের-", "মাছের-মতো"]·DE["Fisch", "[דגת]", "[דגתם]", "[הדגה]", "[כדגת]", "der-Fisch", "der-grosse-Fisch", "ihr-Fisch", "und-der-Fisch", "über-die-Fische"]·EN["and-the-fish", "fish", "fish-of-", "like-fish-of", "over-fish-of", "the-fish", "their-fish"]·FR["[דגתם]", "au-dessus-poisson-de", "et-le-poisson", "le-poisson", "poisson"]·heb["ב-דגה", "דגה", "דגת", "דגת-", "דגתם", "ה-דגה", "ו-ה-דגה", "כ-דגת"]·HI["उनकी-मछलियां", "उनकी-मछलियों-को", "उनकी-मछली", "और-मछली", "जैसी-मछली", "पर-मछलियों", "मछलियों", "मछलियों-को", "मछली", "मछली-की", "मछली-के"]·ID["Dan-ikan-ikan", "atas-ikan-ikan", "ikan", "ikan-", "ikan-ikan-", "ikan-ikan-mereka", "ikan-ikannya", "ikan-itu.", "ikan-mereka", "seperti-ikan"]·IT["[דגת]", "[דגתם]", "[הדגה]", "[כדגת]", "e-il-pesce", "il-pesce", "pesce", "sopra-pesce-di"]·jav["Lan-ulam", "ing-ulam", "iwak", "iwak-", "iwak-iwakipun", "iwaké", "kados-iwak", "ulam", "ulam-ipun"]·KO["그-물고기", "그-물고기-의", "그-물고기가", "그들-의-물고기-를", "그들의-물고기가", "그리고-그-물고기들이", "물고기를-", "물고기와-같이", "물고기의", "에-물고기-들"]·PT["como-peixes-de", "e-o-peixe", "o-peixe", "os-peixes", "peixe", "peixes-de", "seus-peixes", "sobre-o-peixe-de"]·RU["-рыбы", "И-рыба", "как-рыба", "над-рыбой", "рыба", "рыба-их", "рыбу", "рыбу-", "рыбу-их", "рыбы"]·ES["Y-el-pez", "como-pez-de", "el-pescado", "el-pez", "en-pez-de", "los-peces-de", "pez", "su-pez", "sus-peces"]·SW["kama-samaki-wa", "na-samaki", "samaki", "samaki-wa", "samaki-wao", "samaki-yao", "yeyote"]·TR["-balıklarına", "Ve-balıklar", "baliklari", "balık", "balıkları", "balıkları-gibi", "balıklarını", "balıklarını-", "balığı", "balığın-o"]·urd["اور-مچھلیاں", "اُن-کی-مچھلیاں", "اُن-کی-مچھلیوں", "مچھلی", "مچھلی-اُن-کی", "مچھلی-کی-طرح", "مچھلی-کے", "مچھلیاں-", "مچھلیوں-پر"]
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
† דָּגָה n.f. fish (NH id.)—דָּגָה Nu 11:5 + 5 times; cstr. דְּגַת Gn 1:26 + 4 times + Ez 29:4b (del. B Co); sf. דְּגָתוֹ Ez 47:10 𝔊 𝔙 Co; (MT דגתם), דְּגָתָם Is 50:2 ψ 105:29 + Ez 47:10 MT cf. supr.—fish, almost always coll.; fish of sea דְּגַת הַיָּם Gn 1:26, 28 (P) Ez 47:10 (in sim.); in Nile (יְאֹר) Ex 7:18, 21 (E) cf. ψ 105:29, דְּגַת יְאֹרֶיךָ Ez 29:4(×2) (cf. supr.) v 5; in sea and…