H2549 H2549
Fifth (ordinal number) or a fifth part (fraction); used in counting and in legal restitution contexts
The ordinal adjective 'fifth,' used across the Hebrew Bible for sequencing days, months, years, sons, and tribal allotments. In its majority usage, it simply marks position in a series -- the fifth day of creation, the fifth month of a king's reign, the fifth lot falling to a tribe. A distinct fractional sense emerges in legal and economic texts, where hamishit means 'a fifth part' added as a penalty or surcharge. Joseph's taxation policy in Genesis 47:24 and the Levitical restitution laws both employ this fractional meaning, which multilingual translations consistently distinguish with partitive constructions.
Senses
1. ordinal fifth — The ordinal number 'fifth' marking position in a sequence, attested 34 times for days (Genesis 1:23, the fifth day of creation), months (2 Kings 25:8, the fifth month), years (Leviticus 19:25, the fifth year of fruit trees), tribal allotments (Joshua 19:24), and birth order (Genesis 30:17, Zilpah's fifth son). All major translation languages render this with a straightforward ordinal: Spanish quinto/quinta, French cinquieme, German funfte, Arabic al-khamis. The consistent cross-linguistic uniformity confirms a simple enumerative function. 34×
AR["ال-خَامِسَةِ", "الخامِس", "الخامِسَةِ", "الخَامِس", "الـ-خامِس", "الْ-خَامِسِ", "الْخَامِسَةُ", "الْخَامِسَةِ", "الْخَامِسُ", "الْخَامِسِ", "الْـ-خَامِسِ", "الْـخَامِسِ"]·ben["-পঞ্চম", "পঞ্চম", "পঞ্চমের", "হা-খামিশি"]·DE["[החמישי]", "der-Fuenfte", "der-fuenfter", "fuenfter"]·EN["The-fifth", "the-fifth"]·FR["cinquième", "der-cinquième", "le-cinquième"]·heb["ה-חמישי", "ה-חמישית"]·HI["-का-पांचवां", "-के-पाँचवाँ", "-के-पाँचवें", "-पांचवां", "-पांचवीं", "पाँचवाँ", "पाँचवीं", "पाँचवें", "पांचवें", "ह-पाँचवें"]·ID["-kelima", "kelima", "yang-kelima"]·IT["il-fifth", "il-quinto", "quinto"]·jav["Ingkang-kaping-gangsal", "ingkang-kaping-gangsal", "kang-kaping-gangsal", "kaping-gangsal"]·KO["그-다섯-번째", "그-다섯번째의", "그-다섯째", "그-다섯째의", "다섯째", "다섯째는"]·PT["O-quinto", "a-quinta", "o-quinto"]·RU["пятого", "пятом", "пятый"]·ES["El-quinto", "el-quinto", "la-quinta", "quinto"]·SW["-wa-tano", "ha-tano", "tano", "wa-tano", "ya-tano"]·TR["-beşinci", "Beşinci", "besinci", "beşinci", "beşincisi"]·urd["ال-پانچویں", "پانچواں", "پانچویں", "ہ-پانچواں"]
Gen 1:23, Gen 30:17, Lev 19:25, Num 7:36, Num 29:26, Num 33:38, Josh 19:24, Judg 19:8, 2 Sam 3:4, 1 Kgs 14:25, 2 Kgs 25:8, 1 Chr 2:14 (+22 more)
2. a fifth (fraction) — The fractional noun 'a fifth part' or 'one-fifth,' appearing 11 times in legal-economic contexts. Used for the twenty-percent surcharge added to restitution payments (Leviticus 5:16, 6:5, 22:14, 27:13-31) and for Joseph's taxation of Egypt's produce (Genesis 47:24). Multilingual evidence confirms the distinction: Spanish shifts from el quinto (ordinal) to la quinta parte de (fractional), French adds a partitive construction, and German moves from funfte to ein Funftel. The Levitical penalty passages cluster this sense tightly in cultic-legal discourse. 11×
AR["الْخُمْسَ", "خُمْسٌ", "خُمْسَ", "خُمْسَهُ", "خُمْسُهُ", "وَ-خُمْسَهُ"]·ben["এক-পঞ্চমাংশ", "এবং-তার-পঞ্চমাংশ", "এবং-তার-পাঁচমাংশ", "তার-পঞ্চমাংশ", "তার-পাঁচমাংশ", "পঞ্চমাংশ", "পাঁচ-ভাগের-এক-ভাগ", "পাঁচভাগ"]·DE["ein-Fünftel", "ein-fuenfter", "ein-fuenfter-von-es", "fuenfter-von", "sein-fuenfter", "und-sein-fuenfter"]·EN["a-fifth", "a-fifth-of-it", "and-its-fifth", "fifth", "fifth-of", "its-fifth"]·FR["cinquième", "cinquième-de", "et-son-cinquième", "son-cinquième", "un-cinquième", "un-cinquième-de-cela"]·heb["ו-חמישית", "ו-חמישיתיו", "חמישי", "חמישית", "חמישיתו"]·HI["उसका-पांचवां", "और-पाँचवाँ-भाग", "और-पाँचवां-उसका", "पाँचवाँ", "पाँचवाँ-भाग", "पाँचवां-उसका", "पांचवां", "पांचवां-भाग"]·ID["atas", "atasnya", "dan-seperlimanya", "seperlima", "seperlimanya", "uang"]·IT["e-suo-quinto", "quinto", "quinto-di", "suo-quinto", "un-quinto", "un-quinto-di-esso"]·jav["gangsal-persen", "kaping-gangsal", "lan-gangsal-persen", "lan-seperliman-ipun", "sapèrlima", "sapèrlimanipun", "seperlima"]·KO["그-오분의-일을", "그리고-그것의-오분의-일", "그리고-오분의-일을", "다섯째의", "오분의-일-그의", "오분의-일을"]·PT["e-quinto-dele", "e-seu-quinto", "quinta-parte", "quinto-de", "quintos", "seu-quinto"]·RU["и-пятую-часть-его", "пятая", "пятую-часть", "пятую-часть-его", "пятую-часть-её"]·ES["de-quinta-parte", "la-quinta-parte-de", "quinta-parte-suya", "su-quinta-parte", "un-quinto", "una-quinta-parte", "y-quinta-parte-de-él", "y-quintas-partes-suyas"]·SW["Uhmishtu", "na-sehemu-ya-tano-yake", "sehemu-ya-tano", "sehemu-ya-tano-ya-", "sehemu-ya-tano-yake", "tano"]·TR["beş-köşeli", "beşte-biri-", "beşte-birini", "ve-beşte-birini"]·urd["اور-اُس-کا-پانچواں-حصہ", "اور-پانچواں-اس-کا", "پانچواں", "پانچواں-حصہ", "پانچواں-حصہ-اُس-کا"]
Related Senses
H3605 1. all, every, whole (5352×)H0259 1. one (cardinal numeral) (940×)H8147 1. cardinal number two (666×)G3956 1. all (collective plural) (616×)H3967 1. cardinal numeral hundred (550×)H1419a 1. great, large (general quality) (486×)H7969 1. cardinal number three (431×)H0505 1. cardinal number thousand (427×)H7651 1. seven (cardinal number) (393×)G1520 1. cardinal number one (339×)H6240 1. ten (cardinal number) (334×)H6242 1. twenty (cardinal number) (315×)H2568 1. cardinal number five (309×)H0702 1. four (cardinal number) (277×)G3956 2. every, each (distributive) (227×)H8337 1. six (cardinal number) (215×)G3956 3. all things, everything (substantive) (211×)G3956 4. (187×)H6235 1. ten (177×)G3173 1. great in size or extent (176×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† חֲמִישִׁי m. חֲמִישִׁית f.adj.num.ordin. fifth;—m. חֲמִישִׁי Gn 1:23 + 22 times; חֲמִשִׁי Zc 7:3 + 3 times; f. חֲמִישִׁית abs. 1 K 14:25 + 4 times; חֲמִשִׁית Lv 19:25; Je 36:9; חֲמִשִּׁית 1 K 6:31; cstr. חֲמִישִׁית Lv 27:15, 19; sf. חֲמִישִׁתוֹ Lv 5:16 + 2 times; חֲמִשִׁיתוֹ Lv 22:14; 27:31; חֲמִשִׁתוֹ Lv 27:27, cf. חֲמִשִׁתָיו Lv 5:24, read תוֹ- Sam. Di (q.v.);—fifth, usually in enum. days,…