טֶ֫רֶם54 H2962
Before, not yet; a temporal adverb indicating precedence in time or the unrealized state of an expected event.
Terem is a distinctive Hebrew adverb with no known cognate in other Semitic languages, making it a uniquely Hebrew way of framing temporal precedence. It typically governs an imperfect verb to say 'before X happened' — as in Genesis 2:5, where plants were 'not yet' in the earth. The word can also carry interrogative force, as when Pharaoh is asked 'do you not yet know that Egypt is ruined?' (Exod 10:7). A single occurrence in Psalm 5:5 may extend the sense spatially to 'before' as 'in the presence of,' though most scholars read even that temporally.
3. before (spatial, in front of) — A rare spatial extension meaning 'before' in the sense of 'in the presence of,' attested only in Psalm 5:5, where the wicked shall not stand terem the psalmist's eyes (or before God). Spanish delante de and German vor support a spatial reading here. Most commentators, however, treat this as still fundamentally temporal, making this a debated marginal sense. 1×
AR["أَمَامَ"]·ben["সামনে-"]·DE["vor"]·EN["before"]·FR["à-annoncer"]·heb["ל-נגד"]·HI["के-सामने"]·ID["di-hadapan"]·IT["prima-che"]·jav["wonten-ngajeng"]·KO["-앞에"]·PT["diante"]·RU["пред"]·ES["delante-de"]·SW["mbele-ya"]·TR["karşısında-"]·urd["-سامنے"]
▼ 2 more senses below
Senses
1. before (temporal) — Temporal adverb or conjunction meaning 'before' an event occurs. This is the overwhelming use (51 of 57 occurrences), governing imperfect verbs to establish sequence: 'before they lay down' (Gen 19:4), 'before he had finished speaking' (Gen 24:15). Spanish antes de que and French devant consistently render this temporal precedence. The word structures some of Scripture's most vivid narrative moments, marking the precise instant before a scene changes. 51×
AR["(قَبْلَ)","قَبلَ","قَبْلَ","قَبْلَ-أَنْ","قَبْلَمَا"]·ben["(আগে)","-আগে","আগে","আগে-","পূর্বে"]·DE["bevor","vor"]·EN["before"]·FR["devant"]·heb["ב-טרם","טרם"]·HI["पहले","पहले-कि"]·ID["belum","sebelum"]·IT["davanti","davanti-a"]·jav["(saderengipun)","Saderengipun","saderengipun","sadhèrèng","sadurungipun","sadèrèngipun","sakderengipun","sakdèrèngipun"]·KO["(전에)","-전에","아직","에-전에","전에"]·PT["Antes-de","antes","antes-de","antes-que"]·RU["Прежде-чем","прежде","прежде-чем"]·ES["antes-de","antes-de-que"]·SW["kabla","kabla-ya","na-tutamkuta"]·TR["(önce)","-önce","daha-önce-","henüz","Önce","ölmeden","önce","öncesinde"]·urd["ابھی-تک","اِس-سے-پہلے-کہ","سے-پہلے","پہلے","پہلے-کہ"]
2. not yet — Adverb meaning 'not yet,' indicating that an expected action or state has not been realized. In Exodus 9:30 Moses tells Pharaoh's servants 'you do not yet fear the LORD,' and in 1 Samuel 3:7 the boy Samuel 'did not yet know the LORD.' German nicht noch and French pas encore capture the suspended expectation. This sense often appears in dialogue, lending urgency — the gap between what should be and what is not yet. 5×
AR["أَ-لَمْ","قَبْلَ","لَمْ-بَعْدُ","وَ-قَبْلَ"]·ben["এখনও-না","এখনো","এবং-এখনো","পূর্বে"]·DE["nicht-doch","nicht-noch","und-nicht-doch"]·EN["and-not-yet","not-yet"]·FR["et-pas-cependant","pas-cependant","pas-encore"]·heb["ה-טרם","ו-טרם","טרם"]·HI["अभी-तक","अभी-नहीं","और-अभी-नहीं","क्या-अभी-तक-नहीं"]·ID["belum","belumkah","dan-belum"]·IT["e-non-eppure","non-ancora","non-eppure"]·jav["Punapa-dèrèng","dereng","lan-dereng","sakdèrèngipun"]·KO["그리고-아직","아직"]·PT["ainda-não","antes-de","e-ainda-não"]·RU["ещё-не","и-ещё-не","разве-ещё-не"]·ES["Acaso-todavía","antes-de","todavía","y-antes-de"]·SW["bado","kabla","na-kabla"]·TR["henüz","henüz-mü","ve-henüz"]·urd["ابھی","ابھی-نہیں","اور-ابھی-نہیں","کیا-ابھی-تک"]
BDB / Lexicon Reference
טֶ֫רֶם54 once (Ru 3:14 Kt) טְרוֹם, adv. of time, not yet, ere, before that (deriv. unknown: not found in cogn. languages)—construed mostly with the impf. (with the pf. only Gn 24:15 (v 45 impf.), 1 S 3:7a (v b impf.), and בְּטֶרֶם ψ 90:2 Pr 8:25):— 1. †טֶרֶם in an independent sentence, not yet, Gn 2:5 and all the plants of the field טרם יהיה בארץ were not yet in the earth, etc., 19:4 טרם ישׁכבו…