H3208 H3208
childhood, youth, young manhood; time of vigor and vitality
An abstract noun denoting the period of youth or childhood, appearing exclusively in wisdom and poetic literature. Ecclesiastes uses it twice: in 11:9 urging the young person to rejoice in their youth while remembering the coming judgment, and in 11:10 where it parallels 'the dawn of life' (שַׁחֲרוּת). Psalm 110:3 contains the difficult phrase 'the dew of your youth,' which may refer to young men or to the freshness of youthful vigor. The term captures not just chronological age but the vitality, potential, and transience of the early years of life.
Senses
1. sense 1 — The state or period of being young, with emphasis on vigor and potential rather than just age. Qohelet's usage frames youth as a time of both joy and moral responsibility—temporary yet significant. The Psalm's metaphorical 'dew of your youth' evokes freshness and renewal, possibly describing youthful warriors or the vitality of a renewed people. Glosses capturing 'youth' and 'childhood' both appear, reflecting the term's semantic range from early childhood through young adulthood. 3×
AR["بِ-يَلْدُوتِيكَ", "شَبابِكَ", "هَ-يَلْدُوت"]·ben["তোমার-যৌবনে", "তোমার-যৌবনের", "শৈশব"]·DE["[בילדותיך]", "[הילדות]", "dein-youth"]·EN["Your-youth", "in-your-youth", "the-youth"]·FR["dans-ton-enfant-toi", "enfant", "le-enfant"]·heb["ב-ילדותיך", "ה-ילדות", "ילדותיך"]·HI["जवानी", "तेरी-जवानी-की", "तेरी-जवानी-में"]·ID["di-masa-mudamu", "masa-muda", "masa-muda-Mu"]·IT["[ילדתיך]", "il-il-youth", "in-in-tuo-youth-tuo"]·jav["anem", "ing-anem-panjenengan", "timur-Paduka"]·KO["당신-의-청년-의", "젊음-그", "젊음들-너의-에서"]·PT["a-juventude", "de-Tua-juventude", "em-juventude-tua"]·RU["в-юности-твоей,", "юности-твоей", "юность"]·ES["en-tu-juventud", "la-juventud", "tu-juventud"]·SW["katika-ujana-wako", "ujana", "ujana-wako"]·TR["cocukluk", "gencliginde", "gençliğinin"]·urd["تیری-جوانی-میں", "تیری-جوانی-کی", "جوانی"]
Related Senses
H3117 1. day, specific time (2231×)H5704 1. until, unto, as far as (1238×)H8141 1. year, unit of time (880×)H6258 1. and now (421×)G2250 1. day (388×)H5750 1. again, more, further (288×)H5769 1. forever, to eternity (280×)H6256 1. time, period (264×)H2320 1. month, calendar period (260×)H0310a 2. after (temporal) (258×)H3915 1. night, period of darkness (234×)H1242 1. morning (214×)H5750 2. still, yet (continuative) (166×)G5119 1. then (160×)G3568 1. now (147×)G2193 1. until (143×)G3825 1. (141×)G3752 1. (123×)H6153 1. evening, time of day (123×)H0227a 1. then (122×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† יַלְדוּת n.f. childhood, youth;—abs. יַלְדוּת Ec 11:10 (‖ שַׁחֲרוּת); יַלְדוּתֶ֑ךָ 11:9; = young men טַל יַלְדֻתֶ֑ךָ ψ 110:3.