H4705 H4705
a small thing, a little; smallness in size, number, or duration
A noun expressing littleness or insignificance — whether of a city's size, a group's number, or a period's duration. Lot begged to flee to Zoar, calling it 'a small thing' (Gen 19:20), and God later destroyed Judah's army 'with a few men' from Aram (2 Chr 24:24). Job's friend Bildad promised that though his 'beginning was small,' his latter end would greatly increase (Job 8:7). Isaiah mourns that God's people possessed the holy place 'for only a little while' (Isa 63:18). Spanish distinguishes 'pequeña' (small in size) from 'Por-poco-tiempo' (for a little while), revealing the word's flexibility across spatial and temporal domains.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Smallness in size or number — a little thing, a few. Lot describes Zoar as 'a small thing' (Gen 19:20), meaning a tiny, insignificant town. In 2 Chr 24:24, the Aramean force was 'a few men' yet defeated Judah's large army by divine judgment. Job 8:7 contrasts a 'small' beginning with a greatly increased end. Spanish 'pequeña' and French 'un-petit' consistently render this quantitative smallness. 5×
AR["بِعَدَدٍ-قَلِيلٍ", "صَغيرَةً", "صَغِيرَةً", "صَغِيرَةٌ", "لِ-فَتْرَةٍ"]·ben["-অল্পতায়", "অল্পকালের-জন্য", "ক্ষুদ্র", "ছোট"]·DE["[במצער]", "[למצער]", "[מצער]", "ist-klein", "sie-klein"]·EN["For-a-little-while", "a-little", "small", "with-few"]·FR["[במצער]", "[למצער]", "un-petit", "מצער"]·heb["ב-מצער", "ל-מצער", "מצער"]·HI["छोति", "थोड़ी", "थोड़े-समय-के-लिए", "थोड़े-से"]·ID["Untuk-waktu-singkat", "dengan-sedikit", "kecil"]·IT["[במצער]", "[למצער]", "piccolo", "un-poco"]·jav["Kangge-sekedap", "alit", "mawi-cacah-sakedhik"]·KO["에-작은", "에-잘시", "작다", "작으나"]·PT["Por-pouco", "com-poucos", "pequena", "pequeno"]·RU["малый", "малым", "на-короткое-время", "с-малым"]·ES["Por-poco-tiempo", "con-pocos", "pequeña", "pequeño,"]·SW["kwa-muda-mfupi", "kwa-wachache", "mdogo", "ndogo"]·TR["Kisa-suure-icin", "azınlıkla", "küçük"]·urd["تھوڑے-عرصے-کے-لیے", "چھوٹا", "چھوٹی", "چھوٹی-تعداد-میں"]
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
† I. מִצְעָר n.m. a small thing (‖ מִזְעָר);— 1. abs. מ׳ a small thing, of city Gn 19:20(×2) (J); of Job’s fortunes, רֵאשִׁיתְךָ מ׳ Jb 8:7 (opp. יִשְׂגֶּה מְאֹד); cstr. מִצְעַר אֲנָשִׁים 2 Ch 24:24 a few men; 2. of time לַמּ׳ Is 63:18 for the [a] little while.—ψ 42:7 v. ii. מִצְעָר³" dir="rtl" >מ׳.