H5000 H5000
Comely, beautiful; or fitting, seemly -- used of physical loveliness and of moral appropriateness.
An adjective with two distinct registers of meaning. In the Song of Songs and Jeremiah 6:2 it describes physical beauty -- the beloved is 'dark but lovely' (Song 1:5), her face is comely (2:14), and Jerusalem is likened to a delicate, beautiful woman. In the Psalms and Proverbs it shifts to moral fittingness: praise is 'seemly' for the upright (Ps 33:1; 147:1), while luxury is 'not fitting' for a fool (Prov 19:10). The multilingual evidence mirrors this split cleanly: Song of Songs glosses cluster around 'belle/hermosa/lieblich,' while wisdom texts use 'fitting/apropiado.'
Senses
1. beautiful, lovely, comely — Physically beautiful, lovely, or comely. Applied to the beloved woman in Song of Songs (1:5 'I am dark but lovely'; 6:4 paired with yaphah 'beautiful') and to her features (2:14 appearance; 4:3 mouth). Also used figuratively of Jerusalem as a lovely woman in Jeremiah 6:2. Spanish 'hermosa/bella' and French 'gracieuse/belle' consistently render this aesthetic sense, matching the Hebrew parallelism with yaphah. 5×
AR["الـ-جَمِيلَةُ", "نَاوَه", "نَاوِه", "وِ-نَاوَه"]·ben["-সুন্দরী", "কিন্তু-সুন্দরী", "মনোরম", "সুন্দর।"]·DE["[הנוה]", "lieblich", "und-lieblich"]·EN["and-lovely", "lovely", "the-lovely"]·FR["[הנוה]", "et-belle,", "gracieuse", "gracieuse.", "gracieux."]·heb["ה-נאוה", "ו-נאוה", "נאוה"]·HI["और-सुंदर", "सुंदर", "सुन्दर"]·ID["Yang-indah", "cantik", "jelita", "tetapi-elok"]·IT["[הנוה]", "bella", "e-bella"]·jav["Sanesè", "ayu", "nanging-ayu"]·KO["그리고-아름다운", "사랑스럽다", "아름다운-자와", "아름답네"]·PT["A-bela", "e-formosa", "formosa"]·RU["и-прекрасна", "прекрасен.", "прекрасна", "прекрасную", "прелестна"]·ES["La-hermosa", "bella", "hermosa", "hermoso", "y-hermosa"]·SW["kupendeza", "lakini-mzuri", "mzuri-huyo", "ni-mazuri", "ni-nzuri"]·TR["guzel", "güzel", "hos", "ve-guzel"]·urd["خوبصورت", "لیکن-خوبصورت"]
2. fitting, becoming, seemly — Fitting, becoming, or seemly in a moral or social sense. In the Psalms, praise is declared 'fitting' for the upright (Ps 33:1; 147:1). Proverbs applies it negatively: fine speech does not befit a fool (17:7), luxury is not seemly for a fool (19:10), and honor is not fitting for the foolish (26:1). The multilingual glosses shift to evaluative language here -- eng 'fitting,' spa 'apropiado/conviene' -- clearly distinguishing this from the aesthetic sense. 5×
AR["لَائِقٌ", "يَليقُ", "يَلِيقُ"]·ben["মানানসই", "যোগ্য", "শোভনীয়"]·DE["fitting", "ist-fitting", "lieblich"]·EN["fitting", "is-fitting"]·FR["agréable", "נאוה"]·heb["נאה", "נאוה", "נאווה"]·HI["योग्य-है", "शोभता", "शोभनीय", "शोभा-देता", "शोभित"]·ID["indah", "pantas"]·IT["bella", "bello"]·jav["pantes", "patut"]·KO["어울리지", "합당하다", "합당하도다"]·PT["apropriada", "convém", "e-belo"]·RU["подобает", "прекрасна", "приличествует"]·ES["apropiado", "conviene", "es-apropiado", "es-hermosa", "hermosa"]·SW["fai", "haistahili", "inafaa"]·TR["yakışan", "yakışır"]·urd["زیبا", "زیبا-ہے", "مناسب"]
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×)H3212 1. go, depart, travel (884×)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×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† נָאוֶה adj. comely, seemly;—נ׳ m. Ct 2:14 + 3 times; f. נָאוָה ψ 33:1 + 4 times, נָוָה Je 6:2;— 1. comely, beautiful, of woman Ct 1:5; 6:4 (‖ יָפָה); of face 2:14 (מַרְאֶה); so נָוָה Je 6:2 (fig. of Jerus.; ‖ מְעֻנָּגָה); of mouth Ct 4:3 (‖ שְׂפָתוֹת). 2. seemly, of praise תְּהִלָּה ψ 33:1; 147:1; subj. שְׂפַת־יֶתֶר Pr 17:7 (cf. Ct 4:3); תַּעֲנוּג 19:10; כָּבוֹד 26:1. So also ψ 93:5 Mass (anom. fem.) v. [נָאָה" dir="rtl" >נאה] supr.