H8127 H8127
Tooth or teeth; ivory; a jagged crag or rocky peak; also a fork (for meat). From the physical image of a sharp, protruding point.
Shen begins in the mouth and radiates outward. At its core it means 'tooth' — the biting, gnashing, grinding part of the human or animal body — and this concrete anatomical sense dominates its 55 occurrences. The lex talionis enshrines it in legal formula: 'tooth for tooth' (shen tachat shen, Exod 21:24; Lev 24:20; Deut 19:21). But Hebrew saw the tooth's shape everywhere. Elephant tusks yielded shen as the word for 'ivory,' the luxury material of Solomon's throne (1 Kgs 10:18) and the decadent 'houses of ivory' denounced by Amos (3:15). Jagged rock formations became shen too — the twin crags flanking the Michmash pass in 1 Samuel 14:4-5 are literally 'teeth' of stone. Spanish captures the material extension beautifully: diente for the body part, marfil (from Arabic) for ivory, while French reserves dent for anatomy and ivoire for the precious material. German Zahn stays closer to the Hebrew, covering both tooth and tusk. A single curious occurrence in 1 Samuel 2:13 gives us the three-pronged fork — another pointed, tooth-like implement.
Senses
1. tooth, teeth (body part) — A tooth or teeth as a body part — the dominant sense at 40 occurrences, covering human and animal dentition in literal, legal, and figurative contexts. The lex talionis repeats shen tachat shen ('tooth for tooth') across three legal codes (Exod 21:24, Lev 24:20, Deut 19:21), and Exodus 21:27 applies it practically: if a master knocks out a slave's tooth, the slave goes free. Figurative uses are vivid and varied: gnashing teeth in rage (Lam 2:16, Job 16:9, Ps 35:16), teeth set on edge by sour grapes in the proverb of inherited guilt (Jer 31:29-30, Ezek 18:2), teeth white with milk as a blessing on Judah (Gen 49:12), and teeth like a flock of shorn ewes in the Song of Songs (4:2, 6:6). Spanish diente, French dent, and German Zahn all straightforwardly select anatomical vocabulary throughout this cluster. The breadth of figurative elaboration — legal, emotional, proverbial, erotic — testifies to the tooth's centrality in Hebrew bodily imagination. 40×
AR["أَسنانَهُ","أَسنانَهُم","أَسنانُهُم","أَسْنانَهُ","أَسْنانُها","أَسْنانُهُ","أَسْنَانِهِ","بِأَسْنانِهِم","سِنٌّ","سِنٍّ","سِنَّ","سِنّاً","وَأَسْنانُ","وَأَسْنَانُ"]·ben["আর-দাঁত","আর-দাঁতগুলি","এবং-দাঁতগুলি","তাদের-দাঁত","তার-দাঁত","তার-দাঁতগুলির","তার-দাঁতের","দাঁত","দাঁত;","দাঁতের"]·DE["Zahn","[ושני]","ihr-teeth","sein-teeth","tooth","tooth-von","und-Zahn","und-zweiter"]·EN["a-tooth","and-teeth-of","and-the-teeth-of","his-teeth","its-teeth","their-teeth","tooth","tooth-of"]·FR["[ושני]","dent","dent-de","et-dent","et-deuxième","son-dent-lui"]·heb["ו-שיני","שיני-הם","שיני-ו","שיני-מו","שיניו","שינימו","שן"]·HI["अपने-दाँत","उनके-दाँत","उसके-दाँतों-के","और-दाँत","दाँत-अपने","दाँत-उनके","दाँत-उसके","दाँतों-उसके","दांत"]·ID["Gigi","dan-gigi","dan-gigi-gigi","gigi","gigi-giginya","gigi-nya","giginya"]·IT["[ושני]","dente","dente-suo","e-dente","tooth","tooth-di"]·jav["kula","lan-untu","mirengaken","untu","untu,","untu-nipun","untu-tiyang-punika","untu-untunipun","untu;","untúnipun","waja","wajanipun"]·KO["그-의-이들-을","그-이빨들-을","그-이빨을","그것-의-이들은","그들-의-이-들-은","그들-의-이-들-을","그리고-이-","그리고-이들이","그리고-이빨이","그의-이들이","그의-이빨-은","그의-이빨들","이","이를","이와"]·PT["Dente","dente","dente-de","dentes-seus","e-dentes-de","e-dentes-de-","seus-dentes"]·RU["а-зубы","а-зубы-","зуб","зубами-своими","зубов-его","зубы-его","зубы-их","и-зубы"]·ES["Diente","diente","diente-de","dientes-de-él","sus-dientes","y-dientes-de"]·SW["jino","meno-yake","meno-yao","na-meno-ya"]·TR["diş","dişin","dişini","dişleri","dişlerini","dişlerinin","dişlerinin-","oğulların","ve-dişleri"]·urd["اور-دانت","اُس-کے-دانت","اُس-کے-دانتوں","اُس-کے-دانتوں-کے","اپنے-دانت","دانت","دانت-اُس-کے","دانت-اُن-کے","دانت-کے"]
Gen 49:12, Exod 21:24, Exod 21:24, Exod 21:27, Exod 21:27, Exod 21:27, Lev 24:20, Lev 24:20, Num 11:33, Deut 19:21, Deut 19:21, Deut 32:24 (+28 more)
2. ivory (elephant tooth) — Ivory as a luxury material derived from elephant tusks — 10 occurrences concentrated in royal and prophetic literature. Solomon's great throne was overlaid with shen (1 Kgs 10:18; 2 Chr 9:17), Ahab built a 'house of ivory' (1 Kgs 22:39), and the palaces of Psalm 45:8 are fragrant with myrrh from 'ivory palaces.' Amos 3:15 and 6:4 denounce ivory as a symbol of exploitative wealth, and Ezekiel 27:6, 15 lists it among Tyre's luxury imports. Song of Songs 5:14 compares the beloved's body to ivory work. Spanish marfil (borrowed from Arabic 'elephant tooth') and French ivoire both use dedicated luxury-material vocabulary entirely distinct from diente/dent, confirming a lexicalized sense shift. The metonymic path from tooth to tusk to material is natural and paralleled in many languages. 10×
AR["-العَاجِ","العاجِ","شِين","عاجٍ","عَاجًا","عَاجٍ"]·ben["-হাতির-দাঁতের","হাতিদাঁতের","হাতির-দাঁতের"]·DE["Zahn","[שן]","der-ivory","ivory"]·EN["ivory","the-ivory"]·FR["[שן]","d'ivoire,","d'ivoire;","dent","ivory","le-ivory"]·heb["ה-שׁן","ה-שן","שֵׁן","שׁן","שן"]·HI["हाथी-दाँत-का","हाथीदाँत-का","हाथीदाँत-की","हाथीदाँत-के","हाथीदांत-का","हाथीदांत-के"]·ID["-gading","gading","gading,","mengkilat"]·IT["[שן]","avorio","dente","il-avorio","il-dente"]·jav["gadhing","gading","lan-mlèsèd"]·KO["그-상아","그-상아-의","상아","상아-의","상아로","상아의"]·PT["marfim","o-marfim"]·RU["из-слоновой-кости","слоновой-кости"]·ES["el-marfil","marfil"]·SW["ndovu","pembe","pembe-za-ndovu","wa-pembe-za-ndovu","ya-ndovu"]·TR["fil-dişi","fildeşi","fildeşinden","fildeşişinin","fildisinin","fildişi","fildişinin","fildiși"]·urd["-ہاتھی-دانت-کے","ہاتھی-دانت","ہاتھی-دانت-کا","ہاتھی-دانت-کی","ہاتھی-دانت-کے"]
3. crag, rocky outcrop — A crag, rocky peak, or cliff-tooth — 4 occurrences, all describing jagged rock formations. The most vivid is the Michmash pass narrative in 1 Samuel 14:4-5, where Jonathan and his armor-bearer cross between two shen-like crags named Bozez and Seneh, 'one on the north in front of Michmash, and the other on the south in front of Geba.' Job 39:28 places the eagle on the shen of a cliff. The metaphorical transfer from tooth to crag is spatial: a sharp, protruding point of rock resembles a fang jutting from a jawbone. Spanish diente de ('tooth of') preserves the metaphor transparently, while French dent maintains it as well. This geological sense appears nowhere outside these wilderness and mountain contexts, suggesting a specialized but real extension of the body-part image. 4×
AR["الـ-سِّنُّ","سِنُّ-","سِنِّ-","وَ-سِنُّ-"]·ben["-সেই-দাঁত","আর-দাঁত-","দাঁত-","শৃঙ্গ-"]·DE["Zahn","der-tooth","tooth-von-","und-tooth-von-"]·EN["and-tooth-of-","the-crag-of-","the-tooth","tooth-of-"]·FR["dent","et-tooth-de-","le-tooth","tooth-de-"]·heb["ה-שן","ו-שן","שן"]·HI["और-दाँत","चोटी","दाँत"]·ID["Puncak","dan-puncak-","puncak-"]·IT["dente","dente-di-","e-dente-di-","il-dente"]·jav["ing-untu","lan-untu-","pucuk-ipun","untu-"]·KO["그-이빨","그리고-이빨-","이를","이빨-"]·PT["O-dente","dente-de-","e-dente-de-","pico-de-"]·RU["зуб","зуб-","зубце-","и-зуб-"]·ES["El-diente","diente-de-","y-diente-de-"]·SW["jino-la","mwamba","na-mwamba"]·TR["Diş","diş-","dişi-","ve-diş-"]·urd["اور-دانت","دانت","دندانے"]
4. sense 4 — A fork or pronged implement — a single occurrence in 1 Samuel 2:13, where the priests' servants would come with a three-pronged mazleg ('fork') while the meat was boiling. The shen here refers to the prong or tine of the fork, with 'three teeth' (shelosh hashinayim) describing the implement's shape. Spanish los dientes ('the teeth') and French le teeth preserve the anatomical metaphor applied to the utensil. The semantic logic is the same as in sense 3: a sharp, pointed protrusion is called a 'tooth' regardless of whether it belongs to a mouth, a cliff, or a kitchen implement. This hapax usage reveals the underlying image schema — shen as any sharp projecting point — that unifies all four senses. 1×
AR["الـ-أَسْنَانِ"]·ben["দাঁতের"]·DE["der-teeth"]·EN["the-teeth"]·FR["le-teeth"]·heb["ה-שיניים"]·HI["दाँतों-वाला"]·ID["mata"]·IT["il-denti"]·jav["untu"]·KO["그-갈퀴들"]·PT["os-dentes"]·RU["зубьев"]·ES["los-dientes"]·SW["zenye-meno-mawili"]·TR["-dişli"]·urd["دانتوں-والا"]
Related Senses
H5921a 1. upon, on, over (spatial) (5443×)H0413 1. directional: to, toward (5366×)H1121a 1. son, male offspring, descendant (4914×)H3808 1. simple negation (not) (4839×)H4428 1. king, human ruler (2518×)G1722 1. locative: in, within (2442×)H1004b 1. house, dwelling, building (2015×)H6440 1. before, in front of (spatial) (1870×)G3756 1. not (negation particle) (1635×)H3027 1. physical hand (body part) (1596×)H7200 1. Qal: to see, perceive (1257×)H1697 1. word, speech, utterance (1235×)H4480a 1. source or separation (1198×)H5892b 1. city, town (1093×)G4771 2. you (singular address) (1077×)G1519 1. direction: into, to, toward (1061×)H3427 1. Qal: to dwell, inhabit (937×)H8085 1. Qal: hear, perceive aurally (921×)G1537 1. from, out of (source/origin) (886×)H8034 1. Name (designation / identifier) (856×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† I. שֵׁן n.f. 1 S 2:13 (yet m. 1 S 14:5 cf. Dr) tooth, ivory;—שׁ׳ abs. Ex 21:24 +, cstr. v 27 +, שֶׁן־ Dt 32:24; sf. שִׁנּוֹ Ex 21:27; du. שִׁנַּיִם Pr 10:26, cstr. שִׁנֵּי Je 31:29 +; sf. שִׁנֵּיהֶם ψ 124:6, שִׁנֵּימוֹ 58:7, etc.;— 1. tooth: a. of man, Ex 21:27(×3) (E), Nu 11:33 (J), Gn 49:12 (poem in J), Am 4:6; Ct 4:2; 6:6, שׁ׳ רֹעָה Pr 25:19, v. רֹעַ" dir="rtl" >II. רעע 2; of lex talionis,…