H8222 H8222
moustache, upper lip; the facial hair above the mouth, often covered in mourning or shame
The Hebrew noun refers specifically to the moustache or upper lip area. In ancient Israelite culture, covering the moustache was a recognized sign of grief, shame, or ritual impurity — seen when lepers must cover it (Lev 13:45), when prophets predict shame so deep men will cover their lips (Mic 3:7), and in Ezekiel's instructions about mourning customs (Ezek 24:17, 22). Mephibosheth's failure to trim his moustache (2 Sam 19:24) signaled mourning for the king. The multilingual evidence converges: English and Spanish render 'mustache/bigote,' while French 'moustache' and the Syriac cognate confirm the specific anatomical referent.
Senses
1. sense 1 — The moustache or upper lip, the strip of facial hair between nose and mouth. All five occurrences denote this body part, but the cultural significance varies: trimming it signals the end of mourning (2 Sam 19:24), while covering it marks grief, prophetic shame (Mic 3:7), or ritual impurity (Lev 13:45). Cross-lingual glosses uniformly confirm the moustache referent — English 'mustache,' Spanish 'bigote,' French 'moustache.' 5×
AR["شَارِبَهُ", "شَفَتَيْكَ", "شَفَتَيْكُمْ", "شَفَتِهِ", "شِفَاهِهِمْ"]·ben["ওষ্ঠের", "ঠোঁট", "তাদের-ঠোঁট", "তার-গোঁফ"]·DE["[שפם]", "sein-mustache", "upper-lip"]·EN["his-mustache", "lip", "lips", "upper-lip"]·FR["moustache", "son-mustache", "upper-lip"]·heb["שפם", "שפמ-ו"]·HI["अपनी-मूँछ", "अपने-होंठ"]·ID["bibir-atasnya", "bibir-mereka", "kumismu", "kumisnya"]·IT["[שפם]", "suo-mustache", "upper-lip"]·jav["bris-ipun", "janggut", "lathi-nginggil", "tutuk"]·KO["그의-콧수염을", "윗입술", "입술", "입술을"]·PT["lábio", "lábio-superior", "seu-bigode", "seus-lábios"]·RU["и-не-", "уста", "усы", "усы-свои"]·ES["bigote", "labio-superior", "su-bigote"]·SW["mdomo-wa-juu", "midomo", "midomo-yao", "ndevu-zake"]·TR["bıyıklarının", "bıyıklarınızın", "bıyığını", "dudaklarını-o"]·urd["اپنی-مونچھیں", "اپنے-ہونٹ", "ہونٹوں"]
Related Senses
H7200 1. Qal: to see, perceive (1257×)G4771 2. you (singular address) (1077×)H8085 1. Qal: hear, perceive aurally (921×)H0859a 1. you (2nd person masculine singular pronoun) (743×)H0398 1. eat (consume food) (697×)H4191 1. die (Qal: natural/general death) (645×)G3708 1. see, perceive visually (419×)G0191 1. hear, perceive sound (360×)H???? 3. (352×)G3708 2. behold, look (exclamatory) (256×)H7272 1. foot (body part) (236×)H8354 1. drink, consume liquid (209×)H3205 1. Qal active: bear/give birth (female subject) (204×)H3205 2. Qal active: beget/father (male subject) (198×)H2421 1. Qal: live, be alive (177×)H8085 2. Qal: listen, heed, pay attention (172×)H2416a 1. alive, living (state/attribute) (146×)H2416e 1. life, lifespan, lifetime (145×)G2198 1. be alive, have life (133×)H8193 1. lip, lips (body part) (123×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† שָׂפָם n.[m.] moustache (cf. N. Syriac ܣܲܦܡܵܐ rete; on meaning and form v. Thes Ol408 Köii 73);—abs. שׂ׳ Mi 3:7 +, sf. שְׂפָמוֹ 2 S 19:25;—moustache: עָשָׂה שׂ׳ 2 S 19:25 (𝔊 μύσταξ) i.e. trim it; עָטָה עַל־שׂ׳ Mi 3:7 Ez 24:17, 22 Lv 13:45 (P; v. I. עטה 1).