Hebrew

[ hee-broo ]

noun
  1. a member of the Semitic peoples inhabiting ancient Palestine and claiming descent from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; an Israelite.

  2. a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic family, the language of the ancient Hebrews, which, although not in a vernacular use from 100 b.c. to the 20th century, was retained as the scholarly and liturgical language of Jews and is now the national language of Israel. Abbreviation: Heb

adjective
  1. noting or pertaining to the script developed from the Aramaic and early Hebraic alphabets, used since about the 3rd century b.c. for the writing of Hebrew, and later for Yiddish, Ladino, and other languages.

Origin of Hebrew

1
before 1000; Middle English Hebreu, variant (with H-<Latin ) of Ebreu<Old French <Medieval Latin Ebrēus for Latin Hebraeus<Late Greek Hebraîos<Aramaic ʿIbhraij; replacing Old English Ebrēas (plural) <Medieval Latin Ebrēī

Other words from Hebrew

  • non-Hebrew, noun, adjective
  • pre-Hebrew, adjective, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use Hebrew in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for Hebrew

Hebrew

/ (ˈhiːbruː) /


noun
  1. the ancient language of the Hebrews, revived as the official language of Israel. It belongs to the Canaanitic branch of the Semitic subfamily of the Afro-Asiatic family of languages

  2. a member of an ancient Semitic people claiming descent from Abraham; an Israelite

  1. archaic, or offensive a Jew

adjective
  1. of or relating to the Hebrews or their language

  2. archaic, or offensive Jewish

Origin of Hebrew

1
C13: from Old French Ebreu, from Latin Hebraeus, from Greek Hebraios, from Aramaic `ibhray, from Hebrew `ibhrī one from beyond (the river)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for Hebrew

Hebrew

The language of the Hebrews, in which the Old Testament was written. It is the language of the modern state of Israel.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.