לָ֤/מָּה
𐤋/𐤌𐤄
lamah
why
or מַה; or מָ; or מַ; also מֶה; a primitive particle; properly, interrogative what? (including how? why? when?); but also exclamation, what! (including how!), or indefinitely what (including whatever, and even relatively, that which); often used with prefixes in various adverbial or conjunctive senses; how (long, oft, (-soever)), (no-) thing, what (end, good, purpose, thing), whereby(-fore, -in, -to, -with), (for) why.
Isaiah 55:2 · Word #1
Lexicon H4100
| Lemma | מָה |
| Lemma (Paleo) | 𐤌𐤄 |
| Transliteration | mâh |
| Strong's | H4100 |
| In-context | why |
Morphology HR/Ti
All morphology codes
| Part of Speech | T — Particle — Function word |
| Subtype | i — Interrogative — Interrogative |
SIBI-P1 H4100-06
for-what?
| Morphological Notes | Interrogative particle (מה) with prefixed preposition ל; invariant form; used adverbially to introduce questions of cause or purpose. |
| Rendering Rationale | The form לָמָה combines the preposition ל ("for/to") with the interrogative particle מָה ("what"). Rendering it as "for-what?" preserves both the core interrogative sense of the root מה and the prefixed prepositional force, reflecting its function as a question of purpose or reason ("why?"). As an interrogative particle, it carries no gender or number distinctions. |
View full lexicon entry for H4100 →
AI-generated (openai/gpt-5.2-chat-latest)
Words from Root מה (interrogation, inquiry, whatness, indefiniteness)
| SILEX Code | Transliteration | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
H4100-01 |
bamah | with what? |
H3964-01 |
bamah | with what? |
H1117-01 |
bamah | with what? |
Word Usage (750 occurrences of H4100)
| Location | Form | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Genesis 2:19 | מַה | mah | what |
| Genesis 3:13 | מַה | mah | What |
| Genesis 4:6 | לָ֚/מָּה | lamah | Why |