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כַּר

𐤊𐤓

kar

H3733 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

A full-grown male sheep (ram), often denoting a mature, plump member of a flock; by extension, a large pasture or meadow suitable for grazing, or an object characterized by roundness or fullness (such as a saddle pad or cushion). In some military contexts, refers figuratively to a battering-ram, emphasizing the butting motion of a ram. Occasionally used for figures of prominent persons (leaders) in prophetic literature, though this is rare and figurative.

Semantic Range

ram (male sheep), full-grown sheep, battering ram (siege machine), pasture, meadow, grazing land, saddle-pad, cushion, prominent leader (fig.)

Root / Etymology

Root: כרר (k-r-r), meaning 'to round, make round, roll, fatten.' כַּר (kar) derives from this root, carrying the concrete sense of roundness, plumpness or fullness as seen in fully-grown livestock or stuffed objects.

Historical & Contextual Notes

In early Israelite and monarchic contexts, כַּר almost exclusively denotes a mature ram—the male sheep, prized for its strength and size in both agricultural and sacrificial settings. Plural forms may, in poetic or figurative contexts, encompass the flock more generally. The extension to pastures ('meadow suitable for grazing') arises from the ram's association with grassy, abundant land. The rare sense 'battering ram' (Ezek 4:2; 21:22), found in military imagery, draws on the ram's butting action, but is distinct from everyday livestock vocabulary. In reference to camel equipment ('cushion, pad'), כַּר highlights the rounded, padded nature of saddle equipment, particularly in later biblical and related ancient Near Eastern sources. English translations often render כַּר simply as 'ram,' obscuring the broader scope found in poetic and technical passages. Contrast with טלה (ṭaleh, 'lamb'—a young sheep) and איל (ʾayil, 'ram,' but also a generic term for leaders or pillars), which may overlap but are context-dependent. In later periods and post-biblical Hebrew, the term more commonly carries the meaning of a pasture or sheepfold. Notably, standard translations rarely preserve these nuanced distinctions.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from כָּרַר in the sense of plumpness; a ram (as full-grown and fat), including a battering-ram (as butting); hence, a meadow (as for sheep); also a pad or camel's saddle (as puffed out); captain, furniture, lamb, (large) pasture, ram. See also בֵּית כַּר, כָּרִי.

Bantu Hebrew

No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been recorded for this word yet.

Root Family

כָּרַר (kikkâr) — to encircle, to make round, to go round

Root כָּרַר to roll, make round, be plump, fatten
Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H3603 כִּכָּר in a round tract

Word Forms

8 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
H3733-05 כָּרִ֔ים karim HNcmpa lambs full-grown rams full-grown rams 9
H3733-01 בְּ/כַ֥ר bekhar HR/Ncmsc in the saddle in a plump-ram of in the saddle-pad of 1
H3733-02 בְּ/כָרִ֤ים bekharim HR/Ncmpa in lambs in full-grown rams in full-grown rams 1
H3733-03 הַ/כָּרִים֙ hakarim HTd/Ncmpa the-lambs the full-grown rams the full-grown rams 1
H3733-04 כַּ֥ר kar HNcmsa pasture full-grown ram ram 1
H3733-06 כְּ/כָרִ֣ים kekharim HR/Ncmpa like lambs like plump rams like rams 1
H3733-07 כַ֥ר khar HNcmsa lamb plump ram plump ram 1
H3733-08 כָרִ֨ים kharim HNcmpa meadows plump rams meadows 1

Occurrences in Scripture

16 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
H3733-01 Genesis 31:34 בְּ/כַ֥ר bekhar HR/Ncmsc in the saddle in a plump-ram of in the saddle-pad of
H3733-05 Deuteronomy 32:14 כָּרִ֜ים karim HNcmpa lambs full-grown rams rams
H3733-03 1 Samuel 15:9 הַ/כָּרִים֙ hakarim HTd/Ncmpa the-lambs the full-grown rams the full-grown rams
H3733-05 2 Kings 3:4 כָּרִ֔ים karim HNcmpa lambs full-grown rams full-grown rams
H3733-07 Isaiah 16:1 כַ֥ר khar HNcmsa lamb plump ram plump ram
H3733-04 Isaiah 30:23 כַּ֥ר kar HNcmsa pasture full-grown ram ram
H3733-05 Isaiah 34:6 כָּרִים֙ karim HNcmpa of-lambs full-grown rams rams
H3733-06 Jeremiah 51:40 כְּ/כָרִ֣ים kekharim HR/Ncmpa like lambs like plump rams like rams
H3733-05 Ezekiel 4:2 כָּרִ֖ים karim HNcmpa battering rams full-grown rams battering rams
H3733-05 Ezekiel 21:27 כָּרִים֙ karim HNcmpa battering rams full-grown rams battering rams
H3733-05 Ezekiel 21:27 כָּרִים֙ karim-2 HNcmpa battering rams full-grown rams battering rams
H3733-02 Ezekiel 27:21 בְּ/כָרִ֤ים bekharim HR/Ncmpa in lambs in full-grown rams in full-grown rams
H3733-05 Ezekiel 39:18 כָּרִ֤ים karim HNcmpa lambs full-grown rams full-grown rams
H3733-05 Amos 6:4 כָּרִים֙ karim HNcmpa lambs full-grown rams full-grown rams
H3733-05 Psalms 37:20 כָּרִ֑ים karim HNcmpa lambs full-grown rams full-grown rams
H3733-08 Psalms 65:14 כָרִ֨ים kharim HNcmpa meadows plump rams meadows
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