יִשָּׁ֑ךְ

𐤉𐤔𐤊

yishakhe

it bites

a primitive root; to strike with a sting (as a serpent); figuratively, to oppress with interest on a loan; bite, lend upon usury.

H5391

Proverbs 23:32 · Word #3

Lexicon H5391

Lemmaנָשַׁךְ
Lemma (Paleo)𐤍𐤔𐤊
Transliterationnâshak
Strong'sH5391
In-contextit bites

Morphology HVqi3ms All morphology codes

Part of Speech V — Verb — An action or state
Binyan q — Qal — Simple active
Conjugation i — Imperfect — Incomplete or ongoing action
Person 3 — 3rd person — Third person ("he/she/they")
Gender m — Masculine — Masculine
Number s — Singular — Singular

SIBI-P1

he bites

Rootנשך (n-š-k)
Core Meaningsbiting, stinging, striking with teeth, charging interest, predatory lending
Semantic Rangeto bite physically (as a serpent), to sting, to wound with teeth; figuratively, to exact interest, to lend at usury, to oppress financially
Conceptual SignificanceThe root links physical biting with economic exploitation, portraying usury as a predatory act that wounds like a serpent’s strike. In biblical law and wisdom literature, this imagery underscores the moral seriousness of exploiting the vulnerable through interest.
Morphological NotesVerb, Qal stem, imperfect (yiqtol) 3rd masculine singular. The Qal expresses the simple or active voice; the imperfect may indicate future, habitual, or modal action depending on context.
Rendering RationaleThe Qal imperfect 3rd masculine singular form denotes simple action by a male subject: "he bites" or "he will bite." Rendering it as "he bites" preserves the concrete root sense of striking with a bite, from which the figurative sense of charging interest (a financial "bite") derives.

AI-generated (openai/gpt-5.2-chat-latest)

Words from Root נשך (biting, stinging, striking with teeth, charging interest, predatory lending)

SILEX Code Transliteration SIBI-P1
H5392-01 beneshekhe with biting-interest
H5392-02 neshekhe a biting-interest
H5391-01 tashikhe you shall cause-to-bite (charge interest)

Word Usage (16 occurrences of H5391)

Location Form Transliteration Meaning
Genesis 49:17 הַ/נֹּשֵׁךְ֙ hanoshekhe the one biting
Numbers 21:6 וַֽ/יְנַשְּׁכ֖וּ vayenashekhu and they bit
Numbers 21:8 הַ/נָּשׁ֔וּךְ hanashukhe the bitten