שִׂפְתֵי/הֶ֥ם

𐤔𐤐𐤕𐤉/𐤄𐤌

sifeteyhem

their lips

or (in dual and plural) שֶׂפֶת; probably from סָפָה or שָׁפָה through the idea of termination (compare סוֹף); the lip (as a natural boundary); by implication, language; by analogy, a margin (of a vessel, water, cloth, etc.); band, bank, binding, border, brim, brink, edge, language, lip, prating, (sea-)shore, side, speech, talk, (vain) words.

H8193

Proverbs 24:2 · Word #6

Lexicon H8193

Lemmaשָׂפָה
Lemma (Paleo)𐤔𐤐𐤄
Transliterationsâphâh
Strong'sH8193
In-contexttheir lips

Morphology HNcfdc/Sp3mp All morphology codes

Part of Speech N — Noun — A person, place, thing, or idea
Subtype c — Common — Common noun
Gender f — Feminine — Feminine
Number d — Dual — Dual (exactly two)
State c — Construct — The noun is bound to the following word

SIBI-P1 H8193-26

their boundary-lips

Rootשפה (š-p-h)
Core Meaningsedge, border, lip, boundary, speech, language
Semantic RangeLip, lips, speech, language, edge, border, brim, bank, shore, margin, side.
Conceptual Significanceשָׂפָה links the physical lips with the concept of language and boundaries, highlighting speech as the outward edge of the inner person. In biblical theology, it can signify unity or division among peoples (as in shared or confused language) and underscores the moral weight of words spoken at the ‘boundary’ of the mouth.
Morphological NotesFeminine dual noun in construct (שִׂפְתֵי) from שָׂפָה, with 3rd person masculine plural pronominal suffix הֶם (“their”). The dual form reflects the natural pair of lips.
Rendering RationaleThe noun שָׂפָה fundamentally denotes an edge or boundary, extended metaphorically to the lips as the boundary of the mouth and to speech or language. The form שִׂפְתֵי is feminine dual in construct, joined with the 3rd person masculine plural suffix הֶם (“their”), hence “their boundary-lips,” preserving both the root sense of boundary and the plural possessive.

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

Words from Root שפה (edge, border, lip, boundary, speech, language)

SILEX Code Transliteration SIBI-P1
H8193-05 bisefatay with my two lips
H8193-07 bisefateykha in your pair of lips
H830-01 haashepot the scrap-heap
H8193-08 lisefat to the lip-boundary of
H8193-13 sefat lip-of
H8205-01 shefayim bald heights
H8195-01 shefi Bald-One
H8193-29 sifetoteykhem your boundary-lips
H8194-01 ushefot and strained-curds of
H8192-01 veshupu and they stuck out
H8193-36 vesifetot and lips of
H8193-37 visefatayim with two lips

Word Usage (177 occurrences of H8193)

Location Form Transliteration Meaning
Genesis 11:1 שָׂפָ֣ה safah language
Genesis 11:6 וְ/שָׂפָ֤ה vesafah and language
Genesis 11:7 שְׂפָתָ֑/ם sefatam their language