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דַּלָּה

𐤃𐤋𐤄

dallâh

H1803 noun

SILEX Entry

Root דלה to draw up, to hang down, to lower, to dangle

Definition

A strand or something that hangs loosely, such as a thread or hair; by figurative extension, a person or state characterized by weakness, poverty, or pining (languishing) sickness. Used concretely for a hanging thread or hair and metaphorically for extreme poverty, lifelessness, or frailty.

Semantic Range

something hanging down, a dangling thread or hair, lock of hair, person in poverty, impoverished condition, weak/languishing person, pining sickness

Root / Etymology

From the root דלה, which originally means 'to draw up, lift, hang down.' The form דַּלָּה represents a feminine noun formation from the root, with an original sense of something dangling or being let down. This concrete image gives rise to abstract senses (weak, impoverished, sickly) by extension.

Historical & Contextual Notes

In early Israelite usage, דַּלָּה refers both to a literal object—such as a thread or a lock of hair that hangs down—and metaphorically to the condition of weakness, poverty, or languishing. The figurative sense appears especially in late biblical Hebrew. The primary semantic shift is from 'something hanging down' to 'one who is let down in status or vitality,' hence the indication of the poor, sickly, or faint. English translations often reduce the nuances to either 'hair' or 'poor,' which can obscure the original metaphor of something weakly hanging or dependent. Related words from the same root, such as דלה (dalâh, 'to draw up, to lift out') and דַּל (dal, 'poor, weak'), show the same underlying metaphor of something either being lowered or in a state of need. In post-biblical Hebrew, the sense of physical poverty or frailty persists, but the concrete imagery becomes less apparent. The figurative use for 'indigent' or 'pining sickness' underscores a status of dependency and weakness rather than specific material poverty.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from דָּלָה; properly, something dangling, i.e. a loose thread or hair; figuratively, indigent; hair, pining sickness, poor(-est sort).

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

דלה (d-l-h) — to draw up, to hang down, to lower, to dangle

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H1802 דָּלָה he drew up
H1805 דְּלִי from his two drawing-buckets
H1806 דְּלָיָה Yah Has Drawn Up
H1808 דָּלִיָּה his hanging branches
H1817 דֶּלֶת hanging door-panel

Word Forms

6 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H1803-05 וּ/מִ/דַּלּ֨וֹת umidalot HC/R/Ncfpc and some of the poor and from dangling strands of 2
H1803-04 וּ/מִ/דַּלַּ֣ת umidalat HC/R/Ncfsc and of the poorest and from a dangling-strand of 2
H1803-03 מִ/דַּלָּ֣ה midalah HR/Ncfsa from the loom from a dangling strand 1
H1803-02 דַּלּ֨וֹת dalot HAafpa poor dangling ones 1
H1803-06 וְ/דַלַּ֥ת vedalat HC/Ncfsc and the flowing (lock) dangling strand of 1
H1803-01 דַּלַּ֥ת dalat HNcfsc poorest dangling strand of 1

Occurrences in Scripture

8 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H1803-02 Genesis 41:19 דַּלּ֨וֹת dalot HAafpa poor dangling ones
H1803-01 2 Kings 24:14 דַּלַּ֥ת dalat HNcfsc poorest dangling strand of
H1803-04 2 Kings 25:12 וּ/מִ/דַּלַּ֣ת umidalat HC/R/Ncfsc some of the poorest and from a dangling-strand of
H1803-03 Isaiah 38:12 מִ/דַּלָּ֣ה midalah HR/Ncfsa from the loom from a dangling strand
H1803-04 Jeremiah 40:7 וּ/מִ/דַּלַּ֣ת umidalat HC/R/Ncfsc and of the poorest and from a dangling-strand of
H1803-05 Jeremiah 52:15 וּ/מִ/דַּלּ֨וֹת umidalot HC/R/Ncfpc and some of the poor and from dangling strands of
H1803-05 Jeremiah 52:16 וּ/מִ/דַּלּ֣וֹת umidalot HC/R/Ncfpc but of the poor and from dangling strands of
H1803-06 Song of Songs 7:6 וְ/דַלַּ֥ת vedalat HC/Ncfsc and the flowing (lock) dangling strand of
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