נֵדֶה
𐤍𐤃𐤄
nêdeh
H5078 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
A gift, offering, or present, especially one given voluntarily or freely; in some contexts, a payment or bounty, sometimes specifically associated with rewards given for sexual services. The term primarily denotes a voluntary or lavish bestowal, but may at times bear the nuance of compensation or enticement, especially within negative moral evaluations in prophetic literature.
Semantic Range
gift, voluntary offering, bounty, recompense, lavish present, (contextually) payment for sexual services
Root / Etymology
From the root נדה (n-d-h; to drive away, scatter, or flow freely), though the precise derivation is debated. The substantive נֵדֶה develops a sense of something that is given out freely or lavishly, reflecting the sense of scattering or giving in abundance inherent in the root.
Historical & Contextual Notes
נֵדֶה appears rarely in the Hebrew Bible, notably in Hosea 2:14 (MT 2:12), where it refers to the 'bounties' or 'gifts' that lovers give to an unfaithful woman—a metaphor for Israel receiving gifts from other suitors (nations or deities) instead of YHWH. The term can carry a negative connotation when associated with illicit relationships, but in itself does not inherently mean 'prostitute's fee'—rather, it is the context that colors its meaning. Unlike זָנָה ('to prostitute') or אֶתְנָן (explicitly a 'fee' for prostitution), נֵדֶה focuses on the voluntary or generous nature of a gift, whether morally positive or negative. Later translations and English traditions sometimes render the word with moral opprobrium (e.g., 'hire' for harlotry), but this reflects context rather than core lexical meaning. Its usage is limited and largely metaphorical in biblical Hebrew, without strong ties to later rabbinic terminology or post-biblical Hebrew.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from נָדָה in the sense of freely flinging money; a bounty (for prostitution); gifts.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
נדה (n-d-h) — to drive away, to scatter, to flow freely, to give freely
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H5077 | נָדָה | the ones who expel |
Word Forms
1 distinct form
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5078-01 |
נֵ֑דֶה | nedeh | HNcmsa |
gift | lavish gift | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
1 total occurrence
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5078-01 |
Ezekiel 16:33 | נֵ֑דֶה | nedeh | HNcmsa |
gift | lavish gift |