נוּק
𐤍𐤅𐤒
nûwq
H5134 verb
SILEX Entry
Definition
To suckle, to give suck, to nurse at the breast (of an infant or young animal); by extension, to nourish an infant or nurture by breastfeeding. The verb primary refers to the action of an infant or young animal drawing nourishment from its mother's breast.
Semantic Range
to suckle (of an infant), to draw milk (of a young animal), to nurse (as in to breastfeed), to nourish by suckling
Root / Etymology
Root is נו"ק (נ-ו-ק). The core meaning of the root is 'to suck, draw nourishment by sucking.' The word derives from the idea of using the mouth to extract liquid nourishment, most frequently milk, from a breast or udder. The root is not widely attested in other Semitic languages and may be onomatopoeic—imitating the sound or action of suckling—with a specific concrete sense in Hebrew. All known usages relate to literal breastfeeding, not metaphorical or extended meanings.
Historical & Contextual Notes
The verb נוּק appears rarely in the Hebrew Bible, most notably in poetic passages (e.g., Job 3:12, Psalm 8:3[2]) describing the natural act of breastfeeding or infant feeding. It is functionally synonymous with the parallel root ינק (yanak), but ינק is more common and widespread across biblical texts. The semantic range of נוּק in biblical usage is quite narrow, confined to the act of suckling; it does not expand metaphorically to ideas such as spiritual nurture or instruction, unlike some related terms. The later translation tradition (e.g., LXX, Vulgate) renders it literally ('to suckle' or 'to be nursed'). English renderings such as "nurse" risk confusion with the modern professional sense; the biblical term strictly indicates breastfeeding. The term applies to both human infants and young animals in context. In the context of Israelite society, nursing and the role of the nursing mother or wet nurse carried important connotations of nurture and maternal care. The root does not imply any theological or ritual significance.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
a primitive root; to suckle; nurse.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
נוק (n-w-q) — to suck, to nurse, to breastfeed
Word Forms
1 distinct form
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5134-01 |
וַ/תְּנִיקֵֽ/הוּ | vateniqehu | HC/Vhw3fs/Sp3ms |
and nursed him | she breastfed him | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
1 total occurrence
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5134-01 |
Exodus 2:9 | וַ/תְּנִיקֵֽ/הוּ | vateniqehu | HC/Vhw3fs/Sp3ms |
and nursed him | she breastfed him |