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נִיר

𐤍𐤉𐤓

nîyr

H5215 noun

SILEX Entry

Root ניר to break up soil, to freshly plow, to prepare ground

Definition

Freshly plowed or prepared ground; land that has been loosened or turned by the plow, typically for the purpose of sowing seed. The term can refer to the act of plowing or the state of soil after it has been plowed, emphasizing readiness for agricultural use.

Semantic Range

freshly plowed field, tilled ground, fallow ground prepared for sowing, the state of land after plowing

Root / Etymology

From the root ניר, meaning 'to break up, freshly plow, turn over soil'. נִיר is a noun form derived from this root, signifying the object or result of the action: land that has been plowed.

Historical & Contextual Notes

נִיר appears rarely in the Hebrew Bible, notably in passages emphasizing agricultural preparation or the potential for fertility and renewal (e.g., 1 Samuel 8:12; Jeremiah 4:3). In these contexts, it contrasts with unproductive or untilled land. The term reflects the agrarian environment of ancient Israel, where preparing the land was a crucial annual task. While English translations often render it as 'fallow ground' or 'plowed field,' the nuance is specifically on ground that is newly worked and in prime condition for planting—not merely uncultivated land but land readied for use. In agricultural metaphors (e.g., prophetic literature), נִיר may symbolize spiritual readiness or the potential for change, but strictly lexically it refers to the physical, cultivated field. The word is distinct from other terms for fields or land such as שָׂדֶה (sadeh, general 'field') or אֲדָמָה (adamah, 'soil, ground').

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

or נִר; from נִיר; properly, plowing, i.e. (concretely) freshly plowed land; fallow ground, plowing, tillage.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

ניר (n-y-r) — to break up soil, freshly plow, prepare ground

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H4500 מָנוֹר like a plow-yoke beam
H5214 נִיר Plow up!
H5369 נֵר Ner
H5374 נֵרִיָּה Yahweh is my lamp

Word Forms

1 distinct form

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H5215-01 נִ֑יר nir HNcmsa fallow ground freshly plowed ground 4

Occurrences in Scripture

4 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H5215-01 Jeremiah 4:3 נִ֑יר nir HNcmsa fallow-ground freshly plowed ground
H5215-01 Hosea 10:12 נִ֑יר nir HNcmsa fallow ground freshly plowed ground
H5215-01 Proverbs 13:23 נִ֣יר nir HNcmsc tillage freshly plowed ground
H5215-01 Proverbs 21:4 נִ֖ר nir HNcmsc lamp freshly plowed ground
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