רָטֹב
𐤓𐤈𐤁
râṭôb
H7373 adjective
SILEX Entry
Definition
Fresh, moist, especially in reference to plant life; describes something possessing life-giving moisture or sap, often associated with verdant, flourishing, or newly grown vegetation.
Semantic Range
moist, fresh (of plants), green (verdant, sappy), retaining moisture or sap (as opposed to dried), full of sap
Root / Etymology
From the root רָטַב (rṭb), meaning 'to be moist, wet.' רָטֹב is an adjectival form, directly reflecting the state generated by the root action — that of being moist, damp, or fresh (often as in fresh, living, or sappy plant matter).
Historical & Contextual Notes
רָטֹב appears infrequently in the Hebrew Bible and is associated primarily with vegetation that retains moisture or sap, thus indicating thriving or unwithering condition. It stands in contrast to יָבֵשׁ (yāvēsh, 'dry, withered'), highlighting the freshness and non-desiccated state of a plant. The term does not have extensive semantic development but conveys a quality crucial in an agricultural society: the difference between life-sustaining, green growth and arid lifelessness. In later rabbinic and Medieval Jewish Hebrew, רָטֹב bears a general sense of 'moist' in broader contexts (not limited to botany). English translations sometimes render רָטֹב as 'green' or 'moist,' but 'green' can obscure the core nuance of moisture or sappiness — important given the region's climate and the high value placed on growth and freshness in the land. The term is rarely used outside of poetry or descriptive prose and maintains a concrete, physical sense without theological or symbolic development in biblical contexts.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from רָטַב; moist (with sap); green.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
רטב (r-ṭ-b) — to be moist, to be wet, to be fresh (especially of plant life)
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H7372 | רָטַב | they become wet |
Word Forms
1 distinct form
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H7373-01 |
רָטֹ֣ב | ratov | HAamsa |
moist | fresh with sap | fresh with sap | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
1 occurrence
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H7373-01 |
Job 8:16 | רָטֹ֣ב | ratov | HAamsa |
moist | fresh with sap | fresh with sap |