שָׁמַר
𐤔𐤌𐤓
shâmar
H8104 verb
SILEX Entry
Definition
To keep, guard, watch over, or observe; to exercise attentive care or protective oversight; to be heedful or conscientious concerning something. In different contexts, שָׁמַר can refer to guarding property or people, observing commandments or rules, paying careful attention, or maintaining a condition or state. The term implies vigilance and responsibility, encompassing both practical guardianship and conscientious observance.
Semantic Range
to keep (as in to obey commandments or obligations), to guard (as in protect from danger), to observe (as in observe festivals or ritual laws), to watch over (persons, property, or duties), to be careful or diligent with something, to heed or pay attention, to preserve (from harm), to restrain or hold in custody
Root / Etymology
Root: שׁ־מ־ר (שמר). The root fundamentally carries the sense of guarding, protecting, or keeping. The verb שָׁמַר develops from this root and predominantly means 'to guard' or 'to keep,' both in the sense of protecting from danger and of carefully maintaining or observing something.
Historical & Contextual Notes
In the Hebrew Bible, שָׁמַר is used both in practical, physical senses (e.g. to guard a city, Genesis 2:15; to watch over a flock, Genesis 30:31) and in more abstract senses (e.g. to observe commandments, Exodus 20:6; Deuteronomy 6:17). The word is frequently found in legal and covenantal contexts to express fidelity and conscientious observance (e.g. 'to keep My commandments'). Translations such as 'keep,' 'guard,' or 'observe' often reflect the range of applications from physical watchfulness to faithful observance of stipulations. In post-exilic usage, the term can bear more weight in connection with covenant loyalty and religious observance, compared to earlier purely practical usages. The word may overlap with related roots such as נצר (to guard or watch), but שָׁמַר often emphasizes attentive or deliberate oversight and is commonly used in ritual, legal, and moral exhortations.
Translation Consistency
“Keep” is the most natural, flexible English verb that covers the full semantic range of שָׁמַר — to keep/observe commandments, to keep watch, to keep/guard or preserve something, and to be careful or heedful. It handles both ritual/legal senses (keep the law, keep the Sabbath) and protective senses (keep watch, keep safe) better than a narrower choice like “guard,” so it supports consistent, idiomatic renderings across all forms.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
a primitive root; properly, to hedge about (as with thorns), i.e. guard; generally, to protect, attend to, etc.; beward, be circumspect, take heed (to self), keep(-er, self), mark, look narrowly, observe, preserve, regard, reserve, save (self), sure, (that lay) wait (for), watch(-man).
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been recorded for this word yet.
Root Family
שמר (Yishemeray) — to keep, guard, watch
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H3461 | יִשְׁמְרַי | He-preserves |
| H7763 | שׁוֹמֵר | the guarding one |
| H8068 | שָׁמִיר | like a hard-thorn |
| H8105 | שֶׁמֶר | his lees |
| H8106 | שֶׁמֶר | Shemer |
Word Forms
102 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H8104-43 |
שֹׁמֵ֤ר | shomer | HVqrmsa |
keeper | the guarding one | the one who keeps | 45 |
H8104-18 |
לִ/שְׁמוֹר֙ | lishemor | HR/Vqc |
to keep | to guard | to keep | 40 |
H8104-63 |
וּ/שְׁמַרְתֶּ֛ם | ushemaretem | HC/Vqq2mp |
and you shall keep | and you guarded | and you shall keep | 25 |
H8104-55 |
תִּשְׁמ֗וֹר | tishemor | HVqi2ms |
you keep | you guard | you will keep | 21 |
H8104-46 |
שֹׁמְרֵ֥י | shomerey | HVqrmpc |
keepers | guarding-ones of | keeping-ones of | 19 |
H8104-10 |
הִשָּֽׁמֶר | hishamer | HVNv2ms |
Take heed | Guard yourself | Keep yourself | 18 |
H8104-40 |
שְׁ֠מֹר | shemor | HVqv2ms |
keep | to guard | to keep | 14 |
H8104-85 |
וְ/שָׁמְר֞וּ | veshameru | HC/Vqq3cp |
and they shall keep | and they guarded | and they kept | 14 |
H8104-83 |
וְ/שָׁמַרְתָּ֞ | veshamareta | HC/Vqq2ms |
and you shall keep | and you will guard | and you will keep | 12 |
H8104-100 |
יִשְׁמְר֨וּ | yishemeru | HVqi3mp |
they keep | they guard | they will keep | 12 |
Occurrences in Scripture
469 occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H8104-58 |
Genesis 2:15 | וּ/לְ/שָׁמְרָֽ/הּ | uleshamerah | HC/R/Vqc/Sp3fs |
and to keep it | and to guard her | and to guard her |
H8104-18 |
Genesis 3:24 | לִ/שְׁמֹ֕ר | lishemor | HR/Vqc |
to guard | to guard | to keep |
H8104-07 |
Genesis 4:9 | הֲ/שֹׁמֵ֥ר | hashomer | HTi/Vqrmsa |
keeper | the guarding-one | the guarding-one |
H8104-55 |
Genesis 17:9 | תִשְׁמֹ֑ר | tishemor | HVqi2ms |
you shall keep | you guard | you will keep |
H8104-53 |
Genesis 17:10 | תִּשְׁמְר֗וּ | tishemeru | HVqi2mp |
you shall keep | you (plural, masculine) guard | you (plural, masculine) will keep |
H8104-85 |
Genesis 18:19 | וְ/שָֽׁמְרוּ֙ | veshameru | HC/Vqq3cp |
that they may keep | and they guarded | and they will keep |
H8104-10 |
Genesis 24:6 | הִשָּׁ֣מֶר | hishamer | HVNv2ms |
See to it / Beware | Guard yourself | Keep yourself |
H8104-75 |
Genesis 26:5 | וַ/יִּשְׁמֹר֙ | vayishemor | HC/Vqw3ms |
and kept | and he guarded | and he kept |
H8104-64 |
Genesis 28:15 | וּ/שְׁמַרְתִּ֨י/ךָ֙ | ushemaretikha | HC/Vqq1cs/Sp2ms |
and will keep you | and I will guard you | and I will guard you |
H8104-61 |
Genesis 28:20 | וּ/שְׁמָרַ֨/נִי֙ | ushemarani | HC/Vqq3ms/Sp1cs |
and will keep me | and he guarded me | and will keep me |
H8104-05 |
Genesis 30:31 | אֶשְׁמֹֽר | eshemor | HVqi1cs |
I will keep | I will guard | I will keep |
H8104-10 |
Genesis 31:24 | הִשָּׁ֧מֶר | hishamer | HVNv2ms |
Take heed | Guard yourself | Keep yourself |
H8104-10 |
Genesis 31:29 | הִשָּׁ֧מֶר | hishamer | HVNv2ms |
be careful | Guard yourself | Keep yourself |
H8104-26 |
Genesis 37:11 | שָׁמַ֥ר | shamar | HVqp3ms |
kept | he guarded | he kept |
H8104-84 |
Genesis 41:35 | וְ/שָׁמָֽרוּ | veshamaru | HC/Vqq3cp |
and let them keep | and they guarded | and let them keep |
H8104-10 |
Exodus 10:28 | הִשָּׁ֣מֶר | hishamer | HVNv2ms |
take heed | Guard yourself | Keep yourself |
H8104-63 |
Exodus 12:17 | וּ/שְׁמַרְתֶּם֮ | ushemaretem | HC/Vqq2mp |
and-you-shall-keep | and you guarded | and you shall keep |
H8104-63 |
Exodus 12:17 | וּ/שְׁמַרְתֶּ֞ם | ushemaretem-2 | HC/Vqq2mp |
and-you(pl)-shall-keep | and you guarded | and you shall keep |
H8104-63 |
Exodus 12:24 | וּ/שְׁמַרְתֶּ֖ם | ushemaretem | HC/Vqq2mp |
And you shall observe | and you guarded | and you shall keep |
H8104-63 |
Exodus 12:25 | וּ/שְׁמַרְתֶּ֖ם | ushemaretem | HC/Vqq2mp |
and you shall keep | and you guarded | and you shall keep |
H8104-83 |
Exodus 13:10 | וְ/שָׁמַרְתָּ֛ | veshamareta | HC/Vqq2ms |
and you shall keep | and you will guard | and you will keep |
H8104-83 |
Exodus 15:26 | וְ/שָׁמַרְתָּ֖ | veshamareta | HC/Vqq2ms |
and you keep | and you will guard | and you will keep |
H8104-18 |
Exodus 16:28 | לִ/שְׁמֹ֥ר | lishemor | HR/Vqc |
to keep | to guard | to keep |
H8104-63 |
Exodus 19:5 | וּ/שְׁמַרְתֶּ֖ם | ushemaretem | HC/Vqq2mp |
and you shall keep | and you guarded | and you shall keep |
H8104-12 |
Exodus 19:12 | הִשָּׁמְר֥וּ | hishameru | HVNv2mp |
take heed | Guard yourselves | Guard yourselves |
H8104-59 |
Exodus 20:6 | וּ/לְ/שֹׁמְרֵ֥י | uleshomerey | HC/R/Vqrmpc |
and to the keepers of | and to guardians of | and to keepers of |
H8104-99 |
Exodus 21:29 | יִשְׁמְרֶ֔/נּוּ | yishemerenu | HVqi3ms/Sp3ms |
keep it | he will guard him | he will keep him |
H8104-99 |
Exodus 21:36 | יִשְׁמְרֶ֖/נּוּ | yishemerenu | HVqi3ms/Sp3ms |
guard-him | he will guard him | he has guarded it |
H8104-18 |
Exodus 22:6 | לִ/שְׁמֹ֔ר | lishemor | HR/Vqc |
to keep | to guard | to keep |
H8104-18 |
Exodus 22:9 | לִ/שְׁמֹ֑ר | lishemor | HR/Vqc |
to keep | to guard | to keep |
H8104-49 |
Exodus 23:13 | תִּשָּׁמֵ֑רוּ | tishameru | HVNi2mp |
you shall be careful | you will be guarded | you shall be careful |
H8104-55 |
Exodus 23:15 | תִּשְׁמֹר֒ | tishemor | HVqi2ms |
You shall keep | you guard | you will keep |
H8104-17 |
Exodus 23:20 | לִ/שְׁמָרְ/ךָ֖ | lishemarekha | HR/Vqc/Sp2ms |
to guard you | to guard you | to keep you |
H8104-10 |
Exodus 23:21 | הִשָּׁ֧מֶר | hishamer | HVNv2ms |
Beware | Guard yourself | Keep yourself |
H8104-56 |
Exodus 31:13 | תִּשְׁמֹ֑רוּ | tishemoru | HVqi2mp |
you shall keep | you will guard | you will keep |
H8104-63 |
Exodus 31:14 | וּ/שְׁמַרְתֶּם֙ | ushemaretem | HC/Vqq2mp |
you shall keep | and you guarded | and you shall keep |
H8104-85 |
Exodus 31:16 | וְ/שָׁמְר֥וּ | veshameru | HC/Vqq3cp |
shall keep | and they guarded | and they kept |
H8104-37 |
Exodus 34:11 | שְׁמָ֨ר | shemar | HVqv2ms |
Observe | Guard! | Keep! |
H8104-10 |
Exodus 34:12 | הִשָּׁ֣מֶר | hishamer | HVNv2ms |
take heed | Guard yourself | Keep yourself |
H8104-55 |
Exodus 34:18 | תִּשְׁמֹר֒ | tishemor | HVqi2ms |
you shall keep | you guard | you will keep |
H8104-63 |
Leviticus 8:35 | וּ/שְׁמַרְתֶּ֛ם | ushemaretem | HC/Vqq2mp |
and you shall keep | and you guarded | and you shall keep |
H8104-53 |
Leviticus 18:4 | תִּשְׁמְר֖וּ | tishemeru | HVqi2mp |
you shall keep | you (plural, masculine) guard | you (plural, masculine) will keep |
H8104-63 |
Leviticus 18:5 | וּ/שְׁמַרְתֶּ֤ם | ushemaretem | HC/Vqq2mp |
you shall keep | and you guarded | and you shall keep |
H8104-63 |
Leviticus 18:26 | וּ/שְׁמַרְתֶּ֣ם | ushemaretem | HC/Vqq2mp |
and you shall keep | and you guarded | and you shall keep |
H8104-63 |
Leviticus 18:30 | וּ/שְׁמַרְתֶּ֣ם | ushemaretem | HC/Vqq2mp |
and you shall keep | and you guarded | and you shall keep |
H8104-56 |
Leviticus 19:3 | תִּשְׁמֹ֑רוּ | tishemoru | HVqi2mp |
you shall keep | you will guard | you will keep |
H8104-56 |
Leviticus 19:19 | תִּשְׁמֹרוּ֒ | tishemoru | HVqi2mp |
you shall keep | you will guard | you will keep |
H8104-56 |
Leviticus 19:30 | תִּשְׁמֹ֔רוּ | tishemoru | HVqi2mp |
you shall keep | you will guard | you will keep |
H8104-63 |
Leviticus 19:37 | וּ/שְׁמַרְתֶּ֤ם | ushemaretem | HC/Vqq2mp |
you shall observe | and you guarded | and you shall keep |
H8104-63 |
Leviticus 20:8 | וּ/שְׁמַרְתֶּם֙ | ushemaretem | HC/Vqq2mp |
And you shall keep | and you guarded | and you shall keep |