תׇּרְמָה
𐤕𐤓𐤌𐤄
Tremah
H8649 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
Deliberate act of deception, fraud, or treachery; the use of cunning or deceitful strategies to mislead or betray another, especially for personal or illicit gain. The term conveys intentional dishonesty and subterfuge, whether in personal, legal, or social relationships.
Semantic Range
deception, fraud, treachery, deceit (as an act or disposition), trickery, duplicity
Root / Etymology
Root רמה (ר-מ-ה), meaning 'to deceive, to betray, to act treacherously.' The noun תׇּרְמָה is a feminine abstract noun form derived from this root, expressing the concrete result or activity of deceit. Cognate nouns include תַּרְמוּת (tarmût) and תַּרְמִית (tarmît), which also convey the idea of deception or fraud.
Historical & Contextual Notes
In the Hebrew Bible, תׇּרְמָה appears primarily in didactic and wisdom literature (e.g., Job, Proverbs), often as a vice contrasted with righteousness, integrity, or truthfulness. Its use is associated with willful intent to deceive rather than simple error or misunderstanding. Other related forms from the same root (רמה) include רָמָה (ramâ, 'to deceive'), and similar abstract nouns such as תַּרְמוּת and תַּרְמִית, which sometimes overlap in usage but may have slightly different emphases or occur in poetic parallelism. English translations often render these terms as 'deceit,' 'fraud,' or 'treachery,' but nuances of calculated betrayal or premeditated dishonesty may be lost. The term does not refer to innocent mistakes or accidental falsehoods, but rather to intentional acts of misleading or harm. Over time, there is no clear evidence of major semantic shift, but the term remains prominent in wisdom traditions as a negative moral category. In later Hebrew the same root continues to denote deception, showing continuity of meaning.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
and תַּרְמוּת; or תַּרְמִית; from רָמָה; fraud; deceit(-ful), privily.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been recorded for this word yet.
Root Family
רמה (r-m-h) — deceive, betray, act treacherously
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H4820 | מִרְמָה | in treachery |
| H4821 | מִרְמָה | deliberate deceit |
| H7411 | רָמָה | to betray me |
| H7412 | רְמָה | to cast |
| H7423 | רְמִיָּה | deceitful slackness |
Word Forms
6 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H8649-03 |
תַּרְמִ֥ת | taremit | HNcfsc |
of deceit | treachery-of | deceit | 2 |
H8649-05 |
וְ/תַרְמִ֣ית | vetaremit | HC/Ncfsc |
and deceit | deceit of | and deceit | 1 |
H8649-01 |
בַּ/תַּרְמִ֔ית | bataremit | HRd/Ncfsa |
to deceit | in treachery | in treachery | 1 |
H8649-04 |
תַּרְמִיתָֽ/ם | taremitam | HNcfsc/Sp3mp |
is their deceit | their treachery | their treachery | 1 |
H8649-06 |
ו/תרמות | vtrmvt | HC/Ncfsc |
and deceptions | deceit-of | and deceit | 1 |
H8649-02 |
בְּ/תָרְמָ֣ה | betaremah | HR/Np |
secretly | in treachery | in Tremah | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
7 occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H8649-02 |
Judges 9:31 | בְּ/תָרְמָ֣ה | betaremah | HR/Np |
secretly | in treachery | in Tremah |
H8649-01 |
Jeremiah 8:5 | בַּ/תַּרְמִ֔ית | bataremit | HRd/Ncfsa |
to deceit | in treachery | in treachery |
H8649-06 |
Jeremiah 14:14 | ו/תרמות | vtrmvt | HC/Ncfsc |
and deceptions | deceit-of | and deceit |
H8649-05 |
Jeremiah 14:14 | וְ/תַרְמִ֣ית | vetaremit | HC/Ncfsc |
and deceit | deceit of | and deceit |
H8649-03 |
Jeremiah 23:26 | תַּרְמִ֥ת | taremit | HNcfsc |
of deceit | treachery-of | deceit |
H8649-03 |
Zephaniah 3:13 | תַּרְמִ֑ית | taremit | HNcfsa |
of deceit | treachery-of | treachery-of |
H8649-04 |
Psalms 119:118 | תַּרְמִיתָֽ/ם | taremitam | HNcfsc/Sp3mp |
is their deceit | their treachery | their treachery |