שֶׁ/הָיָ֥ה

𐤔/𐤄𐤉𐤄

hâyâh

To be, to exist, to happen, to take place; expresses existence, state of being, occurrence, or coming into a particular state. Used for describing the state or process of being, becoming, or coming to pass; also to indicate the occurrence of events or conditions, and, in certain syntactic contexts, serves as a linking or existential verb.

H1961

Ecclesiastes 2:9 · Word #4

Lexicon H1961

Lemmaהָיָה
Lemma (Paleo)𐤄𐤉𐤄
Transliterationhâyâh
Strong'sH1961
DefinitionTo be, to exist, to happen, to take place; expresses existence, state of being, occurrence, or coming into a particular state. Used for describing the state or process of being, becoming, or coming to pass; also to indicate the occurrence of events or conditions, and, in certain syntactic contexts, serves as a linking or existential verb.

Morphology HTr/Vqp3ms All morphology codes

Part of Speech V — Verb — An action or state
Binyan q — Qal — Simple active
Conjugation p — Perfect — Completed action
Person 3 — 3rd person — Third person ("he/she/they")
Gender m — Masculine — Masculine
Number s — Singular — Singular

SIBI-P1 Translation H1961-52

he was

Morphological NotesVerb, Qal stem, perfect (suffix conjugation), 3rd person masculine singular.
Rendering RationaleThe Qal perfect 3rd masculine singular form denotes a completed state or occurrence in the past, expressing simple existence or becoming. "He was" preserves the root sense of being/existence and reflects the masculine singular morphology.

View full lexicon entry for H1961 →

SILEX v2

SIBI-P2 (Context-Aware)

who was

Same as P1No — adjusted for context
RationaleRelative clause: 'who was' fits the context, referring to predecessors. P1's 'he was' misrepresents the clause function here.