חֲמִשִּׁים
𐤇𐤌𐤔𐤉𐤌
chămishshîym
H2572 adjective
SILEX Entry
Definition
A cardinal number designating 'fifty,' used to indicate a total quantity of 50 objects, people, or units. It may function as both an adjective and a substantive, marking an exact sum or an ordinal interval. In legal, cultic, and narrative contexts, it designates age, amounts, groupings, time periods (such as days or years), and dimensions.
Semantic Range
fifty (in counting, census, age, amount, or dimension); group of fifty people, fifty units of measure, fiftieth year, interval of fifty
Root / Etymology
From the root חמשׁ, meaning 'five.' The word חֲמִשִּׁים is formed by the masculine plural ending -ים (-im), literally indicating 'fifties' or 'five tens.' The term is a regular formation for numeric multiples in Hebrew.
Historical & Contextual Notes
חֲמִשִּׁים appears throughout the Hebrew Bible as the standard term for fifty. It is used in a range of contexts: census figures (Numbers 1:23); age requirements (Leviticus 27:3); dimensions of objects or spaces (Exodus 27:18); temporal intervals such as the 'fiftieth year' (Leviticus 25:10, in connection with the Jubilee); and groupings (e.g., 50 men as a military or civic unit in 2 Kings 1:9). The base term חָמֵשׁ (ḥāmēsh, 'five') forms the foundation for all numerals from five to fifty. In later Hebrew and in rabbinic tradition, the use of the term retains this strict numeric value; the usage does not develop metaphorical meanings. English translations reliably convey the quantitative sense with 'fifty,' though some contextual nuance (e.g., the significance of fifty in the Jubilee cycle) may be lost in general translation. Unlike related terms for other tens (e.g., שְׁלֹשִׁים 'thirty,' אַרְבָּעִים 'forty'), חֲמִשִּׁים is not used as a symbolic number but simply as an exact count.
Translation Consistency
This Hebrew lemma is a cardinal numeral meaning the number 50. The overwhelmingly common English rendering in the corpus is “fifty,” which naturally covers adjectival and substantive uses (counts, ages, amounts, groups, dimensions). The rare ordinal form (“fiftieth”) is derivative; for consistency and naturalness across all forms, use the cardinal “fifty.”
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
multiple of חָמֵשׁ; fifty; fifty.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
חמשׁ (ḥ-m-sh) — five, to be five, to take a fifth
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H2568 | חָמֵשׁ | in five |
Word Forms
9 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H2572-05 |
חֲמִשִּׁ֤ים | chamishim | HAcbpa |
fifty | fifty | fifty | 97 |
H2572-09 |
וַֽ/חֲמִשִּׁ֖ים | vachamishim | HC/Acbpa |
and fifty | and fifty | and fifty | 45 |
H2572-06 |
הַ/חֲמִשִּׁים֙ | hachamishim | HTd/Acbpa |
the fifty | the fifty | the fifty | 8 |
H2572-01 |
בַּ/חֲמִשִּׁ֗ים | bachamishim | HR/Acbpa |
at fifty | in fifty | in fifty | 4 |
H2572-08 |
וַ/חֲמִשָּׁ֑י/ו | vachamishayv | HC/Acbpc/Sp3ms |
and his fifty | and his fifty | and his fifty | 3 |
H2572-02 |
חֲמִשָּֽׁי/ו | chamishayv | HAcbpc/Sp3ms |
his fifty | his fifty | his fifty | 2 |
H2572-04 |
חֲמִשֶּׁ֑י/ךָ | chamisheykha | HAcbpc/Sp2ms |
your fifty | your fifty | your fifty | 2 |
H2572-03 |
חֲמִשֵּׁי/הֶ֑ם | chamisheyhem | HAcbpc/Sp3mp |
their fifties | their fifties | their fifties | 1 |
H2572-07 |
לַ/חֲמִשִּׁ֥ים | lachamishim | HR/Acbpa |
fifty | to fifty | to fifty | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
163 occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H2572-05 |
Genesis 6:15 | חֲמִשִּׁ֤ים | chamishim | HAcbpa |
fifty | fifty | fifty |
H2572-05 |
Genesis 7:24 | חֲמִשִּׁ֥ים | chamishim | HAcbpa |
fifty | fifty | fifty |
H2572-05 |
Genesis 8:3 | חֲמִשִּׁ֥ים | chamishim | HAcbpa |
hundred and fifty | fifty | fifty |
H2572-09 |
Genesis 9:28 | וַֽ/חֲמִשִּׁ֖ים | vachamishim | HC/Acbpa |
and fifty | and fifty | and fifty |
H2572-09 |
Genesis 9:29 | וַ/חֲמִשִּׁ֖ים | vachamishim | HC/Acbpa |
and fifty | and fifty | and fifty |
H2572-05 |
Genesis 18:24 | חֲמִשִּׁ֥ים | chamishim | HAcbpa |
fifty | fifty | fifty |
H2572-05 |
Genesis 18:24 | חֲמִשִּׁ֥ים | chamishim-2 | HAcbpa |
fifty | fifty | fifty |
H2572-05 |
Genesis 18:26 | חֲמִשִּׁ֥ים | chamishim | HAcbpa |
fifty | fifty | fifty |
H2572-05 |
Genesis 18:28 | חֲמִשִּׁ֤ים | chamishim | HAcbpa |
fifty | fifty | fifty |
H2572-05 |
Exodus 18:21 | חֲמִשִּׁ֖ים | chamishim | HAcbpa |
fifties | fifty | fifty |