מָצָא

𐤌𐤑𐤀

mâtsâʼ

H4672 verb

SILEX Entry

Definition

To find, encounter, come across, or attain; to meet with (a person, object, circumstance, or result), either through search, chance, or providence. Also conveys the sense of being discovered, appearing, or being present/available. Depending on context, encompasses both literal discovery or acquisition and figurative senses such as being able, sufficing, or occurrence (an event befalling someone).

Semantic Range

to find, to come upon, to encounter (person/object/situation), to attain/acquire, to meet, to be discovered, to be present/available, to occur (befall/happen), to suffice/be enough, to deliver up, to cause to come to hand, to befall, to obtain

Root / Etymology

From the root מ-צ-א (מצא), which in its basic sense means 'to find' or 'to come upon.' The verb מָצָא is a standard verb (qal, also occurring in other stems) built directly from this root, with its various conjugations reflecting different voices or nuances.

Historical & Contextual Notes

מָצָא is a common verb throughout biblical Hebrew. In narrative contexts, it typically refers to physically coming upon or discovering persons, places, or objects (e.g., Genesis 2:20; 37:15). In legal, prophetic, and wisdom literature, it expands to abstract uses, such as encountering circumstances, attaining favor, or experiencing outcomes (Ruth 2:2; Proverbs 8:35). The difference from related terms such as גִּלָּה (to uncover, reveal) is that מָצָא focuses on the event of coming upon or discovering, not on the removal of a covering. English 'find' overlaps but sometimes lacks the nuance of unexpected encounter or the result of searching. Some idioms employ מָצָא with prepositions (e.g., מָצָא חֵן 'to find favor') to convey evaluation or experience. Over time and in later Hebrew, some of its usages expand especially in abstract senses. In post-exilic contexts, still regularly retains both the literal and figurative nuances, and later translations or Jewish interpretive traditions sometimes render with 'to be able' or 'to suffice' (reflecting the concept of something being 'found' as available or adequate).

Translation Consistency

primary "find" 13 occurrences

“Find” is the most natural, common English verb that covers the full SILEX range of מָצָא: literal discovery/encounter, attaining/receiving, being found or present, and many figurative senses (occurrence, sufficing, coming to hand). It is both frequent in the P2 renderings and flexible enough to work in active, passive, and idiomatic contexts, maximizing consistency across all forms.

Alternatives (37 occurrences):
"found" (35x) "ones being found" (1x) "servant has found" (1x)

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

a primitive root; properly, to come forth to, i.e. appear or exist; transitively, to attain, i.e. find or acquire; figuratively, to occur, meet or be present; [phrase] be able, befall, being, catch, [idiom] certainly, (cause to) come (on, to, to hand), deliver, be enough (cause to) find(-ing, occasion, out), get (hold upon), [idiom] have (here), be here, hit, be left, light (up-) on, meet (with), [idiom] occasion serve, (be) present, ready, speed, suffice, take hold on.

Bantu Hebrew

No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been recorded for this word yet.

Root Family

מְצָא (mâtsâʼ) — to find, to discover, to encounter, to come upon

Root מְצָא to find, to discover, to encounter, to come upon

Word Forms

119 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
H4672-27 מָצָ֔אתִי matsati HVqp1cs I have found I found I found 40
H4672-53 נִמְצָא nimetsa HVNp3ms was found was found was found 27
H4672-23 מָצָ֣א matsa HVqp3ms found he found he found 25
H4672-108 יִמָּ֣צֵא yimatse HVNi3ms is found he will be found he will be found 25
H4672-08 הַ/נִּמְצָ֣א hanimetsa HTd/VNrmsa that was found the one being found the one being found 22
H4672-64 תִּמְצָ֧א timetsa HVqj3fs you find you will find you will find 20
H4672-110 יִמְצָ֥א yimetsa HVqi3ms finds he finds he finds 17
H4672-94 וַ/יִּמְצָא֙ vayimetsa HC/Vqw3ms and found and he found and he found 16
H4672-03 אֶמְצָ֥א emetsa HVqi1cs I find I will find I will find 15
H4672-58 נִמְצְאוּ nimetseu HVNp3cp were found they were found they were found 14

Occurrences in Scripture

457 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
H4672-23 Genesis 2:20 מָצָ֥א matsa HVqp3ms was found he found he found
H4672-49 Genesis 4:14 מֹצְאִ֖/י motsei HVqrmsc/Sp1cs finds me the one finding me the one finding me
H4672-50 Genesis 4:15 מֹצְאֽ/וֹ motseo HVqrmsc/Sp3ms finding him finding him finding him
H4672-23 Genesis 6:8 מָ֥צָא matsa HVqp3ms found he found he found
H4672-29 Genesis 8:9 מָצְאָה֩ matseah HVqp3fs found she found she found
H4672-99 Genesis 11:2 וַֽ/יִּמְצְא֥וּ vayimetseu HC/Vqw3mp that they found and they found and they found
H4672-95 Genesis 16:7 וַֽ/יִּמְצָאָ֞/הּ vayimetsaah HC/Vqw3ms/Sp3fs found her and he found her and he found her
H4672-27 Genesis 18:3 מָצָ֤אתִי matsati HVqp1cs I have found I found I found
H4672-03 Genesis 18:26 אֶמְצָ֥א emetsa HVqi1cs I find I will find I will find
H4672-03 Genesis 18:28 אֶמְצָ֣א emetsa HVqi1cs I find I will find I will find
H4672-109 Genesis 18:29 יִמָּצְא֥וּ/ן yimatseun HVNi3mp/Sn will be found they will be found they will be found
H4672-109 Genesis 18:30 יִמָּצְא֥וּ/ן yimatseun HVNi3mp/Sn are found they will be found they will be found
H4672-03 Genesis 18:30 אֶמְצָ֥א emetsa HVqi1cs I find I will find I will find
H4672-109 Genesis 18:31 יִמָּצְא֥וּ/ן yimatseun HVNi3mp/Sn are found they will be found they will be found
H4672-109 Genesis 18:32 יִמָּצְא֥וּ/ן yimatseun HVNi3mp/Sn are found they will be found they will be found
H4672-21 Genesis 19:11 לִ/מְצֹ֥א limetso HR/Vqc to find to find to find
H4672-11 Genesis 19:15 הַ/נִּמְצָאֹ֔ת hanimetsaot HTd/VNrfpa who are here the ones being found the ones being found
H4672-23 Genesis 19:19 מָצָ֨א matsa HVqp3ms has found he found your servant has found
H4672-94 Genesis 26:12 וַ/יִּמְצָ֛א vayimetsa HC/Vqw3ms and reaped and he found and he found
H4672-99 Genesis 26:19 וַ/יִּ֨מְצְאוּ vayimetseu HC/Vqw3mp and they found and they found and they found
H4672-24 Genesis 26:32 מָצָ֥אנוּ matsanu HVqp1cp we have found we have found we have found
H4672-21 Genesis 27:20 לִ/מְצֹ֖א limetso HR/Vqc to find to find to find
H4672-94 Genesis 30:14 וַ/יִּמְצָ֤א vayimetsa HC/Vqw3ms and found and he found and he found
H4672-27 Genesis 30:27 מָצָ֥אתִי matsati HVqp1cs I have found I found I found
H4672-64 Genesis 31:32 תִּמְצָ֣א timetsa HVqi2ms you find you will find you will find
H4672-23 Genesis 31:33 מָצָ֑א matsa HVqp3ms he found he found he found
H4672-23 Genesis 31:34 מָצָֽא matsa HVqp3ms he found he found he found
H4672-23 Genesis 31:35 מָצָ֖א matsa HVqp3ms found he found he found
H4672-26 Genesis 31:37 מָּצָ֨אתָ֙ matsata HVqp2ms have you found you found you found
H4672-21 Genesis 32:6 לִ/מְצֹא limetso HR/Vqc to find to find to find
H4672-02 Genesis 32:20 בְּ/מֹצַאֲ/כֶ֖ם bemotsaakhem HR/Vqc/Sp2mp when-you-find-him in your finding in your finding
H4672-21 Genesis 33:8 לִ/מְצֹא limetso HR/Vqc To find to find to find
H4672-27 Genesis 33:10 מָצָ֤אתִי matsati HVqp1cs I have found I found I found
H4672-03 Genesis 33:15 אֶמְצָא emetsa HVqh1cs let me find I will find I will find
H4672-03 Genesis 34:11 אֶמְצָא emetsa HVqi1cs let me find I will find I may find
H4672-23 Genesis 36:24 מָצָ֤א matsa HVqp3ms found he found found
H4672-96 Genesis 37:15 וַ/יִּמְצָאֵ֣/הוּ vayimetsaehu HC/Vqw3ms/Sp3ms and found him and he found him and he found him
H4672-97 Genesis 37:17 וַ/יִּמְצָאֵ֖/ם vayimetsaem HC/Vqw3ms/Sp3mp and found them and he found them and he found them
H4672-24 Genesis 37:32 מָצָ֑אנוּ matsanu HVqp1cp we have found we have found we have found
H4672-32 Genesis 38:20 מְצָאָֽ/הּ metsaah HVqp3ms/Sp3fs he found her he found her he found her
H4672-40 Genesis 38:22 מְצָאתִ֑י/הָ metsatiha HVqp1cs/Sp3fs I found her I found her I found her
H4672-38 Genesis 38:23 מְצָאתָֽ/הּ metsatah HVqp2ms/Sp3fs have found her you found her have found her
H4672-94 Genesis 39:4 וַ/יִּמְצָ֨א vayimetsa HC/Vqw3ms and found and he found and he found
H4672-08 Genesis 41:38 הֲ/נִמְצָ֣א hanimetsa HTi/Vqi1cp Can we find the one being found can be found
H4672-24 Genesis 44:8 מָצָ֨אנוּ֙ matsanu HVqp1cp we found we have found we have found
H4672-108 Genesis 44:9 יִמָּצֵ֥א yimatse HVNi3ms it is found he will be found he will be found
H4672-108 Genesis 44:10 יִמָּצֵ֤א yimatse HVNi3ms is found he will be found will be found
H4672-92 Genesis 44:12 וַ/יִּמָּצֵא֙ vayimatse HC/VNw3ms and it was found was found and it was found
H4672-23 Genesis 44:16 מָצָא֙ matsa HVqp3ms has found he found he found
H4672-53 Genesis 44:16 נִמְצָ֥א nimetsa HVNp3ms was found was found was found