נָאָה
𐤍𐤀𐤄
nâʼâh
H4998 verb
SILEX Entry
Definition
To be beautiful, attractive, fitting, or becoming; to be suitable or appropriate in appearance or character. The term emphasizes the quality of being aesthetically pleasing or agreeable, especially as suited to a person, dwelling, or place. Depending on the context, it may refer to physical beauty, the pleasantness of a locale, or the suitability/fittingness of a person or thing.
Semantic Range
to be beautiful, to be comely, to be fitting, to be appropriate, to be pleasant, to be lovely
Root / Etymology
Root: נאה (nun-aleph-he). Derived from a root meaning 'to be pleasant' or 'to be fitting/appropriate.' The verbal stem conveys the quality of being beautiful or suitable, not limited strictly to outward appearance, but often involving delightfulness or becomingness in a broad sense.
Historical & Contextual Notes
The root נאה appears infrequently in the Hebrew Bible and is most often used in poetic or descriptive contexts (e.g., Song of Songs 1:5, Isaiah 52:7) to denote beauty or comeliness, whether of people, things, or even actions. In earlier Israelite texts, it primarily refers to physical attractiveness or grace, especially of women or places. In later or poetic usage, it extends to the suitability or fittingness of someone or something, blurring the line between beauty and appropriateness (see Psalms, Song of Songs). Unlike other roots such as יפה (y-p-h), which also conveys beauty but more specifically physical or visual attractiveness, נאה can carry the nuance of propriety, harmony, or suitability. English translations typically render the word as 'beautiful,' 'comely,' 'befitting,' or 'lovely,' but 'appropriate' or 'fitting' may better reflect its nuance in certain passages. In rabbinic and later Hebrew, נאה broadens to include a wider sense of suitability or pleasantness, not strictly limited to visual beauty.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
a primitive root; properly, to be at home, i.e. (by implication) to be pleasant (or suitable), i.e. beautiful; be beautiful, become, be comely.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
נאה (n-ʾ-h) — pleasantness, fittingness, beauty
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H4999 | נָאָה | in beautiful dwellings of |
| H5000 | נָאוֶה | the fitting one |
| H5116 | נָוֶה | pleasant dwellings of |
Word Forms
2 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H4998-02 |
נָּאו֨וּ | navu | HVqp3cp |
are lovely | they were beautiful | 2 |
H4998-01 |
נַאֲוָה | naavah | HVNp3ms |
is fitting | has become fitting | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
3 total occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H4998-02 |
Isaiah 52:7 | נָּאו֨וּ | navu | HVqp3cp |
beautiful | they were beautiful |
H4998-01 |
Psalms 93:5 | נַאֲוָה | naavah | HVNp3ms |
is fitting | has become fitting |
H4998-02 |
Song of Songs 1:10 | נָאו֤וּ | navu | HVqp3cp |
are lovely | they were beautiful |