עֲוִיל
𐤏𐤅𐤉𐤋
ʻăvîyl
H5759 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
A very young child or infant, typically a newborn or one still dependent on nourishment from the mother. The term denotes early childhood and emphasizes immaturity or extreme youth, without connotation of status or legal capacity. It is used specifically of human infants, often in the context of family lineage, birth narratives, or reference to vulnerability.
Semantic Range
infant, nursing child, very young child, babe, little one
Root / Etymology
From the root עוּל (ʿ-w-l), meaning 'to suckle, nurse.' The word עֲוִיל is a nominal formation indicating an entity that is being suckled, i.e., a nursing infant or small child. The root is also found in related forms designating similar age categories.
Historical & Contextual Notes
עֲוִיל appears rarely in the Hebrew Bible, with primary attestation in poetic or narrative contexts. It refers specifically to a very young child, generally one still nursing, and underscores the dependence and helplessness associated with this stage of life. The term lacks the broader connotations carried by other Hebrew words for child (such as יֶלֶד or נַעַר, which can denote older children, youth, or servants). Over time, as societal roles for children changed, terms like עֲוִיל were reserved for infancy, while others expanded in semantic range. Most English translations render this as 'babe' or 'infant,' but this can obscure the specific emphasis on nursing dependency in the Hebrew term. In later Hebrew and Aramaic, similarly derived terms continue to denote infants. The word never refers to political or social roles, nor is it synonymous with 'child' in the broader sense.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from עוּל; a babe; young child, little one.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
עול (ʿ-w-l) — to suckle, to nurse, to nourish at the breast
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H5760 | עֲוִיל | unjust man |
| H5763 | עוּל | to suckle |
| H5764 | עוּל | nursing infant of |
| H5765 | עֲוַל | from injustice |
| H5766 | עֶוֶל | injustice |
Word Forms
2 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5759-02 |
עֲ֭וִילִים | avilim | HNcmpa |
young children | suckling infants | 1 |
H5759-01 |
עֲוִילֵי/הֶ֑ם | avileyhem | HNcmpc/Sp3mp |
their little ones | their nursing infants | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
2 total occurrences