עֶלֶם
𐤏𐤋𐤌
ʻelem
H5958 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
A male youth at the stage of physical maturity but before full adulthood; the term designates a young man or boy who has reached adolescence, typically not yet married nor fully established in the social or military responsibilities of adult men. The word suggests youthfulness, vigor, and the threshold of adult participation, as distinguished from both children and fully mature men.
Semantic Range
adolescent male, youth, young man, lad, stripling
Root / Etymology
Root: ע-ל-ם (עלם), which fundamentally means 'to be hidden, concealed, secret.' The noun עֶלֶם (ʻelem) is derived from this root, with the basic notion relating to that which is 'hidden' — in this case, the potential or developing strength of youth, not yet fully revealed or realized.
Historical & Contextual Notes
In biblical usage, עֶלֶם refers specifically to a young male in the transition from childhood to adulthood, and is parallel to עַלְמָה (ʻalmah), a young woman at a similar life stage. The term appears infrequently in the Hebrew Bible (e.g., 1 Samuel 17:56; 20:22) and may be synonymous with נַעַר (naʻar), although נַעַר can refer broadly to any youth or servant, whereas עֶלֶם carries a more specific sense of latent, maturing potential. During the monarchic period, the term could indicate readiness for service or participation in social and military life, but without the full status of adulthood. Later translations often render the word as 'young man' or 'stripling,' but English 'stripling' fails to convey the nuance of developing capability implicit in עֶלֶם. In translation history, the term is sometimes overshadowed by more common words like נַעַר. The feminine עַלְמָה similarly denotes a young woman of marriageable age, not yet fully integrated as an adult woman. The meaning did not significantly shift in the biblical corpus, remaining a term for male adolescence rather than a technical or legal term.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from עָלַם; (compare עַלְמָה); properly, something kept out of sight, i.e. a lad; young man, stripling.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
עלם (ʿ-l-m) — to be hidden, concealed, secret
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H3281 | יַעְלָם | Yaʿlam |
| H492 | אַלְמֹנִי | anonymous one |
| H5769 | עוֹלָם | for the hidden age |
| H5867 | עֵילָם | in Elam |
| H5934 | עָלוּם | your youthful years |
Word Forms
2 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5958-02 |
לָ/עֶ֔לֶם | laelem | HRd/Ncmsa |
to the youth | to the adolescent youth | 1 |
H5958-01 |
הָ/עָֽלֶם | haalem | HTd/Ncmsa |
young man | hidden-potential youth | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
2 total occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5958-01 |
1 Samuel 17:56 | הָ/עָֽלֶם | haalem | HTd/Ncmsa |
young man | hidden-potential youth |
H5958-02 |
1 Samuel 20:22 | לָ/עֶ֔לֶם | laelem | HRd/Ncmsa |
to the youth | to the adolescent youth |