← H7217 H7219 →

רֹאשׁ

𐤓𐤀𐤔

rôʼsh

H7218 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

The uppermost part of the body; head (of a person or animal); by extension, the top or summit of objects (such as mountains, buildings, or pillars); figuratively, a leader, chief, or principal person; beginning (of a period, event, or series); source or starting point. The term encompasses literal, spatial, and metaphorical senses, such as the head of a body, the peak of a structure, the foremost position, or the principal status within a group.

Semantic Range

head of a body (person or animal), top/summit/peak of objects, leader/chief/principal person, beginning or starting point (of time or process), source (of rivers or lists), principal thing or status

Root / Etymology

From the root ראש (ר-א-ש), meaning 'head' or 'top.' The root suggests 'to be at the head' or 'to be prominent.' There is no securely attested meaning 'to shake' for this root in surviving Semitic sources; the suggestion of 'shake' is conjectural and lacks linguistic consensus. The noun רֹאשׁ derives directly from this root and consistently means 'head' or 'top' in a physical sense and, by extension, denoting leadership or primacy.

Historical & Contextual Notes

רֹאשׁ occurs frequently throughout the Hebrew Bible, both in literal contexts (the head as a body part, the top of mountains, pillars, or rivers) and in extended uses (leader of a group or tribe, start or beginning of a time or process). In social or political contexts, רֹאשׁ regularly denotes the chief or leader—such as the head of a clan or community—without the later connotations of monarchy or priestly office specifically, though it is sometimes applied to high priests or other preeminent figures. In poetic texts, it may refer to prominence or exalted status. The translation 'chief' or 'leader' is often appropriate in narrative and genealogical sections, but 'head' or 'top' is required in spatial or anatomical contexts. Later religious or ethnic titles like 'Jew' or 'Jewish leader' are not implied by the word in ancient usage. In post-exilic and later texts, רֹאשׁ may also denote preeminence in wisdom or status. Greek Septuagint translations typically render רֹאשׁ as κεφαλή (kephalē, 'head'), preserving both literal and figurative senses. English translations sometimes render the term as 'chief' or 'principal,' but these can narrow the scope of meaning where the Hebrew is broader, especially in metaphorical applications.

Translation Consistency

primary "head" 49 occurrences

Most natural and common English equivalent across the full semantic range (physical head, summit/top, leader/chief, beginning or source — e.g. head of a river, head of a people). 'Head' is already the dominant P2 rendering and fits ordinary modern usage, so it best preserves consistency and readability for all forms of H7218.

Alternatives (1 occurrence):
"top of" (1x)

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from an unused root apparently meaning to shake; the head (as most easily shaken), whether literal or figurative (in many applications, of place, time, rank, itc.); band, beginning, captain, chapiter, chief(-est place, man, things), company, end, [idiom] every (man), excellent, first, forefront, (be-)head, height, (on) high(-est part, (priest)), [idiom] lead, [idiom] poor, principal, ruler, sum, top.

Bantu Hebrew

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

Root Family

ראש (Rosh) — head, top, principal, foremost

Root ראש head, top, principal, foremost
Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H7220 רֹאשׁ Rosh

Word Forms

60 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
H7218-33 רֹ֖אשׁ rosh HNcmsa head head head 146
H7218-27 רָאשֵׁ֣י rashey HNcmpc heads heads of heads of 75
H7218-43 רֹאשׁ֖/וֹ rosho HNcmsc/Sp3ms his head his head his head 65
H7218-15 הָ/רֹ֥אשׁ harosh HTd/Ncmsa the chief the head the head 38
H7218-06 בְּ/רֹ֣אשׁ berosh HR/Ncmsc at the head at the head of in the head of 35
H7218-42 רֹאשִׁ֣/י roshi HNcmsc/Sp1cs my head my head my head 26
H7218-18 לְ/רֹ֖אשׁ lerosh HR/Ncmsa head to the head of to the head of 23
H7218-32 רָאשִׁ֖ים rashim HNcmpa heads heads heads 19
H7218-25 מֵֽ/רֹאשׁ merosh HR/Ncmsc from the beginning from the head from the head 14
H7218-35 רֹאשָׁ֑/ם rosham HNcmsc/Sp3mp their heads their head their heads 14

Occurrences in Scripture

600 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
H7218-32 Genesis 2:10 רָאשִֽׁים rashim HNcmpa headstreams heads heads
H7218-33 Genesis 3:15 רֹ֔אשׁ rosh HNcmsa head head head
H7218-27 Genesis 8:5 רָאשֵׁ֥י rashey HNcmpc tops heads of heads of
H7218-60 Genesis 11:4 וְ/רֹאשׁ֣/וֹ verosho HC/Ncmsc/Sp3ms with its top and his head and his head
H7218-60 Genesis 28:12 וְ/רֹאשׁ֖/וֹ verosho HC/Ncmsc/Sp3ms and its top and his head and his head
H7218-34 Genesis 28:18 רֹאשָֽׁ/הּ roshah HNcmsc/Sp3fs top of it her head her head
H7218-38 Genesis 40:13 רֹאשֶׁ֔/ךָ roshekha HNcmsc/Sp2ms your head your head your head
H7218-42 Genesis 40:16 רֹאשִֽׁ/י roshi HNcmsc/Sp1cs my head my head my head
H7218-42 Genesis 40:17 רֹאשִֽׁ/י roshi HNcmsc/Sp1cs my head my head my head
H7218-38 Genesis 40:19 רֹֽאשְׁ/ךָ֙ roshekha HNcmsc/Sp2ms your head your head your head
H7218-33 Genesis 40:20 רֹ֣אשׁ rosh HNcmsc the head head head
H7218-33 Genesis 40:20 רֹ֛אשׁ rosh-2 HNcmsc the head head head
H7218-33 Genesis 47:31 רֹ֥אשׁ rosh HNcmsc the head head head
H7218-33 Genesis 48:14 רֹ֤אשׁ rosh HNcmsc head head head
H7218-33 Genesis 48:14 רֹ֣אשׁ rosh-2 HNcmsc head head head
H7218-33 Genesis 48:17 רֹ֥אשׁ rosh HNcmsc the head head head
H7218-33 Genesis 48:17 רֹאשׁ rosh-2 HNcmsc the head head head
H7218-33 Genesis 48:17 רֹ֥אשׁ rosh-3 HNcmsc the head head head
H7218-43 Genesis 48:18 רֹאשֽׁ/וֹ rosho HNcmsc/Sp3ms his head his head his head
H7218-18 Genesis 49:26 לְ/רֹ֣אשׁ lerosh HR/Ncmsc on the head to the head of to the head of
H7218-27 Exodus 6:14 רָאשֵׁ֣י rashey HNcmpc the heads of heads of heads of
H7218-27 Exodus 6:25 רָאשֵׁ֛י rashey HNcmpc the heads of heads of heads of
H7218-33 Exodus 12:2 רֹ֣אשׁ rosh HNcmsc beginning head head
H7218-43 Exodus 12:9 רֹאשׁ֥/וֹ rosho HNcmsc/Sp3ms its head his head his head
H7218-33 Exodus 17:9 רֹ֣אשׁ rosh HNcmsc top head head
H7218-33 Exodus 17:10 רֹ֥אשׁ rosh HNcmsc top head head
H7218-32 Exodus 18:25 רָאשִׁ֖ים rashim HNcmpa heads heads heads
H7218-33 Exodus 19:20 רֹ֣אשׁ rosh HNcmsc top head head
H7218-33 Exodus 19:20 רֹ֥אשׁ rosh-2 HNcmsc top head head
H7218-06 Exodus 24:17 בְּ/רֹ֣אשׁ berosh HR/Ncmsc on top at the head of at the top of
H7218-43 Exodus 26:24 רֹאשׁ֔/וֹ rosho HNcmsc/Sp3ms the top thereof his head his head
H7218-43 Exodus 28:32 רֹאשׁ֖/וֹ rosho HNcmsc/Sp3ms for the head his head his head
H7218-43 Exodus 29:6 רֹאשׁ֑/וֹ rosho HNcmsc/Sp3ms his head his head his head
H7218-43 Exodus 29:7 רֹאשׁ֑/וֹ rosho HNcmsc/Sp3ms his head his head his head
H7218-33 Exodus 29:10 רֹ֥אשׁ rosh HNcmsc of the bull head head
H7218-33 Exodus 29:15 רֹ֥אשׁ rosh HNcmsc head head head
H7218-43 Exodus 29:17 רֹאשֽׁ/וֹ rosho HNcmsc/Sp3ms its head his head his head
H7218-33 Exodus 29:19 רֹ֥אשׁ rosh HNcmsc head head head
H7218-33 Exodus 30:12 רֹ֥אשׁ rosh HNcmsc census head head
H7218-33 Exodus 30:23 רֹאשׁ֒ rosh HNcmsc head head head
H7218-33 Exodus 34:2 רֹ֥אשׁ rosh HNcmsc top head head
H7218-43 Exodus 36:29 רֹאשׁ֔/וֹ rosho HNcmsc/Sp3ms its top his head his head
H7218-29 Exodus 36:38 רָאשֵׁי/הֶ֛ם rasheyhem HNcmpc/Sp3mp tops their heads their heads
H7218-29 Exodus 38:17 רָאשֵׁי/הֶ֖ם rasheyhem HNcmpc/Sp3mp of their tops their heads their heads
H7218-29 Exodus 38:19 רָאשֵׁי/הֶ֛ם rasheyhem HNcmpc/Sp3mp of their tops their heads their heads
H7218-29 Exodus 38:28 רָאשֵׁי/הֶ֖ם rasheyhem HNcmpc/Sp3mp their tops their heads their heads
H7218-33 Leviticus 1:4 רֹ֣אשׁ rosh HNcmsc the head head head
H7218-15 Leviticus 1:8 הָ/רֹ֖אשׁ harosh HTd/Ncmsa head the head the head
H7218-43 Leviticus 1:12 רֹאשׁ֖/וֹ rosho HNcmsc/Sp3ms its head his head his head
H7218-43 Leviticus 1:15 רֹאשׁ֔/וֹ rosho HNcmsc/Sp3ms its head his head his head
← H7217 Hebrew Lexicon H7219 →