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תּוֹעֵבַה

𐤕𐤅𐤏𐤁𐤄

tôwʻêbah

H8441 noun

SILEX Entry

Root תעב to abhor, to detest, to loathe

Definition

A detestable or repugnant thing, practice, or condition; something considered utterly reprehensible and rejected, particularly in the context of social, ritual, or moral order. The term denotes actions, objects, or behaviors that are perceived as fundamentally incompatible with Israelite standards of holiness, purity, or covenantal faithfulness. Its semantic range encompasses ritual infractions (especially non-Israelite worship practices), ethically condemned behaviors, and occasionally acts or objects seen as taboo or contaminating.

Semantic Range

detestable act, repugnant object, abhorrent practice, ritual impurity, idolatrous practice, idol, taboo, actions violating covenant or communal standards

Root / Etymology

From the root תעב, meaning 'to abhor, detest, loathe.' The noun תּוֹעֵבַה is derived as a feminine active participle and functions substantivally to denote something that is abhorred or detestable. While the root refers generally to the act of loathing, the noun specifies the object or activity that is deemed unacceptable or repellent.

Historical & Contextual Notes

Throughout the Hebrew Bible, תּוֹעֵבַה is often used to designate practices, rituals, or behaviors—especially those associated with non-Israelite religious customs (such as idolatry, cultic prostitution, and child sacrifice)—as fundamentally incompatible with the Israelite covenantal worldview. It is also used in legal texts to label certain ethical or social infractions (e.g., dishonest business practices, sexual relations outside prescribed norms) as particularly egregious. In Deuteronomic and Priestly texts, the term marks the boundaries of communal identity and holiness. In later periods (especially in the exilic and post-exilic eras), the semantic emphasis on separation from non-Israelite practices becomes more pronounced, contributing to evolving ideas of ritual and social purity. English translations typically use 'abomination,' but this may capture only the strongest ethical sense, at the expense of ritual or boundary-marking nuances often present in Hebrew usage. Unlike related terms such as שֶׁקֶץ (sheqets), which frequently denotes ritual impurity associated with unclean animals, תּוֹעֵבַה often includes a broader, sometimes explicitly ethical or covenantal dimension. In later translation and interpretive traditions, including Greek (Septuagint: βδέλυγμα) and English, 'abomination' sometimes absorbs or replaces the word 'Jew' in various contexts; however, in the biblical Hebrew text, תּוֹעֵבַה itself is not ethnically marked and applies to both actions and objects condemned within Israelite (or Judahite) society regardless of who perpetrates them.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

or תֹּעֵבַה; feminine active participle of תַּעָב; properly, something disgusting (morally), i.e. (as noun) an abhorrence; especially idolatry or (concretely) an idol; abominable (custom, thing), abomination.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

תעב (t-ʿ-b) — abhor, detest, loathe

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H8581 תַּעָב the ones who utterly detest

Word Forms

27 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
H8441-10 תוֹעֲבַ֥ת toavat HNcfsc abomination detested thing of 26
H8441-18 תוֹעֵבָ֥ה toevah HNcfsa abomination detestable thing 16
H8441-06 הַ/תּוֹעֵבֹ֖ת hatoevot HTd/Ncfpa the abominations the detestable things 15
H8441-13 תּוֹעֲבֹתָֽיִ/ךְ toavotayikhe HNcfpc/Sp2fs your abominations your detestable practices 10
H8441-19 תּוֹעֵב֨וֹת toevot HNcfpa abominations detestable things 6
H8441-07 כְּ/תוֹעֲבֹ֖ת ketoavot HR/Ncfpc like the abominations as detestable acts of 5
H8441-22 וְ/תוֹעֲבַ֖ת vetoavat HC/Ncfsc and abomination and detested thing of 4
H8441-05 הַ/תּוֹעֵבָ֥ה hatoevah HTd/Ncfsa the abomination the detestable thing 4
H8441-17 תּוֹעֲבֹתֵי/כֶ֖ם toavoteykhem HNcfpc/Sp2mp your abominations your detestable acts 4
H8441-14 תּוֹעֲבוֹתֶ֖י/הָ toavoteyha HNcfpc/Sp3fs her abominations her detestable things 3

Occurrences in Scripture

118 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
H8441-18 Genesis 43:32 תוֹעֵבָ֥ה toevah HNcfsa abomination detestable thing
H8441-10 Genesis 46:34 תוֹעֲבַ֥ת toavat HNcfsc an abomination detested thing of
H8441-10 Exodus 8:22 תּוֹעֲבַ֣ת toavat HNcfsc the abomination of detested thing of
H8441-10 Exodus 8:22 תּוֹעֲבַ֥ת toavat-2 HNcfsc the abomination of detested thing of
H8441-18 Leviticus 18:22 תּוֹעֵבָ֖ה toevah HNcfsa abomination detestable thing
H8441-06 Leviticus 18:26 הַ/תּוֹעֵבֹ֖ת hatoevot HTd/Ncfpa the abominations the detestable things
H8441-06 Leviticus 18:27 הַ/תּוֹעֵבֹ֣ת hatoevot HTd/Ncfpa the abominations the detestable things
H8441-06 Leviticus 18:29 הַ/תּוֹעֵב֖וֹת hatoevot HTd/Ncfpa these abominations the detestable things
H8441-06 Leviticus 18:30 הַ/תּֽוֹעֵבֹת֙ hatoevot HTd/Ncfpa abominable the detestable things
H8441-18 Leviticus 20:13 תּוֹעֵבָ֥ה toevah HNcfsa an abomination detestable thing
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