אָב

ʼâb · awb

father, in a literal and immediate, or figurative and remote application

Lexicon

Derivation: a primitive word;

father, in a literal and immediate, or figurative and remote application

Definition from Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (1890). Wording is Strong's own, including his etymological notes, which are not separate meanings.

KJV renderings: chief, (fore-) father(-less), [idiom] patrimony, principal. Compare names in 'Abi-'.

Letters

Alef

Bet

אAlef1
Picture: ox head
Concrete
ox · bull · cattle
Extended
strength · leader · first · the one in front
בBet2
Picture: floor plan of a tent or house
Concrete
house · tent · dwelling
Extended
family · household · what is inside · in

Possible cultural reading

strength, the leader › the house, what is within

The strength (alef) of the house (bet), the one whose strength holds the household together.

Interpretive, not lexical. The dictionary sense of אָב above is the attested meaning; this pictographic reading is a tradition about how the sign-shapes may have been heard. Both can be held at once, they are answering different questions.

Usage

1213 occurrences · 1213 OT · 0 NT · 421 distinct forms

KJV renderings of this word, by how often each one is used.

of their fathers91 · 14%
his father90 · 13%
my father58 · 9%
with his fathers46 · 7%
the father45 · 7%
of the fathers44 · 7%
thy father38 · 6%
of his father23 · 3%
of your fathers21 · 3%
of thy father19 · 3%
their father17 · 3%
father16 · 2%
unto his father16 · 2%
of his fathers16 · 2%
his father's15 · 2%
unto their fathers14 · 2%
of my father13 · 2%
unto thy fathers13 · 2%
of our fathers13 · 2%
your fathers12 · 2%
fathers12 · 2%
of their father11 · 2%
and his father11 · 2%
their fathers10 · 1%
unto your fathers10 · 1%

Where it is used, by book.

Inflected forms found in the text.

אָבִ֑יו44אָבִ֖יו31אָבִ֔יו30אָבִֽיו׃30אֲבֹתָ֔יו28אֲבִ֣י28אֲבֹתָ֑ם24אֲבִ֥י21אָבִ֔יךָ20אָבִ֔י20אָבִ֑י18אָבִֽי׃17

Counts are computed from the tagged Hebrew and Greek text aligned to the King James Version, not from an estimate.

Concordance

Subjects this word carries

Family & children