נָפַל
nâphal · naw-fal'
to fall, in a great variety of applications (intransitive or causative, literal or figurative)
Lexicon
Derivation: a primitive root;
to fall, in a great variety of applications (intransitive or causative, literal or figurative)
Definition from Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (1890). Wording is Strong's own, including his etymological notes, which are not separate meanings.
KJV renderings: be accepted, cast (down, self, (lots), out), cease, die, divide (by lot), (let) fail, (cause to, let, make, ready to) fall (away, down, -en, -ing), fell(-ing), fugitive, have (inheritance), inferior, be judged (by mistake for H6419 (פָּלַל)), lay (along), (cause to) lie down, light (down), be ([idiom] hast) lost, lying, overthrow, overwhelm, perish, present(-ed, -ing), (make to) rot, slay, smite out, [idiom] surely, throw down.
Letters
- נNun50
Picture: a sprouting seed, or a fish in water
- Concrete
- seed · sprout · fish · offspring
- Extended
- life · continuation · heir · to perpetuate
- פPe80
Picture: an open mouth
- Concrete
- mouth · lips · teeth
- Extended
- to speak · a word · an edge or opening · to scatter speech
- לLamed30
Picture: shepherd's staff or goad
- Concrete
- staff · goad · yoke · cattle prod
- Extended
- authority · to lead · to teach · to bind · toward
Possible cultural reading (auto-composed)
the seed, life continuing › to speak, the word › authority, the one who leads
The seed, life continuing that works to speak, the word of authority, the one who leads.
Interpretive, not lexical. The dictionary sense of נָפַל 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
435 occurrences · 435 OT · 0 NT · 261 distinct forms
KJV renderings of this word, by how often each one is used.
- shall fall42 · 19%
- fell30 · 13%
- fall23 · 10%
- fallen14 · 6%
- and fall13 · 6%
- and fell12 · 5%
- is fallen11 · 5%
- to fall8 · 4%
- falleth7 · 3%
- and there fell7 · 3%
- and fell down6 · 3%
- he fell6 · 3%
- are fallen6 · 3%
- and they fell5 · 2%
- and they shall fall4 · 2%
- that fell4 · 2%
- fell down4 · 2%
- was fallen4 · 2%
- and i fell3 · 1%
- shall they fall3 · 1%
- that he fell3 · 1%
- for there fell3 · 1%
- shall fall down3 · 1%
- falling3 · 1%
- they shall fall3 · 1%
Where it is used, by book.
Inflected forms found in the text.
Counts are computed from the tagged Hebrew and Greek text aligned to the King James Version, not from an estimate.