Words the Bible translates as slaughter
English uses one word here. The Bible uses 18 words, and they do not mean the same thing. Each is listed with what it actually means, most frequent first.
- damדָּםblood: the red fluid of a body, which the Bible treats as the place where life is held, so that the one word reaches from a literal stain to a killing and the debt it leaves behind
- thuōθύωto slaughter an animal, whether as an offering to a god or for a meal
- zavaḥזָבַחto slaughter an animal as an offering to a god; to sacrifice.
- sphazōσφάζωto slaughter: to kill by cutting the throat, the way an animal is killed at an altar or for the table
- shaḥatשָׁחַטto slaughter: to kill an animal or a person by cutting the throat and draining the blood
- makkahמַכָּהa blow and what it leaves behind: a strike, the wound it makes, a crushing defeat in battle, or an affliction sent by God
- phonosφόνοςmurder: the killing of a human being by deliberate violence, whether a crime someone committed, a violent death someone suffered, or the deadly intent behind it
- sphagēσφαγήslaughternot studied yet
- maggephahמַגֵּפָהa deadly blow: a striking that brings sudden mass death, whether by disease or by the sword
- katasphazōκατασφάζωto slaughternot studied yet
- tevaḥטֶבַחslaughter: the butchering of an animal, and the cutting down of people pictured as exactly that
- tavaḥטָבַחto butcher: to kill an animal and cut it up for eating, and so to cut people down like meat animals
- heregהֶרֶגslaughternot studied yet
- haregahהֲרֵגָהslaughternot studied yet
- kopēκοπήslaughternot studied yet
- ivḥahאִבְחָהslaughternot studied yet
- matbe'aḥמַטְבֵּחַslaughternot studied yet
- qetelקֶטֶלslaughternot studied yet
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Every English meaning beginning with S is on its letter page, and the whole index starts at Browse.