Hebrew

noun

He·​brew ˈhē-(ˌ)brü 

1

a

: the Semitic language of the ancient Hebrews

b

: any of various later forms of this language

2

: a member of or descendant from one of a group of northern Semitic peoples including the Israelites

especially : israelite

Hebrew adjective

Examples of Hebrew in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

But Iskander stepped it up, purchasing a 10-string lyre on Amazon during auditions and teaching himself to play the ancient instrument while learning the Shema prayer of faith in Hebrew from YouTube. —Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY, 28 Feb. 2025

Among them was the Septuagint, the first Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible—essential for Alexandria’s large Jewish population, who spoke Greek rather than Hebrew. —Hannah Edgar, ARTnews.com, 27 Feb. 2025

Without a registry, there was no way to look for graves — and without knowing the Hebrew alphabet, there was no way to read them. —Shira Li Bartov, Sun Sentinel, 27 Feb. 2025

The insular community’s yeshivas, which rely heavily on taxpayer dollars, teach religious lessons in Yiddish and Hebrew for most of the school day, and offer little instruction in English or math. —Eliza Shapiro, New York Times, 21 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English Ebreu, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin Hebraeus, from Latin, adjective, from Greek Hebraios, from Aramaic ʽEbrai

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing Hebrew

• Late Hebrew
• Modern Hebrew
• Rabbinic Hebrew

Kids Definition

Hebrew

noun

He·​brew ˈhē-(ˌ)brü 

1

: a member of one of a group of northern Semitic peoples including the Israelites

especially : israelite

2

: the Semitic language of the Hebrews

Hebraic

hi-ˈbrā-ik

adjective

Hebrew adjective