מלאך

Hebrew

Etymology

Root
ל־א־ך (l-ʾ-k)

From a verb meaning “to send” which is only attested in Ugaritic 𐎍𐎛𐎋 (lỉk), 𐎍𐎀𐎋 (lảk), Arabic لَأَكَ (laʔaka), أَلْأَكَ (ʔalʔaka), Ge'ez ለአከ (läʾäkä). The only other word from this root in Hebrew is מְלָאכָה (məlāḵā́, “commission, sending → particular occupation, work, business”).

Pronunciation

• (Modern Israeli Hebrew) IPA^(key): /malˈ(ʔ)aχ/

Noun

מַלְאָךְ • (mal'ákh) m (plural indefinite מַלְאָכִים, singular construct מַלְאַךְ־, plural construct מַלְאֲכֵי־)

1. angel
2. (rare) messenger

Declension

Declension of מַלְאָךְ

Number	Isolated forms		With possessive pronouns
	State	Form	Person	singular		plural
				m.	f.	m.	f.
singular	indefinite	מַלְאָךְ	first	מַלְאָכִי		מַלְאָכֵנוּ
	definite	הַמַּלְאָךְ	second	מַלְאָכְךָ	מַלְאָכֵךְ	מַלְאָכְכֶם	מַלְאָכְכֶן
	construct	מַלְאָךְ־	third	מַלְאָכוֹ	מַלְאָכָהּ	מַלְאָכָם	מַלְאָכָן
plural	indefinite	מַלְאָכִים	first	מלאכיי / מַלְאָכַי		מַלְאָכֵינוּ
	definite	הַמַּלְאָכִים	second	מַלְאָכֶיךָ	מלאכייך / מַלְאָכַיִךְ	מַלְאֲכֵיכֶם	מַלְאֲכֵיכֶן
	construct	מַלְאֲכֵי־	third	מַלְאָכָיו	מַלְאָכֶיהָ	מַלְאֲכֵיהֶם	מַלְאֲכֵיהֶן

Derived terms

• מַלְאָכוּת (malʾāḵūṯ, “messengership”)
• מלאך המוות / מַלְאַךְ הַמָּוֶת (mal'ákh hamávet)
• מַלְאַךְ חַבָּלָה (mal'ákh khabalá)
• מַלְאֲכֵי הַשָּׁרֵת (mal'ákhei hasharét)
• רַב־מַלְאָךְ (rav-mal'ákh)

Descendants

• Yiddish: מלאך (malekh)
• → Ancient Greek: ἄγγελος (ángelos, “angel”) (semantic loan) (see there for further descendants)
• → Kermanic: (learned)

  Isfahani: malāx

• → Tat: малах (learned)

References

• H4397 in Strong, James (1979) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible

Anagrams

• מאכל

Ladino

Etymology

From Hebrew מלאך.

Noun

מלאך m (Hebrew spelling, Latin spelling malah, plural מלאכים)

1. angel

Yiddish

Etymology

Borrowed from Hebrew מַלְאָךְ (mal'ákh).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmaɫəχ/
• Hyphenation: מ‧לאך

Noun

מלאך • (malekh) m, plural מלאכים (malokhem)

1. angel

Synonyms

• (rare) ענגעל (engel)

References

• Paul Abelson (1915) “angel”, in English-Yiddish Encyclopedic Dictionary, New York: The Jewish Press