b l ʿ
23 lemmas · 7 languages
soundAll three consonants are regularT Gen.14.2
Themes:swallow·8pharynx·2throat·2eat·2
POS shape:verb·16noun·7
This root is attested across 7 Semitic languages in our index. Each section below shows representative lemmas; attested means a Wiktionary editor explicitly tagged the root, inferredmeans we derived it mechanically from the word's consonantal skeleton.
Etymology treehow this root diverged from Proto-Semitic through the family
*b-l-ʿProto-Semitic
West Semitic
Central Semitic
Northwest Semitic
Canaanite
Hebrewבִּלֵּעַב ל ע— to destroy, wipe out
Aramaic
Imperial Aramaicבְּלַעב ל ע— to swallow
Syriacܒܠܥܐܒ ܠ ܥ— mouthful, gobbet, bolus
Assyrian NAܒܵܠܹܥܒ ܠ ܥ— to swallow
Arabic
Arabicبَلَعَب ل ع— to swallow
South Semitic
Ethio-Semitic
Ge'ezበልዐበ ለ ዐ— to eat, consume
Tigrinyaበልዐበ ለ ዐ— to eat
Branch structure: Huehnergard (2005), Rubin (2010). The reconstructed Proto-Semitic form is computed on the fly from the cognate set's majority reflex pattern.
Imperial Aramaic
arc · 2 lemmas- to swallow
- swallowing
Classical Syriac
syc · 3 lemmas- mouthful, gobbet, bolusCompare Hebrew בֶּלַע (bélaʿ).
- pharynxCompare Arabic بَالُوعَة (bālūʕa) and Hebrew בְּלוּעָה (bəlûʿâ)
- throat, gulletFrom the root ܒ ܠ ܥ, related to swallowing.
Assyrian Neo-Aramaic
aii · 2 lemmas- to swallowInherited from Aramaic בְּלַע (bəlaʿ); related to Arabic بَلَعَ (balaʕa) and Hebrew בָּלַע (balá')
- throat, pharynxFeminine active noun of ܒܵܠܹܥ (bālēˁ, “to swallow”); compare Arabic بَالُوعَة (bālūʕa) and Hebrew בְּלוּעָה (bəlûʿâ).
▸ 1 derivation
- derivedܒܵܠܘܿܥܵܝܵܐbālōˁāyā
Hebrew
he · 4 lemmas- to destroy, wipe out
- to insinuate, hint; to allude to
- to swallowCompare Aramaic בְּלַע (“to swallow”), Amharic በላ (bäla, “to eat”), Arabic بَلَعَ (balaʕa, “to swallow”)
- defective spelling of בילעCompare Aramaic בְּלַע (“to swallow”), Amharic በላ (bäla, “to eat”), Arabic بَلَعَ (balaʕa, “to swallow”)
Arabic
ar · 8 lemmas- to swallowFrom the root ب ل ع (b l ʕ), from Proto-Semitic *balVʕ-, from Proto-Afroasiatic *balVʕ-. Cognate with Hebrew בָּלַע (bālaʿ, “swallow, engulf”), Aramaic בְּלַע (“to swallow”), and Amharic በላ (bäla, “to eat”).
- to make or cause to swallowCausative of بَلَعَ (balaʕa, “to swallow”).
- to make swallow
- to swallow, to swallow up
- to be swallowed
- sinkhole, drain, sewer
Ge'ez
gez · 2 lemmas- to eat, consumeCognate with Hebrew בָּלַע, Arabic بَلِعَ (baliʕa), Classical Syriac ܒܠܰܥ, Amharic በላ (bäla).
- food, sustenanceFrom same root as በልዐ (bälʿä).
Tigrinya
ti · 2 lemmas- to eat
- infinitive of በልዐ (bälʿä)