Exodus 16:15:11Exod.16.15.W11TAB
מַה־ה֑וּא
mahhu
“what it was”
- Transliteration
- mah-HU
- Extended
- mah-HOO
- IPA
- /ma.ˈhuː/
Meaning by language
- English
- what it was
Hebrew · tap a syllable to hear it
Alphabet Analysis
| Mem | m as in mother | |
| Patach | short 'ah' as in father | |
| He | h as in house; silent at word end | |
| He | h as in house; silent at word end | |
| Vav | v as in vine; marks long ō / ū | |
| Aleph | silent — a glottal stop; holds vowel points |
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Now you try — trace the word:
The word
Word in context
- word
mah-HU
- clause
va-yir-U ve-NEI-yis-ra-EL va-yom-RU ISH el-a-KHIV MAN HU KI LO yad-U mah-HU
- sentence
va-yir-U ve-NEI-yis-ra-EL va-yom-RU ISH el-a-KHIV MAN HU KI LO yad-U mah-HU va-YO-mer mo-SHE a-le-HEM HU ha-LE-khem a-SHER na-TAN Ye-ho-VAH la-KHEM le-okh-LA
Exegesis
The causal clause ki lo yad'u mah-hu {כִּי לֹא יָדְעוּ מַה־ה֑וּא | kî lōʾ yā-ḏə-ʿû mah-hûʾ} explains their lack of knowledge.
In context — Exodus 16:15
When the sons of Israel saw it, they said each man to his brother, "What is it?" because they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, "It is the bread which the LORD has given you to eat ."
About this coordinate
Exodus 16:15:11 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 11 of Exodus 16:15, so the Hebrew word מַה־ה֑וּא (mahhu) can be cited, linked and studied at exactly this position rather than somewhere in the verse. In the Biblical Knowledge Coordinate System the same position is written Exod.16.15.W11, which extends further down to each syllable (Exod.16.15.W11.S1) and character.