Genesis 18:2:14Gen.18.2.W14TAB

וַיִּשְׁתַּ֖חוּ

vayishtakhu

“{And} he bowed down”

Transliteration: va-yish-ta-KHU
Extended: vah-yish-tah-KHOO
IPA: /vaj.jiʃ.ta.ˈħuː/

Meaning by language

English: {And} he bowed down

Hebrew · tap a syllable to hear it

Result

וַ + יִּשְׁ + תַּ֖ + חוּ

↓

va + yish + ta + khu

↓

vayishtakhu

Alphabet Analysis

	Vav	v as in vine; marks long ō / ū
	Patach	short 'ah' as in father
	Yod	y as in yes; marks long ī
	Hireq	'ee' as in machine
	Shin	shin with right dot; sin with left dot
	Sheva	silent sheva — no sound; closes the syllable
	Tav	t as in top
	Patach	short 'ah' as in father
	Chet	ch — deep guttural, as in Scottish loch
	Vav	v as in vine; marks long ō / ū

Tap any letter to hear its name and sound

Vowels (Niqqud)

Now you try — trace the word:

The word

Word in context

word
va-yish-ta-KHU
clause
va-YAR va-ya-RATS lik-ra-TAM mi-PE-takh ha-O-hel va-yish-ta-KHU ar-TSA
sentence
va-yis-SA e-NAV va-YAR ve-hin-NEH she-lo-SHA a-na-SHIM ni-tsa-VIM a-LAV va-YAR va-ya-RATS lik-ra-TAM mi-PE-takh ha-O-hel va-yish-ta-KHU ar-TSA

Exegesis

The locative phrase mippetach haohel {מִפֶּתַח הָאֹהֶל | mip-pe-taḥ hā-ʾō-hel} “from the entrance of the tent” situates the action at the threshold of Abraham’s dwelling, and vayishtachu artsah {וַיִּשְׁתַּחוּ אָֽרְצָה | way-yiš-ta-ḥû ʾā-rə-ṣāh} “and he bowed down to the ground” uses the Hitpael stem to convey full humility in his greeting.

In context — Genesis 18:2

And he lifted his eyes and saw; behold, three men were standing near him. As soon as he perceived them, he ran from the entrance of the tent to meet them and bowed down to the ground.

About this coordinate

Genesis 18:2:14 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 14 of Genesis 18:2, so the Hebrew word וַיִּשְׁתַּ֖חוּ (vayishtakhu) 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 Gen.18.2.W14, which extends further down to each syllable (Gen.18.2.W14.S1) and character.

Read Genesis 18:2 Read Genesis 18