Genesis 20:9:4Gen.20.9.W4TAB
וַיֹּ֨אמֶר
vayomer
“he said”
- Transliteration
- va-YO-mer
- Extended
- vah-YOH-mehr
- IPA
- /vajˈjo.mɛr/
Meaning by language
- English
- he said
Hebrew · tap a syllable to hear it
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 | |
| Holem | long 'oh' as in go | |
| Aleph | silent — a glottal stop; holds vowel points | |
| Mem | m as in mother | |
| Seghol | short 'eh' as in met | |
| Resh | r guttural, like the French r |
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Now you try — trace the word:
The word
Word in context
- word
va-YO-mer
- phraseyour reading level
va-YO-mer LO
- clause
va-yik-RA a-vi-ME-lekh le-av-ra-HAM va-YO-mer LO meh-a-SI-ta LA-nu u-me-kha-TA-ti LAKH ki-he-VE-a-ta a-LAI ve-al-mam-lakh-TI kha-ta-A ge-do-LA
- sentence
va-yik-RA a-vi-ME-lekh le-av-ra-HAM va-YO-mer LO meh-a-SI-ta LA-nu u-me-kha-TA-ti LAKH ki-he-VE-a-ta a-LAI ve-al-mam-lakh-TI kha-ta-A ge-do-LA ma-a-SIM a-SHER lo-ye-a-SU a-SI-ta im-ma-DI
Exegesis
The verse opens with the vav-consecutive chain vayikra {וַיִּקְרָא | wayyiq-rāʾ} ‘and he called’ followed by vayomer {וַיֹּאמֶר | way-yō-mer} ‘and he said’, a common narrative pattern introducing speech.
Root and etymology
ʾ-m-raleph–mem–resh
“to speak”
In context — Genesis 20:9
Then Abimelech called Abraham and said to him, “What have you done to us? What sin have I committed against you, that you have brought upon me and my kingdom a great sin? You have done to me deeds that must not be done.”
About this coordinate
Genesis 20:9:4 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 4 of Genesis 20:9, so the Hebrew word וַיֹּ֨אמֶר (vayomer) 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.20.9.W4, which extends further down to each syllable (Gen.20.9.W4.S1) and character.