Leviticus 18:8:5Lev.18.8.W5TAB
עֶרְוַ֥ת
ervat
“the nakedness of”
- Transliteration
- er-VAT
- Extended
- ehr-VAHT
- IPA
- /ʕɛrˈvaθ/
Meaning by language
- English
- the nakedness of
Hebrew · tap a syllable to hear it
Alphabet Analysis
| Ayin | deep guttural stop, voiced pharyngeal | |
| Seghol | short 'eh' as in met | |
| Resh | r guttural, like the French r | |
| Sheva | silent sheva — no sound; closes the syllable | |
| Vav | v as in vine; marks long ō / ū | |
| Patach | short 'ah' as in father | |
| Tav | t as in top |
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The word
Word in context
- word
er-VAT
- phraseyour reading level
er-VAT a-VEE-kha
- clause
er-VAT a-VEE-kha HI
- sentence
er-VAT eh-shet-a-VEE-kha LO teh-gal-LEH er-VAT a-VEE-kha HI
Exegesis
The Hebrew construct ervat eshet-avikha {עֶרְוַת אֵשֶׁת־אָבִיךָ | ʿer-wat e-shet-a-vī-kha} binds “nakedness” to “wife of your father.”
The closing clause ervat avikha hi {עֶרְוַת אָבִיךָ הִוא | ʿer-wat a-vī-kha hu} uses an emphatic pronoun to equate the wife’s exposure with the father’s own nakedness, reinforcing familial hierarchy. In translation, the construct relationship is mirrored with “of,” and the emphatic copula “it is” preserves the force of Hebrew hi.
Root and etymology
ע־ר־הayin–resh–heh
“to be exposed, lay bare”
In context — Leviticus 18:8
You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife; it is the nakedness of your father.
About this coordinate
Leviticus 18:8:5 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 5 of Leviticus 18:8, so the Hebrew word עֶרְוַ֥ת (ervat) 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 Lev.18.8.W5, which extends further down to each syllable (Lev.18.8.W5.S1) and character.