What does שָׁנַן (šānan) mean in the Bible?
שָׁנַן (šānan): Sharp-pointed action moving from literal piercing to figurative deep inculcation; teaching that penetrates and fixes itself firmly in the mind.
Hebrew · H8150
שָׁנַן
To point (transitive or intransitive); intensively, to pierce ; figuratively, to inculcate
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שָׁנַן H8150
Pronunciation šānan
What does שָׁנַן (šānan) mean in the Bible?
שָׁנַן (šānan): Sharp-pointed action moving from literal piercing to figurative deep inculcation; teaching that penetrates and fixes itself firmly in the mind.
Full entry for שָׁנַן (H8150) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render H8150?
The BSB source-word alignment has 9 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include and I was pierced (1), And you shall teach them diligently (1), are sharpened (1), I sharpen (1), or sharp (1).
Where does שָׁנַן (šānan) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Deuteronomy 6:7. Its strongest book concentrations include Psalms (5), Deuteronomy (2), Isaiah (1), Proverbs (1).
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders It and I was pierced 1× Psalms 73:21
And you shall teach them diligently 1× Deuteronomy 6:7
are sharpened 1× Isaiah 5:28
I sharpen 1× Deuteronomy 32:41
or sharp 1× Proverbs 25:18
pierce 1× Psalms 45:5
Sharp 1× Psalms 120:4
sharpen 1× Psalms 64:3
They sharpen 1× Psalms 140:3
Show sample aligned rows
Deuteronomy 6:7 וְשִׁנַּנְתָּ֣ם to And you shall teach them diligently Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Conjunctive perfect - second person masculine singular | third person masculine plural Deuteronomy 32:41 שַׁנּוֹתִי֙ to I sharpen Verb - Qal - Perfect - first person common singular Psalms 45:5 שְׁנ֫וּנִ֥ים to pierce Verb - Qal - QalPassParticiple - masculine plural Psalms 64:3 שָׁנְנ֣וּ to sharpen Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural Psalms 73:21 אֶשְׁתּוֹנָֽן׃ to and I was pierced Verb - Hitpael - Imperfect - first person common singular Psalms 120:4 שְׁנוּנִ֑ים to Sharp Verb - Qal - QalPassParticiple - masculine plural Psalms 140:3 שָֽׁנֲנ֣וּ to They sharpen Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural Proverbs 25:18 שָׁנ֑וּן to or sharp Verb - Qal - QalPassParticiple - masculine singular Isaiah 5:28 שְׁנוּנִ֔ים to are sharpened Verb - Qal - QalPassParticiple - masculine plural
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Deuteronomy 6:7
Aligned rows 9
Books represented 4
Deuteronomy 2 Psalms 5 Proverbs 1 Isaiah 1
Source forms
אֶשְׁתּוֹנָֽן׃ 1x ’eš·tō·w·nān Psalms 73:21
וְשִׁנַּנְתָּ֣ם 1x wə·šin·nan·tām Deuteronomy 6:7
שָׁנ֑וּן 1x šā·nūn Proverbs 25:18
שְׁנ֫וּנִ֥ים 1x šə·nū·nîm Psalms 45:5
שְׁנוּנִ֑ים 1x šə·nū·nîm Psalms 120:4
שְׁנוּנִ֔ים 1x šə·nū·nîm Isaiah 5:28
שַׁנּוֹתִי֙ 1x šan·nō·w·ṯî Deuteronomy 32:41
שָׁנְנ֣וּ 1x šā·nə·nū Psalms 64:3
Parsing patterns
Verb - Qal - QalPassParticiple - masculine plural 3x Psalms 45:5, Psalms 120:4, Isaiah 5:28
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural 2x Psalms 64:3, Psalms 140:3
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Conjunctive perfect - second person masculine singular | third person masculine plural 1x Deuteronomy 6:7
Verb - Hitpael - Imperfect - first person common singular 1x Psalms 73:21
Verb - Qal - Perfect - first person common singular 1x Deuteronomy 32:41
Verb - Qal - QalPassParticiple - masculine singular 1x Proverbs 25:18
Evidence Summary
Hebrew word. Sharp-pointed action moving from literal piercing to figurative deep inculcation; teaching that penetrates and fixes itself firmly in the mind.
Strong's H8150
Lexical occurrences 9 verses Word forms 2 forms 8 references Verse guides 0 guides
Study link Proverbs 25:18 Source Gloss
to point (transitive or intransitive); intensively, to pierce ; figuratively, to inculcate
Extended definition Source: Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon + Brown-Driver-Briggs
Sharp-pointed action moving from literal piercing to figurative deep inculcation; teaching that penetrates and fixes itself firmly in the mind.
to point (transitive or intransitive); intensively, to pierce; figuratively, to inculcate BDB: whet Usage: prick, sharp(-en), teach diligently, whet.
Grammatical Forms
How the stem changes the meaning of this verb across the biblical text.
This verb appears through different tense, voice, mood, or stem patterns. Those forms help readers see how the action is presented in context.
Form groups 2 Aligned forms 8
Qal basic active stem — the word in its most common, direct sense 7×
Participle passive Isa 5:28 · Prov 25:18 · Ps 45:6 · Ps 120:4 4×
Perfect Ps 64:4 · Ps 140:4 · Deut 32:41 3×
Hithpolel 1×
Imperfect Ps 73:21 1×
Selected Scripture Witness
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Biblical Witnesses
figuratively describing a false witness as a weapon that pierces or wounds
Showing 1 selected witness from 9 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
שָׁנַן is a primitive root - no further derivation.
Sources
MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML — CC0 1.0 Public Domain
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (morphhb/OSHB) — CC BY 4.0
Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon — CC BY 4.0
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain