shenayim · two

What it means

shenayim (שְׁנַיִם) is a Hebrew word of the Bible that means “two”.

How to say it

Approximate pronunciation. Vowels sound as in Spanish (a as in father, e as in bed, i as in machine, o as in note, u as in rule); the syllable in bold is stressed. The voice is your device's.

Its senses in the Bible

1. A pair, a quantity of two.
2. The two together, both of them.
3. Twice the amount, or two plus ten to say twelve.

From Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906)

Word study

Two. Together with “ten” it forms the number twelve.

• The number two; “two and two” Genesis 1:16Genesis 7:9
• “The two of them”, both Genesis 2:25Genesis 22:6
• Twelve: the twelve tribes Genesis 49:28Exodus 24:4

How we translate it

“Two” 565 times, “twelve” 110, “both of them” 25, “both” 24, “twelfth” 20. In compound numbers (twelve, twelfth, twenty-two) the word is part of the figure, and English merges it into a single number. “Two and two” renders the Hebrew repetition (Genesis 7:9).

How it is translated

The words this translation uses for it, most frequent first.

• two ×565
• twelve ×110
• both of them ×25
• both ×24
• twelfth ×20
• second ×11
• double ×5
• twice ×4
• twenty thousand ×3
• couple ×1

Related words

Words of the same family, by Strong’s numbering.

Where it appears

• Genesis×63
• Exodus×113
• Leviticus×41
• Numbers×87
• Deuteronomy×25
• Joshua×26
• Judges×20
• Ruth×9
• 1 Samuel×30
• 2 Samuel×21
• 1 Kings×57
• 2 Kings×42
• 1 Chronicles×45
• 2 Chronicles×30
• Ezra×18
• Nehemiah×23
• Esther×10
• Job×5
• Psalms×2
• Proverbs×8
• Ecclesiastes×5
• Song of Songs×4
• Isaiah×11
• Jeremiah×11
• Ezekiel×36
• Daniel×6
• Hosea×1
• Amos×3
• Jonah×1
• Haggai×3
• Zechariah×12

• Genesis 1:16

  And Elohim made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night, and the stars.

• Genesis 2:25

  And the two of them, the man and his wife, were naked, and they were not ashamed.

• Genesis 3:7

  And the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed together fig leaves and made themselves loincloths.

• Genesis 4:19

  And Lamech took for himself two wives; the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the second Zillah.

• Genesis 5:8

  And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years and he died.

• Genesis 5:18

  And Jared lived one hundred and sixty-two years and fathered Enoch.

• Genesis 5:20

  And all the days of Jared were nine hundred and sixty-two years and he died.

• Genesis 5:26

  And Methuselah lived after he fathered Lamech seven hundred and eighty-two years and fathered sons and daughters.

• Genesis 5:28

  And Lamech lived one hundred and eighty-two years and fathered a son.

• Genesis 6:19

  And of every living thing, of all flesh, two of every kind you shall bring into the ark, to keep them alive with you; they shall be male and female.

• Genesis 6:20

  Of the birds according to their kind, and of the livestock according to their kind, of every creeping thing of the ground according to its kind, two of every kind will come to you to be kept alive.

• Genesis 7:2

  Of every clean animal you shall take for yourself seven and seven, the male and its female; and of the animals that are not clean, they are two, the male and its female;

• Genesis 7:9

  two and two they came to Noah into the ark, male and female, as Elohim had commanded Noah.

• Genesis 7:15

  And they came to Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh in which is the spirit of life.

• Genesis 9:22

  And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father and told his two brothers outside.

• Genesis 9:23

  And Shem and Japheth took the cloak and laid it on the shoulders of both of them, and they walked backward and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were turned backward, and the nakedness of their father they did not see.

• Genesis 10:25

  And to Eber were born two sons: the name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided; and the name of his brother was Joktan.

• Genesis 11:20

  Reu lived thirty-two years and fathered Serug.

• Genesis 14:4

  Twelve years they had served Chedorlaomer, and in the thirteenth year they rebelled.

• Genesis 17:20

  As for Ishmael, I have heard you; look, I will bless him and make him fruitful and multiply him exceedingly. He will father twelve chiefs, and I will make him into a great nation.

• Genesis 19:1

  The two messengers came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground.

• Genesis 19:8

  Look, I have two daughters who have not known a man; let me bring them out to you, and do to them as is good in your eyes; only to these men do not do anything, for that is why they have come under the shadow of my roof.”

• Genesis 19:15

  As the dawn came up, the messengers urged Lot, saying, “Get up, take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be swept away in the iniquity of the city.”

• Genesis 19:16

  But he lingered; so the men seized his hand, his wife’s hand, and the hand of his two daughters, because of YHWH’s compassion for him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city.

• Genesis 19:30

  Lot went up from Zoar and lived on the mountain, and his two daughters with him, for he was afraid to live in Zoar; and he lived in a cave, he and his two daughters.

• Genesis 19:36

  Thus both daughters of Lot became pregnant by their father.

• Genesis 21:27

  Abraham took sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelech, and the two of them made a covenant.

• Genesis 21:31

  That is why he called that place Beersheba, because there the two of them swore.

• Genesis 22:3

  Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son. He split the wood for the burnt offering, and he rose and went to the place that Elohim had told him.

• Genesis 22:6

  Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son, and he took in his hand the fire and the knife. And the two of them went together.

• Genesis 22:8

  Abraham said, “Elohim will see for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.

• Genesis 24:22

  When the camels had finished drinking, the man took a gold ring of half a shekel in weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels of gold in weight,

• Genesis 25:16

  These are the sons of Ishmael, and these are their names, by their villages and by their encampments, twelve chiefs according to their peoples.

• Genesis 25:23

  YHWH said to her, “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from your inner parts will be divided; one people will be stronger than the other people, and the older will serve the younger.”

• Genesis 27:9

  Go, please, to the flock and get me from there two good young goats, and I will make them into tasty food for your father, such as he loves.

• Genesis 27:45

  until your brother’s anger turns away from you and he forgets what you have done to him. Then I will send and get you from there. Why should I be bereaved of you both in one day?”

• Genesis 29:16

  Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.

• Genesis 31:33

  So Laban went into Jacob’s tent, and into Leah’s tent, and into the tent of the two slave women, but he did not find them. He came out of Leah’s tent and went into Rachel’s tent.

• Genesis 31:37

  Now that you have felt through all my goods, what have you found of all the goods of your house? Put it here before my brothers and your brothers, and let them decide between the two of us.

• Genesis 31:41

  These twenty years I have had in your house: I served you fourteen years for the two of your daughters and six years for your flock, and you changed my wages ten times.

And 728 more times.