eshet chayil

Alternative Spellings

eshet hayil, eyshes chayil, eyshet chayil

Definitions

• "woman of valor" (JPS); poem about such a woman in Proverbs 31.

Example Sentences

• "Mrs. Cohen is a real eshet chayil."

Languages of Origin

Textual Hebrew

Etymology

אשת חיל

Who Uses This

Religious: Jews who are engaged in religious observance and have some Jewish education

Regions

North America

Dictionaries

The JPS Dictionary of Jewish Words, by Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic, (Philadelphia, 2001).
The Joys of Hebrew, by Lewis Glinert (New York, 1992).

Notes

The poem is traditionally sung Friday nights. This practice is more common among Orthodox Jews.