gematria

Edit

Pronunciations

gematria (gih-MAH-tree-uh) listen

Record a Pronunciation

Definitions

  • n. An ancient system of Hebrew numerology in which each Hebrew letter possesses a numerical value, allowing words or phrases to express possible hidden meanings derived by adding the letters' values.

Example Sentences

  • "The gematria of 'chai' is 18."

  • "Quiet! I'm working out the gematria of the bride and bridegroom's names." (Glinert)

Record a Sentence

Languages of Origin

  • Textual Hebrew

Etymology

  • גימטריה, may derive from Greek for "geometry" or "gamma + tria" (Gamma, 3rd letter of alphabet)

      • Who Uses This

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

      Regions

      • North America
      • Australia / New Zealand
      • Great Britain
      • South Africa

      Dictionaries

      • The New Joys of Yiddish, by Leo Rosten and Lawrence Bush (New York, 2003[1968]).
      • The JPS Dictionary of Jewish Words, by Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic, (Philadelphia, 2001).
      • The Joys of Hebrew, by Lewis Glinert (New York, 1992).
      • Dictionary of Jewish Usage: A Popular Guide to the Use of Jewish Terms, by Sol Steinmetz (Lanham, MD, 2005).
      • View More

      Alternative Spellings

      gamatria, gimatria

Notes

  • According to gematria, the letter aleph corresponds with the number 1, while the letter bet represents a value of 2. The Talmud used a semi-decimal approach as the 11th letter is 20, twelfth 30, the nineteenth 100, the twentieth 200, up to 400.

Edit     Something missing from this entry? Inaccurate? Feel free to suggest an edit.