סָמַר çâmar — to be erect, i.e. bristle as hair
Translated in the KJV as stand up, tremble.
a primitive root; to be erect, i.e. bristle as hair.
çâmar in each stem
Pi'el
Intensive · active — the action intensified, repeated or brought about; the subject does it
Imperfect (yiqtol) 1
תְּ֝סַמֵּ֗ר Job 4:15 Imperfect (yiqtol), 3rd person feminine singular
Then a spirit passed before my face; the hair of my flesh stood up:
Qal (Pa'al)
Simple · active — the plain action; the subject does it
Perfect (qatal) 1
סָמַ֣ר Ps 119:120 Perfect (qatal), 3rd person masculine singular
My flesh trembleth for fear of thee; and I am afraid of thy judgments.
What the stems mean
A Hebrew verb is its root letters set into a pattern. The pattern — the binyan — is the grammar's way of saying three things at once: whether the action is simple, intensive or causative, and whether its subject is active, passive or reflexive. That is why one Hebrew word can need six English ones. All seven binyanim, explained ›