יָרֵא yârêʼ — to fear
Translated in the KJV as affright, be afraid, dread, fear(-ful, -fully, -ing), reverence, × see, terrible (act, -ness, thing).
a primitive root; to fear; morally to revere; causatively to frighten.
yârêʼ in each stem
Qal (Pa'al)
Jussive 78Imperfect (yiqtol) 73Wayyiqtol 44Perfect (qatal) 36Infinitive construct 17Sequential perfect (weqatal) 7Imperative 7Participle (active) 5Cohortative 1
And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
After these things the word of the Lord came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.
Then Sarah denied, saying, I laughed not; for she was afraid. And he said, Nay; but thou didst laugh.
Niph'al
Participle (active) 44Imperfect (yiqtol) 1
And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.
Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?
And he said, Behold, I make a covenant: before all thy people I will do marvels, such as have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation: and all the people among which thou art shall see the work of the Lord: for it is a terrible thing that I will do with thee.
Pi'el
Infinitive construct 2Participle (active) 2Imperfect (yiqtol) 1
Now therefore that I am come to speak of this thing unto my lord the king, it is because the people have made me afraid: and thy handmaid said, I will now speak unto the king; it may be that the king will perform the request of his handmaid.
Then they cried with a loud voice in the Jews’ speech unto the people of Jerusalem that were on the wall, to affright them, and to trouble them; that they might take the city.
For they all made us afraid, saying, Their hands shall be weakened from the work, that it be not done. Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands.
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 ›