Word study

Double

3 Hebrew and 1 Greek words behind this English word

The original-language words that the Berean Standard Bible translates with one of these: double, doubled. English often uses one word where Hebrew or Greek has several, each with its own shade of meaning. Under each word are verses where it is translated this way; choose the word itself for its full study: every verse, how else it is translated, the forms it takes and what the dictionaries say.

At a glance

How often each original word is translated “double” or one of its forms.

Compare the Hebrew words side by side

Hebrew and Aramaic words (Old Testament)

  • שְׁנַיִם shenayimtwotranslated this way 8 times of its 642 uses · Strong’s H8147Number  ·  Translated: two 364, twelve 68, both 33, 12 25

    Exodus 22:4 If what was stolen is actually found alive in his possession— whether ox or donkey or sheep— he must pay back double.

    Deuteronomy 21:17 Instead, he must acknowledge the firstborn, the son of his unloved wife, by giving him a double portion of all that he has. For that son is the firstfruits of his father’s strength; the right of the firstborn belongs to him.

    Full study and all 550 verses →
  • מִשְׁנֶה mishnehdouble, copy, secondtranslated this way 7 times of its 34 uses · Strong’s H4932Noun  ·  Translated: second 11, double 4, Second District 4, twice 2

    Genesis 43:12 Take double the silver with you so that you may return the silver that was put back into the mouths of your sacks. Perhaps it was a mistake.

    Isaiah 61:7 Instead of shame, My people will have a double portion, and instead of humiliation, they will rejoice in their share; and so they will inherit a double portion in their land, and everlasting joy will be theirs.

    Full study and all 33 verses →
  • כָּפַל kâphaldouble, double overtranslated this way 3 times of its 4 uses · Strong’s H3717Verb  ·  Translated: folded over double 2, double 1, strike two times 1

    Exodus 26:9 Join five of the curtains into one set and the other six into another. Then fold the sixth curtain over double at the front of the tent.

    Exodus 28:16 It must be square when folded over double, a span long and a span wide.

    Full study and all 4 verses →

Greek words (New Testament)

  • διπλοῦς diploûsdouble, two-foldtranslated this way 3 times of its 4 uses · Strong’s G1362Adjective  ·  Translated: double 3, twice as much 1

    1 Timothy 5:17 Elders who lead effectively are worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching.

    Revelation 18:6 Give back to her as she has done to others; pay her back double for what she has done; mix her a double portion in her own cup.

    Full study and all 3 verses →
How to study a word well
  1. Start from the verse, not the dictionary. Find which Hebrew or Greek word stands in the verse you are studying. One English word often translates several different original words.
  2. Read every place the word is used. A word means what its writers used it to mean. The list of verses and the count by book show its range, and who uses it most.
  3. Look at how it is translated. A word rendered five different ways has a wider meaning than any one English word can carry.
  4. Notice the form. A command is not a statement, and a passive verb is something done to the subject. The form in your verse is part of the meaning.
  5. See what it keeps company with. The words that appear beside it again and again show how the Bible itself connects ideas.
  6. Then read the dictionaries. They give the considered view of scholars, with their evidence.
  7. Come back to the verse. Context decides. A word does not carry every one of its meanings into every verse, and where a word came from does not settle what it means in a sentence written centuries later.

Scripture text and translation counts: Berean Standard Bible. Full entry: Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906, public domain), in the digital edition Brown-Driver-Briggs Enhanced by unfoldingWord (Joel Ruark, J. de Joode), based on data by Eliran Wong and Stephen Ku; its additions are used under CC BY 4.0. Strong’s Hebrew Dictionary: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project, CC BY 4.0. Hebrew-to-English verse numbering: original work of the Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible available at https://github.com/openscriptures/morphhb, CC BY 4.0. We reformatted the data, linked the references to this site’s Bible text and left out words in other scripts that the source holds only as images. These are historical reference works; an entry gives its authors’ view, and a word’s meaning in any verse depends on how it is used there.