Word study
Use
15 Hebrew and 3 Greek words behind this English word
The original-language words that the Berean Standard Bible translates with one of these: used, use, uses. 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 “use” or one of its forms.
Compare the Hebrew words side by side Compare the Greek words side by side
Hebrew and Aramaic words (Old Testament)
- עָשָׂה âsâhdo, maketranslated this way 9 times of its 2,478 uses · Strong’s H6213Verb · Translated: done 292, made 265, make 143, did 112Full study and all 2,206 verses →
Exodus 30:37 You are never to use this formula to make incense for yourselves; you shall regard it as holy to the LORD.
Leviticus 7:24 The fat of an animal found dead or mauled by wild beasts may be used for any other purpose, but you must not eat it.
- הָיָה hâyâhfall out, come to pass, become, betranslated this way 8 times of its 2,848 uses · Strong’s H1961Verb · Translated: will be 206, become 178, came 169, was 151Full study and all 2,573 verses →
Genesis 11:3 And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” So they used brick instead of stone, and tar instead of mortar.
- נָשָׂא nâsâlift, take, carrytranslated this way 4 times of its 642 uses · Strong’s H5375Verb · Translated: bear 49, lift 45, lifted 41, carried 38Full study and all 601 verses →
Exodus 25:27 The rings are to be close to the rim, to serve as holders for the poles used to carry the table.
Exodus 30:4 And make two gold rings below the molding on opposite sides to hold the poles used to carry it.
- שָׁרַת shârathminister, servetranslated this way 4 times of its 94 uses · Strong’s H8334Verb · Translated: minister 32, serve 9, ministering 6, ministers 6Full study and all 88 verses →
Numbers 3:31 Their duties were the ark, the table, the lampstand, the altars, the articles of the sanctuary used with them, and the curtain— all the service for these items.
2 Kings 25:14 They also took away the pots, shovels, wick trimmers, dishes, and all the articles of bronze used in the temple service.
- עֲבֹדָה ăbôdâhlabour, servicetranslated this way 4 times of its 127 uses · Strong’s H5656Noun · Translated: service 56, work 25, labor 8, task 5Full study and all 112 verses →
Exodus 27:19 All the utensils of the tabernacle for every use, including all its tent pegs and the tent pegs of the courtyard, shall be made of bronze.
Numbers 4:32 and the posts of the surrounding courtyard with their bases, tent pegs, and ropes, including all their equipment and everything related to their use. You shall assign by name the items that they are responsible to carry.
- לָקַח lâqachtaketranslated this way 3 times of its 938 uses · Strong’s H3947Verb · Translated: take 247, took 245, taken 40, get 26Full study and all 890 verses →
Exodus 28:5 They shall use gold, along with blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and fine linen.
Exodus 33:7 Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it at a distance outside the camp. He called it the Tent of Meeting, and anyone inquiring of the LORD would go to the Tent of Meeting outside the camp.
- פָּנִים pânîmface, beforetranslated this way 3 times of its 1,836 uses · Strong’s H6440Noun · Translated: before 448, face 222, presence 147, before you 123Full study and all 1,671 verses →
- נוּף nûphmove to and fro, wave, besprinkletranslated this way 3 times of its 37 uses · Strong’s H5130Verb · Translated: wave 15, waved 4, presented 3, use 2Full study and all 35 verses →
Exodus 20:25 Now if you make an altar of stones for Me, you must not build it with stones shaped by tools; for if you use a chisel on it, you will defile it.
Deuteronomy 27:5 Moreover, you are to build there an altar to the LORD your God, an altar of stones. You must not use any iron tool on them.
- יָצַק yâtsaqpour, cast, flowtranslated this way 2 times of its 50 uses · Strong’s H3332Verb · Translated: pour 12, cast 10, poured 8, anointed 2Full study and all 48 verses →
Exodus 38:27 The hundred talents of silver were used to cast the bases of the sanctuary and the bases of the veil— 100 bases from the 100 talents, one talent per base.
2 Kings 3:11 But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there no prophet of the LORD here? Let us inquire of the LORD through him.” And one of the servants of the king of Israel answered, “Elisha son of Shaphat is here. He used to pour water on the hands of Elijah.”
- יָשַׁב yâshabsit, remain, dwelltranslated this way 2 times of its 1,049 uses · Strong’s H3427Verb · Translated: lived 103, dwell 89, live 84, sit 70Full study and all 960 verses →
Leviticus 18:3 You must not follow the practices of the land of Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not follow the practices of the land of Canaan, into which I am bringing you. You must not walk in their customs.
Deuteronomy 2:20 (That too was regarded as the land of the Rephaim, who used to live there, though the Ammonites called them Zamzummites.
- עָבַד âbadwork, servetranslated this way 2 times of its 286 uses · Strong’s H5647Verb · Translated: serve 110, served 44, worship 32, work 9Full study and all 259 verses →
Numbers 7:5 “Accept these gifts from them, that they may be used in the work of the Tent of Meeting. And give them to the Levites, to each man according to his service.”
Deuteronomy 21:3 Then the elders of the city nearest the victim shall take a heifer that has never been yoked or used for work,
- בָּנָה bânâhbuildtranslated this way 2 times of its 368 uses · Strong’s H1129Verb · Translated: built 132, build 98, rebuilt 34, rebuild 19Full study and all 342 verses →
1 Kings 15:22 Then King Asa summoned all the men of Judah, with no exceptions, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and the timbers Baasha had used for building. And with these materials King Asa built up Geba of Benjamin, as well as Mizpah.
2 Chronicles 16:6 Then King Asa brought all the men of Judah, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and the timbers Baasha had used for building. And with these materials he built up Geba and Mizpah.
- בּוֹא bôcome in, come, go in, gotranslated this way 2 times of its 2,442 uses · Strong’s H935Verb · Translated: come 358, came 298, bring 209, brought 201Full study and all 2,217 verses →
- מָה mâhwhat? how? aughttranslated this way 2 times of its 708 uses · Strong’s H4100Interrogative · Translated: what 313, why 183, how 80, many 5Full study and all 618 verses →
- צָלַח tsâlachrushtranslated this way 2 times of its 65 uses · Strong’s H6743Verb · Translated: prosper 13, succeed 8, success 5, prospered 5Full study and all 64 verses →
Jeremiah 13:7 So I went to Perath and dug up the loincloth, and I took it from the place where I had hidden it. But now it was ruined— of no use at all.
Jeremiah 13:10 These evil people, who refuse to listen to My words, who follow the stubbornness of their own hearts, and who go after other gods to serve and worship them, they will be like this loincloth — of no use at all.
Greek words (New Testament)
- χράομαι chráomaiI use, make use of, deal withtranslated this way 5 times of its 11 uses · Strong’s G5530Verb · Translated: used 2, use 2Full study and all 11 verses →
Acts 27:17 After hoisting it up, the crew used ropes to undergird the ship. And fearing that they would run aground on the sandbars of Syrtis, they lowered the sea anchor and were driven along.
1 Corinthians 7:31 and those who use the things of this world, as if not dependent on them. For this world in its present form is passing away.
- ὁ hothetranslated this way 3 times of its 9,898 uses · Strong’s G3588Article · Translated: the 6,410, of the 748, of 344, who 329Full study and all 5,117 verses →
- κάθημαι káthēmaiI sit, am seatedtranslated this way 2 times of its 84 uses · Strong’s G2521Verb · Translated: sitting 26, seated 23, Sit 11, sat 10Full study and all 82 verses →
John 9:8 At this, his neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging began to ask, “Isn’t this the man who used to sit and beg?”
Acts 3:10 they recognized him as the man who used to sit begging at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
How to study a word well
- 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.
- 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.
- Look at how it is translated. A word rendered five different ways has a wider meaning than any one English word can carry.
- 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.
- See what it keeps company with. The words that appear beside it again and again show how the Bible itself connects ideas.
- Then read the dictionaries. They give the considered view of scholars, with their evidence.
- 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.