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Baal

[bey-uh l, beyl]
noun, plural Ba·al·im [bey-uh-lim, bey-lim] /ˈbeɪ ə lɪm, ˈbeɪ lɪm/.
  1. any of numerous local deities among the ancient Semitic peoples, typifying the productive forces of nature and worshiped with much sensuality.
  2. (sometimes lowercase) a false god.
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Origin of Baal

From the Hebrew word baʿal lord
Related formsBa·al·ish, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for baalim

Historical Examples

  • The cause of the drought was not the menace of Elijah, but the apostasy to Baalim.

    The Expositor's Bible: The First Book of Kings

    F. W. Farrar

  • It was because Ahab and his subjects worshiped a false God (Baalim).

  • Should I then fear a King who wants to sell his people to the Baalim?

    Master Olof

    August Strindberg

  • The Baalim mostly represented forces of nature—the sun, the stars.

    Judges and Ruth

    Robert A. Watson

  • But the lords indicated were Baalim who were Lords of the Sun.

British Dictionary definitions for baalim

Baal

noun
  1. any of several ancient Semitic fertility gods
  2. Phoenician myth the sun god and supreme national deity
  3. (sometimes not capital) any false god or idol
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Word Origin

from Hebrew bá'al lord, master
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for baalim

Baal

"The name of many deities of the Semitic peoples" [Klein], late 14c., Biblical use is from Hebrew Ba'al, literally "owner, master, lord," from ba'al "he took possession of," also "he married;" related to Akkadian Belu (source of Hebrew Bel), name of Marduk. Also related to the first element in Beelzebub. Used figuratively for any "false god."

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper