Ishmael

[ish-mee-uhl, -mey-]

noun

1. (in the Bible) the son of Abraham and Hagar: both he and Hagar were cast out of Abraham's family by Sarah.

2. any outcast.

Ishmael

/ ˈɪʃmeɪəl /

noun

1. the son of Abraham and Hagar, Sarah's handmaid: the ancestor of 12 Arabian tribes (Genesis 21:8–21; 25:12–18)

2. a bandit chieftain, who defied the Babylonian conquerors of Judah and assassinated the governor appointed by Nebuchadnezzar (II Kings 25:25; Jeremiah 40:13–41:18)

3. rare,  an outcast

Word History and Origins

Origin of Ishmael¹

From Hebrew Yishmāʿēl “God will hear”

Example Sentences

British light-middleweight Ishmael Davis took two successive late replacement fights in 2024, one at Wembley Stadium and one in Riyadh, and has now lost three in a row.

Read more on BBC

“It’s ‘Isaac and Ishmael,’ talking about how the two different branches came from Abraham — two different groups but from the same person.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Mohamed Ishmael, another Mamoudzou resident, told Reuters news agency the situation there was "a tragedy" and said: "You feel like you are in the aftermath of a nuclear war… I saw an entire neighbourhood disappear."

Read more on BBC

Ishmael found that people online begged for a Victoria's Secret Fashion show of times past that included very harmful narratives about women's bodies.

Read more on Salon

Ishmael Daro, an editor at Democracy Now!, made a tongue-in-cheek prediction that the reaction from the U.S. political establishment would be similar this time.

Read more on Salon