Shema

[ shuh-mah, shmah ]

/ ʃəˈmɑ, ʃmɑ /

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noun Judaism.

a liturgical prayer, prominent in Jewish history and tradition, that is recited daily at the morning and evening services and expresses the Jewish people's ardent faith in and love of God.

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Origin of Shema

From the Hebrew word shəmaʿ listen!

Words nearby Shema

shelty, shelve, shelves, shelving, Shem, Shema, she-male, Shembe, Shemini Atseres, Shemini Atzereth, Shemite

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Shema in a sentence

He would often kiss the earth of Israel; at night, he would say the shema prayer for hours.
Rav Froman's Funeral|Elisheva Goldberg|March 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Her arrest and detention for uttering the shema ought to find no sympathy from any Jew.
Funds and a Unified Front|Rabbi Gerald C. Skolnik|October 24, 2012|DAILY BEAST
To the commandments of the tongue belong the reading of the Shema, grace after meals, the priestly benediction, and so on.
A History of Mediaeval Jewish Philosophy|Isaac Husik
The Shema was followed by another benediction voicing gratitude for divine redemption.
A Thousand Years of Jewish History|Maurice H. (Maurice Henry) Harris

The Inquisition was obliged to forbid the uttering of the word "Shema" with a threat of heavy punishment.
History of the Jews, Vol. V (of 6)|Heinrich Graetz
In this palace a seal was found bearing a lion and the inscription belonging to Shema, the servant of Jeroboam.
Archology and the Bible|George A. Barton
Oesterley (in loco) adds that “the very parchment on which the Shema is written is efficacious in keeping demons at a distance.”
Studies in the Epistle of James|A. T. Robertson

British Dictionary definitions for Shema

Shema

/ (ʃəˈmɑː) /

noun

the central statement of Jewish belief, the sentence "Hear, O Israel: the Lord is your God; the Lord is One" (Deuteronomy 6:4)

the section of the liturgy consisting of this and related biblical passages, Deuteronomy 6:4–9 and 11:13–21 and Numbers 15:37–41, recited in the morning and evening prayers and on retiring at night

Word Origin for Shema

Hebrew, literally: hear

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