Shema
[shuh-mah, shmah]
- 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.
Show More
Origin of Shema
From the Hebrew word shəmaʿ listen!
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for shema
Contemporary Examples
He would often kiss the earth of Israel; at night, he would say the shema prayer for hours.
Her arrest and detention for uttering the shema ought to find no sympathy from any Jew.
Historical Examples
The other practical observances like prayer, the reading of "Shema," and so on.
A History of Mediaeval Jewish PhilosophyIsaac Husik
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
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 PhilosophyIsaac Husik
In this palace a seal was found bearing a lion and the inscription belonging to Shema, the servant of Jeroboam.
Archology and the BibleGeorge 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 JamesA. T. Robertson
Shema
- 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
Show More
Word Origin
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
Word Origin and History for shema
Shema
from Hebrew shema "hear!," imperative of shama "to hear." First word of Deut. vi:4.
Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper