shittah

American  

[shit-uh] / ˈʃɪt ə /

noun

shittim, plural shittahs plural

1. a tree, said to be an acacia, probably Acacia seyal, that yielded the shittim wood of the Old Testament.

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shittah British  

/ ˈʃɪtə /

noun

1. a tree mentioned in the Old Testament, thought to be either of two Asian acacias, Acacia seyal or A. tortilis, having close-grained yellow-brown wood

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• shittahs
  plural
• shittim
  plural

Etymology

Origin of shittah

First recorded in 1605–15, shittah is from the Hebrew word shiṭṭāh

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

shittah shittim

On a hill rising gradually from beyond the harbor stood the royal palace of Antipas, its polished marble gleaming through the tops of palms and the lace-like green of shittah trees.

From The Coming of the King by Babcock, Bernie

Acacia seyal is supposed to be the shittah tree of the Bible, which supplied shittim-wood.

From The Project Gutenberg Encyclopedia Volume 1 of 28 by Project Gutenberg

It is the mimosa nilotica of Linnæus, the shittah of the Hebrew writers, and grows abundantly in Palestine.

From The Symbolism of Freemasonry by Mackey, Albert G.

A. Of shittim wood covered within and without with pure gold, surmounted with a golden crown and two cherubims of gold.

From The Mysteries of Free Masonry Containing All the Degrees of the Order Conferred in a Master's Lodge by Morgan, William

But not all the twenty-four species of cedar might be used for the Tabernacle, nay, not even the seven most excellent among them were found worthy, but only the species shittim might be used.

From The Legends of the Jews — Volume 3 by Radin, Paul

The ties appear to have been of the tamarisk or shittim wood, of which the ark was constructed—a sacred tree in ancient Egypt, and now very rarely found in the valley of the Nile.

From Harper's Young People, June 1, 1880 An Illustrated Weekly by Various

Mr. Carlile: Is it not actually the case, that God is represented in the text as dwelling in a box of shittim wood in the temple?

From The Battle of The Press As Told in the Story of the Life of Richard Carlile By His Daughter, Theophila Carlile Campbell by Campbell, Theophila Carlile

Shittim furthermore signifies "follies," hence Israel were to construct the place of penance for their folly in adoring the Golden Calf, out of shittim wood, to atone for this "folly."

From The Legends of the Jews — Volume 3 by Radin, Paul