Hebrew Vocabulary

Welcome to WillYouLoveHim Ministries (WYLH.org)! Please take some time to read the below Vocabulary Table so that you understand what the Hebrew words used on this website mean. Remember: The Bible was not originally written in English. The Bible was originally written in the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek languages.

Vocabulary Word How Do I Say This Word? (i.e. How Is This Word Phonetically Pronounced?) What Does This Word Mean?
El Phonetically Pronounced: L | El | Ell

This Hebrew word means "Strength", "Might", "Power", or something similar to these. One example is Genesis 31:29 which starts out with "It is in the power of my hand...". The word "power" is from the Hebrew word El. Sometimes this word is translated as "God", but I do not believe "God" is an accurate translation of this word.
Elohiym Phonetically Pronounced: Eh-low-heem | El-oh-heem

Let's examine a few verses in the King James Bible: Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. The word "God" in Genesis 1:1 is being translated from the Hebrew word Elohiym and is referring to our Creator. Exodus 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me. The word "gods" in Exodus 20:3 is being translated from the Hebrew word Elohiym and is NOT referring to our Creator.

This shows that the Hebrew word Elohiym is not the same as the English word "God" because the Hebrew word Elohiym does not always exclusively refer to our Creator when it is used in the Hebrew language. My view is that the Hebrew word Elohiym means "MIghty Mighty Powers", or something similar. I just write the Hebrew word as "Elohiym" on this website usually instead of trying to translate it into English.
Elohay Phonetically Pronounced: El-oh-hi | El-oh-high | El-oh-h-eye

This Hebrew word is one of the ways of saying "my Elohiym". Here's an example:
Deuteronomy 4:5 Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as Yahweh Elohay commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it.
Elohey Phonetically Pronounced: El-oh-hay | El-oh-hei

This Hebrew word is the way of saying "Elohiym of". Here's an example:
Genesis 31:53 Elohey Abraham, and Elohey Nahor, Elohey of their father, judge betwixt us. And Jacob sware by the fear of his father Isaac.
Eloheynu Phonetically Pronounced: El-oh-hay-nue | El-oh-hay-new | El-oh-hei-nue | El-oh-hey-new

This Hebrew word is the way of saying "Our Elohiym". Here's an example:
Exodus 5:8 And the tale of the bricks, which they did make heretofore, ye shall lay upon them; ye shall not diminish ought thereof: for they be idle; therefore they cry, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to Eloheynu.
Eloheykha Phonetically Pronounced: El-oh-hay-khah | El-oh-hei-khah | El-oh-hey-khah

This Hebrew word is the way of saying "Thy Elohiym". Here's an example:
Deuteronomy 10:21 He is thy praise, and he is Eloheykha, that hath done for thee these great and terrible things, which thine eyes have seen.
Adon Phonetically Pronounced: Ah-doe-n | Ah-doh-n | Ah-dough-n

This Hebrew word means "Lord".
Adonai Phonetically Pronounced: Ah-doe-nie | Ah-doe-n-eye | Ah-doh-nie | Ah-doh-n-eye | Ah-dough-nigh | Ah-dough-n-eye

This Hebrew word means "My Lord".
Yahweh Phonetically Pronounced: Yah-way | Yah-weigh
Possibly Anciently Phonetically Pronounced: Yah-who-way | Yah-who-weigh (I believe "Yahweh" may be a slightly abbreviated form of "Yahuweh" and that "Yahuweh" may be the longest most ancient way of pronouncing Yahweh's Name. If that's correct, then I would consider both "Yahuweh" and "Yahweh" to be considered correct, but that "Yahweh" may be just a slightly abbreviated form of "Yahuweh" but still considered "correct".

💡 Learning Tip: The "jah" in Hallelujah is pronounced "Yah" because Hallelujah should be written as HalleluYah because the "Yah" refers to "Yahweh" because "Yah" is an abbreviated form of Yahweh's Name. The "j" you see in English Bibles in Ancient Hebrew Names is usually a Y in Hebrew in reality. So just like the spelling for Hallelujah is incorrect and should say HalleluYah with a "Y", "Jehovah" is also spelled incorrectly (and the vowels are incorrect too). The incorrect spelling of "Jehovah" should be understood to be spoken more correctly as "Yahuweh" or "Yahweh".


YAHWEH is the Name of our Creator, the Heavenly Father. Let's examine a few verses in the King James Bible: Exodus 4:10 And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue. Exodus 3:15 And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations. Exodus 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. Deuteronomy 9:26 I prayed therefore unto the LORD, and said, O Lord GOD, destroy not thy people and thine inheritance, which thou hast redeemed through thy greatness, which thou hast brought forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand. Joel 2:32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call. Isaiah 12:2 Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the LORD JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation. Have you ever wondered why most English Bibles put the word "Lord" sometimes, but then other times have the same word "LORD" in all capital letters? The reason is usually because the word "Lord" comes from the Hebrew word "Adon", but the word "LORD" in all capital letters is actually a translation error! Almost every time you see the word "LORD" or "GOD" in all capital letters in an English Bible, what was really there in the original Hebrew Scrolls was the Name of our Heavenly Father, our Creator: YAHWEH.

Let's examine the above verses again, but with the Hebrew put in so that you can see what it really says in the above verses: Exodus 4:10 And Moses said unto Yahweh, O Adonai, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue. Exodus 3:15 And Elohiym said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, Yahweh Elohey your fathers, Elohey Abraham, Elohey Isaac, and Elohey Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations. Exodus 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of Yahweh Eloheykha in vain; for Yahweh will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. Deuteronomy 9:26 I prayed therefore unto Yahweh, and said, O Adonai Yahweh, destroy not thy people and thine inheritance, which thou hast redeemed through thy greatness, which thou hast brought forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand. Joel 2:32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of Yahweh shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as Yahweh hath said, and in the remnant whom Yahweh shall call. Isaiah 12:2 Behold, El is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for Yah Yahweh is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation. Notice in the last verse mentioned, Isaiah 12:2, it actually says "Yah Yahweh" in the Hebrew. "Yah" is the shortened form of the name of our Creator, YAHWEH. This is where we get the Hebrew word "HalleluYah" from which literally means "Praise Yah!". If you take the time to look at the above verses, just to give a few examples, you can see that the name "Yahweh" is important. It is estimated the name "Yahweh" is in the Hebrew scrolls approximately 7,000 times.
Yahushua See Related Study: Proving The "Shua" in "Yahushua"

Phonetically Pronounced: Yah-oo-shoe-uh | Yah-who-shoe-uh (I am not 100% consistent on this and I hear myself saying both of these, sometimes emphasizing the H, sometimes not.)

YAHUSHUA is the Name of the Son of our Creator. Let's examine a few verses in the King James Version (KJV):
Acts 7:45 Which also our fathers that came after brought in with Jesus into the possession of the Gentiles, whom God drave out before the face of our fathers, unto the days of David; Hebrews 4:8 For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. Now let's examine these verses in the New International Version (NIV):
Acts 7:45 Having received the tabernacle, our fathers under Joshua brought it with them when they took the land from the nations God drove out before them. It remained in the land until the time of David, Hebrews 4:8 For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. Why did one version put the name "Jesus" and another version put the name "Joshua" for these two verses?

The simple truth is this: The name of the Son of our Creator, the Son of Yahweh, The Messiah, HaMashiach, Christ, is the same as the "Joshua" from the Hebrew Bible (aka Old Testament). The name of the Messiah (Christ) in Hebrew and Greek is identical to that of the "Joshua" from the Hebrew Bible (aka Old Testament). So why does the name Jesus appear in the Bible today? I'm not a language expert, but here's my thoughts: The Greek language appears to have no "sh" sound (unless I'm mistaken, please let me know). In addition, Greek names that are masculine appear to have an "s" put on the end just because they're masculine.

These are a few of the reasons why it appears the Name Jesus is found in most Bibles today. In addition, it seems the name written was written in Latin as Iesus and into the 1611 King James Version as Iesus as well. I wonder if perhaps the Latin translation influenced the English translation. In the 1769 King James Version, the name was written as Jesus and it seems as though it's done today mostly due to tradition more than anything. I can't really find a good reason to write the Name as Jesus after finding out His Name is the same as the "Joshua" from the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). If we wanted an "English" version, it would be Joshua. However, names do not change based upon what language people speak. "Moses", for example, is actually "Mosheh". Similarly, we've determined it makes the most sense to just leave the name alone, as it is in Hebrew, and write it in English as YAHUSHUA.

Related Info: Did You Know From The Dead Sea Scrolls To The Masoretic Hebrew, Letters Went Missing And Are Now Sometimes Represented In Vowel Points?

יהוה These are 4 Hebrew letters spelling out the name Yahweh in Hebrew. The Hebrew letters are Yad (Y), Heh (H), Waw (W), Heh (H). Hebrew is read from right to left.
YHWH This is another way to write the Name Yahweh since in Hebrew there are actually only 4 letters.
יהושע This is the most common way that the Name Yahushua is now written in Masoretic Hebrew. The Masoretic Hebrew dates to approximately between 700-1100 AD and is the most complete Hebrew available and known of which most Bibles base their translation upon.
יהושוע This is the Name Yahushua written in the longest Ancient Hebrew form which contains an additional letter "Waw" near the end. Don't believe me? Want to see the evidence? Watch the video. I told you above this to See Related Study: Proving The "Shua" in "Yahushua". I'm giving you the truth. If you don't click, read, and watch, I can't do anything about that. All I can do is share the truth. It's up to you to believe.
YHWSHUA This is another way to write the Name Yahushua.