Chapter 26 — Semantic Function Sorting

BBH Chapter 26 · Hiphil Strong Verbs

Classify each Hiphil verb as C (Causative), F (Factitive), D (Declarative), SA (Simple Action), or DN (Denominative). Type your answer in the Function column, then click ▶ Answer to check.

LabelFunctionKey diagnostic question
CCausativeDoes the subject cause someone/something else to do or experience the action?
FFactitiveDoes the subject cause an object to be in a certain state? (From a stative root.)
DDeclarativeDoes the subject declare or treat something as being in a state?
SASimple ActionIs the Hiphil the standard form of the verb with no Qal counterpart in normal usage?
DNDenominativeIs the Hiphil derived from a noun, performing an action related to that noun? (not in BBH)
Tip: Motion verb (go → bring) → Causative. Stative verb (be heavy → make heavy) → Factitive. Legal / evaluative declaration → Declarative. No common Qal counterpart → Simple Action. Hiphil built from a noun → Denominative.
#Hebrew FormConjugationRefContextual GlossFunction
1 וַיָּבֵא Wayyiqtol 3ms Gen 2:19 "he brought them to the man"
C — Causative — God caused the animals to come to Adam
2 וַתּוֹצֵא Wayyiqtol 3fs Gen 1:12 "the earth brought forth vegetation"
C — Causative — Earth caused vegetation to come out
3 וַיָּשֶׁב Wayyiqtol 3ms Gen 14:16 "he brought back his brother Lot"
C — Causative — Abraham caused people/goods to come back
4 הִשְׁקָה Perfect 3ms Gen 2:6 "a mist watered the whole surface"
C — Causative — The mist caused the ground to receive water; Qal = "drink"
5 וַיּוֹלֶד Wayyiqtol 3ms Gen 5:3 "Adam fathered a son"
C — Causative — Adam caused a son to be born; Qal = "give birth"
6 הַעֲלֵה Imperative 2ms Gen 22:2 "offer him as a burnt offering"
C — Causative — Isaac is to be caused to go up (as an offering)
7 וַתֹּרֶד Wayyiqtol 3fs Gen 24:18 "she lowered her jar to give him a drink"
C — Causative — Rebekah caused the jar to go down
8 וַיָּסַר Wayyiqtol 3ms Gen 30:35 "he removed the streaked goats"
C — Causative — He caused the goats to move away; Qal = "turn aside"
9 וַיַּגֵּד Wayyiqtol 3ms Gen 9:22 "Ham told his two brothers"
SA — Simple Action — Tell/declare; rarely attested in Qal; Hiphil is the primary form
10 הִגִּיד Weqatal 3ms Gen 3:11 "who told you that you were naked?"
SA — Simple Action — Same root — reporting/declaring is the Hiphil's basic meaning
11 וַתַּשְׁלֵךְ Wayyiqtol 3fs Gen 21:15 "she threw the child under one of the bushes"
SA — Simple Action — To throw/cast; Hiphil is the normal form (no common Qal)
12 הִזְכַּרְתָּ Perfect 2ms Gen 40:14 "mention me to Pharaoh"
C — Causative — Cause Pharaoh to remember me = bring me to his mind
13 מַזְכִּיר Participle ms Gen 41:9 "I am bringing my faults to mind"
C — Causative — Causing something to be remembered
14 הָמִית Inf. Construct Gen 18:25 "Far be it from you to put the righteous to death"
C — Causative — To cause to die = put to death; Qal = "die"
15 הַכּוֹת Inf. Construct Gen 4:15 "lest anyone who found him strike him"
SA — Simple Action — To strike; Hiphil is the primary form; no functional Qal
16 הִשְׁמַדְתִּי Perfect 1cs Lev 26:30 "I will destroy your high places"
SA — Simple Action — To destroy; Hiphil is the primary form; Niphal = "be destroyed"
17 תַּשְׁמִידוּ Imperfect 2mp Num 33:52 "you shall demolish all their figured stones"
SA — Simple Action — Same root
18 וַיַּכְבֵּד Wayyiqtol 3ms Exo 8:32 "Pharaoh hardened his heart this time also"
F — Factitive — Caused his heart to be in a state of heaviness/stubbornness
19 וְהַכְבֵּד Inf. Absolute Exo 8:15 "he made his heart stubborn" (intensified)
F — Factitive — Same root; Inf. Absolute reinforces the factitive force
20 וַתַּגְדֵּל Wayyiqtol 2ms Gen 19:19 "you have shown great kindness to me"
F — Factitive — Caused great things to exist; Qal = "be great"
21 הִרְשִׁיעוּ Perfect 3cp Deu 25:1 "they shall acquit the innocent and condemn the guilty"
D — Declarative — Legal verdict: they declare the guilty party as guilty
22 יַרְשִׁיעֻ Imperfect 3mp Exo 22:8 "the judges shall declare him guilty"
D — Declarative — Court declaration, not an act of causing wickedness
23 וַיַּעַל Wayyiqtol 3ms Gen 8:20 "Noah offered burnt offerings on the altar"
C — Causative — Noah caused offerings to go up; Qal = "go up"
24 הָמִית Inf. Construct Gen 37:18 "they conspired against him to kill him"
C — Causative — Causing death; Qal = "die"
25 מַמְטִיר Participle ms Gen 7:4 "I am about to send rain on the earth"
DN — Denominative — From noun מָטָר "rain" — to perform the action of rain; to send/cause rain
26 וַיַּשְׁכֵּם Wayyiqtol 3ms Gen 22:3 "Abraham rose early in the morning"
DN — Denominative — From noun שְׁכֶם "shoulder" — to shoulder up early = to rise early / start at dawn
27 הַאְזִינוּ Imperative 2mp Deu 32:1 "give ear, O heavens, and I will speak"
DN — Denominative — From noun אֹזֶן "ear" — to ear = to give ear / listen attentively

Discussion Questions

  1. Items 18–19 both come from כָּבֵד (Exo 8:32, 8:15). The root means "to be heavy." How does the Hiphil meaning connect to that? Is this Factitive or Causative — and why?
  2. Items 21–22 both use רָשָׁע and both classify as Declarative. Compare Deu 25:1 (a judicial verdict) with Exo 22:8 (a court decision). What do they have in common that makes both Declarative rather than Factitive?
  3. Items 12–13 (זָכַר, "to remember") might seem like Simple Action, but they are classified as Causative. What is the Causative reading? Does it make the translation different?
  4. Items 25–27 are Denominative. For each one, identify the underlying noun. How does knowing the noun make the Hiphil meaning immediately transparent?