כ־

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Hebrew

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Etymology

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Cognate with Arabic كَـ (ka-).

Preposition

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כְּ־ (k'-)

  1. Like, as.
    Synonym: כְּמוֹ (k'mó)
    • Psalms 92:12:
      צַדִּיק כַּתָּמָר יִפְרָח כְּאֶרֶז בַּלְּבָנוֹן יִשְׂגֶּה׃
      tsadík katamár yifrákh k'érez bal'vanón yisgé.
      The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.[1]
  2. About, approximately.

Usage notes

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  • Like all one-letter words in Hebrew, כ־ functions as a clitic, attaching to the word that follows it. Since it is a preposition, this means it attaches to the first word of its object.
  • כ־ undergoes the same vowel changes as לְ־ (l'-, to) and בְּ־ (b'-, in), including the merger with הַ־ (ha-, the).
  • In colloquial Hebrew, כ־ is relatively uncommon, the synonymous preposition כְּמוֹ (k'mó) usually being used instead. The main exception is in the idiom כְּשֶׁ־ (k'she-, as, when), since כְּמוֹ שֶׁ־ (k'mó, like, as) does not share the idiomatic sense.
  • כ־ does not have its own object-containing forms; those of the synonymous preposition כְּמוֹ (k'mó) are used instead.

Derived terms

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See also

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References

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