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בי. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
בי, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
בי in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
בי you have here. The definition of the word
בי will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
בי, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Hebrew
Etymology 1
According to Abraham ibn Ezra (in his short commentary to Genesis 43:20 ), the particle comes from the preposition, and is short for something like "the sin is mine", meaning "I sin in speaking, so do to me what you will, but hear me out". According to Nachmanides (in his commentary ad loc.), the particle does not exist as a separate sense; rather, all instances of בִּי אֲדֹנִי (bí adoní) are to be translated "master over me", and similarly wherever else בִּי appears, which is thus just the preposition form.
Preposition
בִּי • (bí)
- Form of ב־ (b-) including first-person singular personal pronoun as object.
Etymology 2
Particle
בִּי • (bí)
- (archaic or obsolete) please: used to make a polite request
Etymology 3
Interjection
בַּי • (báy)
- defective spelling of ביי
References
- ^ Romm Brothers (1935) “Page 563”, in Chumash Mikros Gedolos - Bereishis (in Hebrew)
See also