כור

כור

Hebrew

Etymology 1

Root
כ־ו־ר‎ (k-w-r)

Derived from Akkadian 𒆠𒉈 (/kuru/, “crucible, kiln, brazier; log, thick reed; short reed mat, collection of reeds”), likely coined from Sumerian 𒄥 (gur, “a bundle”), hence a place of burning bundles of firewood or tinder. Cognate with Aramaic כּוּרָא‎ (kūrā), Classical Syriac ܟܘܪܐ‎ (kūrā), Arabic كُور‎ (kūr), and related to כִּירָה‎ (kirá).

Pronunciation

• (Modern Israeli Hebrew) IPA^(key): /kur/

Noun

כּוּר • (kur) m (plural indefinite כּוּרִים‎, singular construct כּוּר־, plural construct כּוּרֵי־‎)

1. A furnace for melting metals.
   • c. 593–571 B.C.E., Ezekiel 22:22, with translation of the King James Version:

     ‏כְּהִתּוּךְ כֶּסֶף בְּתוֹךְ כּוּר כֵּן תֻּתְּכוּ בְתוֹכָהּ […] ‎

     k'hitúkh késef b'tókh kur ken tutkhú b'tokháh […]

     As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, so shall ye be melted in the midst thereof; […]

   • a. 217 C.E., Mishnah, Shabbat 8:4:

     ‏כּוּר שֶׁל צוֹרְפֵי זָהָב‎

     kur shel tzor'féi zaháv

     a furnace of goldsmiths

   • 200 BCE – 175 BCE, Ben Sira 31.43

     ‏כּוּר בּוֹחֵן מַעֲשֵׂה לוֹטֵשׁ‎

     kur bokhén ma'asé lotésh

     (please add an English translation of this usage example)

2. Used figuratively.
   • 1905, Hayim Nahman Bialik, The Scroll of Fire 8

     ‏צֹרַף לְבַב הָעֶלֶם בְּכוּר מְשֻׁלָּשׁ‎

     tzoráf l'váv ha'élem b'khúr m'shulásh

     (please add an English translation of this usage example)

Etymology 2

From Akkadian 𒄥 (/kurru/), from Sumerian 𒄥 (GUR, “a bundle of barley; standard unit of capacity”). Cognate with Aramaic כּוֹרָא‎ (kōrā, “a dry measure”), Classical Syriac ܟܘܪܐ‎ (kōrā, “a dry measure”), Arabic كُرّ‎ (kurr, “a dry measure; payment of six donkeys”).

Alternative forms

• כֹּר‎ (defective spelling)

Pronunciation

• (Modern Israeli Hebrew) IPA^(key): /kor/

Noun

כּוֹר • (kor) m (plural indefinite כּוֹרִים‎, singular construct כּוֹר־, plural construct כּוֹרֵי־‎)

1. A biblical measure of weight equal to 10 ephah.

   1 Kings 5:2, with translation of the New American Standard Bible: [Note: Christian Bibles mark this verse as I Kings 4:22]

   • ‏וַיְהִי לֶחֶם־שְׁלֹמֹה לְיוֹם אֶחָד שְׁלֹשִׁים כֹּר סֹלֶת וְשִׁשִּׁים כֹּר קָמַח׃‎‎

     Vayhí léḥem Shlomó l'yóm eḥád shloshím kór sólet v'shishím kór qémaḥ.

     Solomon's provision for one day was thirty kors of fine flour and sixty kors of meal.

   Synonym: חוֹמֶר‎

References

• “כוּר” in Abraham Even-Shoshan (אַבְרָהָם אֶבֶן־שׁוֹשָׁן) et al., הַמִּלּוֹן הֶחָדָשׁ‎ (ha-milón he-khadásh, “The New Dictionary”), Kiryat-Sefer Ltd. (קִרְיַת־סֵפֶר בְּע״ם)‎ (1984), →ISBN, volume 1 of 3 (א to כ), →ISBN, page 531.
• “כוֹר” in Abraham Even-Shoshan (אַבְרָהָם אֶבֶן־שׁוֹשָׁן) et al., הַמִּלּוֹן הֶחָדָשׁ‎ (ha-milón he-khadásh, “The New Dictionary”), Kiryat-Sefer Ltd. (קִרְיַת־סֵפֶר בְּע״ם)‎ (1984), →ISBN, volume 1 of 3 (א to כ), →ISBN, page 531.
• “כור” in the Hebrew Terms Database of the Academy of Hebrew Language

Further reading

• כור‎ on the Hebrew Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^he