Shoreshim

Shoreshim, plural of shoresh, are the consonantal roots at the core of Hebrew words. In Hebrew and other Semitic languages, most words are formed from roots consisting of three consonants (a triliteral root), though some roots have four consonants (a quadriliteral root). The root carries the basic semantic content, while vowels, prefixes, suffixes, and patterns modify its meaning and grammatical category.

Word formation uses patterns and verbal stems known as binyanim. From a single shoresh, related words are produced by applying different patterns and affixes, yielding verbs, nouns, adjectives, and more. For example, the root כתב (k-t-v) yields forms such as כתב (katav, he wrote), לכתוב (likhtov, to write), כתיב (ketiv, writing), and הכתב (ha-ketav, the writing/script). These forms illustrate how a common root underpins a family of related words.

Weak roots—where one or more letters are aleph, hey, vav, or yod—can alter or disappear in certain forms, and some roots are quadriliteral. In dictionaries, shoreshim are used to group cognates and analyze semantic fields. The concept is central to Hebrew lexicography, Bible interpretation, and the study of Proto-Semitic roots, and it remains foundational to understanding modern Hebrew word formation and vocabulary learning.