Shem

S1H4E1M3

proper noun

The oldest son of Noah, brother to Ham and Japheth.

“And the sonnes of Noah that went forth of the Arke, were Shem, and Ham, and Iaphet: and Ham is the father of Canaan.”

OriginAncient Greek Σήμ ← Hebrew שם →
Less commonScrabble 9
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Meanings

proper noun
  1. biblicalThe oldest son of Noah, brother to Ham and Japheth.

    And the sonnes of Noah that went forth of the Arke, were Shem, and Ham, and Iaphet: and Ham is the father of Canaan.

  2. A male given name from Hebrew of biblical origin.

Origin

  1. Hebrewשם
  2. Ancient GreekΣήμ
  3. EnglishShem

From Ancient Greek Σήμ (Sḗm), from Hebrew שם (Šēm).

More words from Ancient Greek, Hebrew

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Ancient Greek Σήμ
  • Σήμ (Sḗm)son of Noah
Arabic سَام
  • سَام (sām)son of Noah
Bengali সাম, সেম
  • সাম (śam)son of Noah
  • সেম (Sem)son of Noah
Czech Šém
  • Šémson of Noah
Finnish Seem
  • Seemson of Noah
French Sem
  • Semson of Noah
German Sem
  • Semson of Noah
Greek Σημ
  • Σημ (Sim)son of Noah
Hindi शेम
  • शेम (śem)son of Noah
Hungarian Sém
  • Sémson of Noah
Italian Sem
  • Semson of Noah
Latin Sēm, Sēmus
  • Sēmson of Noah
  • Sēmusson of Noah
Persian سام
  • سام (sâm)son of Noah
Polish Sem
  • Semson of Noah
Portuguese Sem
  • Semson of Noah
Russian Сим
  • Сим (Sim)son of Noah
Spanish Sem
  • Semson of Noah
Vietnamese Sem
  • Semson of Noah

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

meshmehs
Cite this entry
APA

Shem. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Shem

MLA

“Shem.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Shem. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Shem,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Shem.

Source: Shem on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.