Kaphar
/kaˈfar/noun
A transliteration of the Biblical Hebrew verb meaning to cover, purge, or make atonement.
Did you know?In Biblical Hebrew, the same consonantal root is connected with kippur, “atonement,” and kofer, “ransom,” linking covering, cleansing, and the payment that releases someone from a penalty.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Semitic
Proto-Semitic
*k-p-r
“To cover or smear over; reconstructed Semitic root”
Biblical Hebrew
Hebrew
כָּפַר (kāpar)
“To cover, purge, or make atonement”
Biblical Hebrew
Hebrew
כֹּפֶר (kōfer)
“A covering payment, ransom, or compensatory price”
Biblical Hebrew
Hebrew
כִּפּוּר (kippūr)
“Atonement or ritual cleansing”
Rabbinic and Jewish English
Hebrew/English
Kippur
“Atonement, especially in the name Yom Kippur”
Modern English
English
kaphar
“Scholarly transliteration of the Hebrew verb, especially in biblical and theological writing”