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KJV dictionary & concordance

Shibboleth

Meaning of “Shibboleth”

A test word whose pronunciation distinguished the Ephraimites.

Definition sources

KJV context and cross-referencesWebster 1828
1 occurrence1 verse1 bookKJV PCE

First occurrence: Judges 12:6

Complete exact-word concordance

The KJV occurrence

KJV PCE
Judges 12:6
Then said they unto him, Say now shibboleth: and he said Sibboleth: for he could not frame to pronounce it right. Then they took him, and slew him at the passages of Jordan: and there fell at that time of the Ephraimites forty and two thousand.
1 word occurrence in this verse
The 1611 reading
1611 witness · Judges 12:6 · retained source text

Then said they vnto him, Say now, Shibboleth: and he said, Sibboleth: for hee could not frame to pronounce it right. Then they tooke him, and slewe him at the passages of Iordan: and there fell at that time of the Ephraimites, fourtie & two thousand.

Source order

Definition evidence

Historical English dictionary sources

Historical definitions

A word made the criterion by which to distinguish the Ephraimites, who pronounced it Sibboleth.

Webster 1828 facsimile, volume 2, leaf 582