What does dybbukim mean?
Dybbukim is the plural of dybbuk, a term from Jewish folklore denoting the disembodied soul of a dead person that enters and takes control of a living body. In traditional belief, such possession usually afflicted someone whose sins had left them spiritually vulnerable, and relief came only through ritual exorcism performed by a rabbi or mystic. The concept became widely known through Yiddish and Hebrew storytelling and was famously dramatized in S. Ansky's play 'The Dybbuk' (1914), which cemented the image of the possessing spirit in world literature. Today the word surfaces mostly in discussions of folklore, religion, and horror fiction, where it connotes invasive, malevolent presence rather than mere haunting. Because the term comes directly from Hebrew and Yiddish, it retains its Semitic plural ending, making 'dybbukim' one of several English plurals — like cherubim and seraphim — borrowed intact from Hebrew.
nounPlural of dybbuk: in Jewish folklore, the malicious spirits of dead people believed to possess the bodies of the living until exorcised.
- In Jewish folklore, the plural of dybbuk: souls of the dead that enter and possess the bodies of living people.
- By extension, any malevolent possessing spirit likened to such an entity.
"The old tales warned that dybbukim entered the bodies of sinners who left doors to the soul unguarded."
"The rabbi was summoned at midnight to cast out the dybbukim said to torment the young bride."
"Modern horror films often borrow the idea of dybbukim — invading spirits that take over an unwilling human host."
This is already a plural form, taken from the Hebrew plural ending -im; it does not take an English -s. The singular is 'dybbuk'.
"Legends told of dybbukim that clung to sinners until a righteous rabbi drove them out."
A dybbuk doesn't haunt your house — it haunts *you*: these restless Jewish spirits were said to slip inside the living and refuse to leave.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of dybbukim
Dybbuk derives from the Hebrew root d-v-q, meaning 'to cling' or 'to adhere', so the name literally suggests a spirit that clings to its host. The term passed into English through Yiddish usage among Eastern European Jewish communities in the late 19th century, around the time of Hasidic interest in possession and exorcism. It shares this root with the Hebrew religious concept of devekut, the devotional 'clinging' to God — a telling contrast between holy attachment and demonic possession.
Related word forms
How dybbukim is actually used
The word belongs chiefly to folklore, literature, and religious discussion, and appears almost always in the plural form 'dybbukim' when referring to multiple spirits; the singular 'dybbuk' is far more common in everyday English.
Easily confused with dybbukim
Dybbukim are spirits of Jewish folklore that possess living humans, whereas djinn are supernatural beings of Arabian and Islamic tradition that are not typically the souls of the dead.