What does zayin mean?
Zayin is the conventional English name for the seventh letter of the Hebrew alphabet, written ז and represented by z in Latin-letter transliteration. Its name is pronounced in English roughly as “zay-in,” although in Modern Hebrew the letter itself is pronounced /z/. The term is used chiefly in language teaching, biblical studies, Jewish texts, and discussions of Hebrew script. It is a specialized name rather than an ordinary English noun, so in most contexts “the letter zayin” is more natural than treating it as a general synonym for the symbol z. Zayin has a rich cultural history because Hebrew letters are also used in biblical interpretation, liturgical contexts, and Jewish numerology. Knowing that the name refers to a specific Hebrew letter, rather than assuming it follows the ordinary sound of the letter, helps readers approach Hebrew alphabet, scripture, and language studies with greater precision.
nounThe seventh letter of the Hebrew alphabet, written ז and represented by z in Latin-letter transliteration.
- The seventh letter of the Hebrew alphabet, written ז.
"In the Hebrew alphabet, zayin comes immediately after vav."
"The Hebrew alphabet contains twenty-two letters, with zayin as the seventh."
"The teacher asked the class to identify the zayin in the Hebrew word."
The plural is uncommon and is chiefly used when counting occurrences of the Hebrew letter.
"The teacher circled the two zayins in the Hebrew word."
Zayin is the seventh Hebrew letter—and in Modern Hebrew, its letter sound is simply z.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of zayin
The English word is borrowed from Hebrew זַיִן (zayin), the name of the letter ז. It belongs to the established set of English names for Hebrew alphabet letters and has no common English inflected forms or productive word family.
How zayin is actually used
A specialized term used chiefly in Hebrew language study, biblical and Jewish texts, and discussion of Hebrew script. The English name is pronounced roughly as “zay-in,” whereas the letter itself is pronounced /z/ in Modern Hebrew.