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is disputed. Some sources claim "bava" comes from an unused root meaning to hollow out or something hollowed (as in a gate). This would lend to the understanding of the pupil of the eye being hollowed as in a gate. It may mean "apple"; if so, the phrase used in
Zechariah 2:8 literally refers to the
81:'s arrow, imbuing it with magical love-arousing properties, and drops juice of this flower into a young sleeping man's eyes, saying "Flower of this purple dye, / Hit with Cupid's archery, / Sink in apple of his eye".
30:" refers in English to something or someone that one cherishes above all others. It signifies a person who holds a special place in someone’s heart. Originally, the phrase was simply an
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130:: "Their heart cried unto the Lord, O wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears run down like a river day and night: give thyself no rest; let not
180:), so that the expression would literally mean "Little Man of the Eye"; if so, this would be consistent with a range of languages, in which the
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160:(אישון עין). The expression refers to the pupil, and probably simply means "dark part of the eye" (other biblical passages use
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100:: "He found him in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness; he led him about, he instructed him, he kept him as
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196:"apple of the eye". However, Hebrew scholars generally regard this phrase as simply referring to the "eyeball".
144:
of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth
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Originally this term simply referred to the "aperture at the centre of the human eye", i.e. the
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Transactions and
Proceedings of the American Philological Association, Vol. 73, 1942
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The sense "pupil" appears to be the meaning
Shakespeare used in his 1590s play
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The phrase "apple of my eye" (or similar) occurs in several places in the
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156:. The original Hebrew for this idiom, in all but Zechariah 2:8, was
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This article is about the phrase. For the
Badfinger song, see
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King Alfred's West-Saxon
Version of Gregory's Pastoral Care
301:. (Toronto: Dictionary of Old English Project, 2018), §3b.
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However, the "apple" usage comes from
English idiom, not
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translation from 1611, and some subsequent translations:
325:
The Hebrew and
Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament
362:"The meanings and origins of sayings and phrases"
252:, 3rd edn (Oxford University Press, 2008), § 6 B.
120:: "Keep my commandments, and live; and my law as
8:
187:In Zechariah 2:8, the Hebrew phrase used is
77:has acquired a flower that was once hit by
314:(University of Texas Press, 1996), p. 102.
220:"89+ Similar Phrases To "Apple Of My Eye""
114:, hide me under the shadow of thy wings".
16:Phrase about something/someone cherished
312:Toward a Theory of Cultural Linguistics
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477:Metaphors referring to food and drink
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411:Gregory I. Pope (January 1, 1999).
73:. In the play, the fairy character
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482:Metaphors referring to body parts
288:Dictionary of Old English: A to I
218:Smith, Jessica (July 30, 2024).
182:etymology of the word for pupil
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417:. Elibron.com. p. 68.
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191:(בבה עין). The meaning of
176:is a diminutive of "man" (
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248:Oxford English Dictionary
70:A Midsummer Night's Dream
54:translation of the Latin
296:Antonette diPaolo Healey
294:, Ashley Crandell Amos,
140:: "For thus saith the L
132:the apple of thine eye
122:the apple of thine eye
21:Apple of My Eye (song)
467:Human eyes in culture
393:"Apple of one's eye"
310:Cf. Gary B. Palmer,
263:"Apple of one's eye"
146:the apple of his eye
112:the apple of the eye
102:the apple of his eye
397:WorldWideWords.org
267:The Word Detective
184:has this meaning.
424:978-1-4021-9636-2
381:"Apple of My Eye"
347:Bible Study Tools
164:with the meaning
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128:Lamentations 2:18
98:Deuteronomy 32:10
34:referring to the
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286:"Æppel", in
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118:Proverbs 7:2
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38:of the eye.
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26:The phrase "
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472:Human pupil
430:October 17,
402:October 17,
371:October 17,
352:October 19,
52:Old English
451:Categories
272:August 15,
225:August 14,
200:References
189:bava 'ayin
108:Psalm 17:8
343:"ap'-'-l"
243:apple, n.
205:Citations
174:'iyshown
162:'iyshown
335:Sources
170:obscure
134:cease".
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250:Online
75:Oberon
42:Origin
323:E.g.
299:et al
178:'iysh
79:Cupid
48:pupil
36:pupil
32:idiom
432:2012
419:ISBN
404:2012
373:2012
354:2016
274:2015
227:2024
193:bava
166:dark
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168:or
142:ORD
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