Dictionary:שְׁאֵלָה/0

שְׁאֵלָה

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שְׁאֵלָה

Category	Noun
Occurrences	14
Possible Meanings	Request for a gift ?Request for a loan
Related Words	שאל

Possible Possible Meanings

1. A request for something that is to be kept and not returned

• Biblical verses – This appears to be the meaning of the noun in 13 of the 14 cases in which it appears.
• Additional data – The verb שאל is frequently used for a gift.

2. A request for a loan

• Biblical verses – possibly Shemuel I 2:20
• Additional data – There are at least two cases in which the verb שאל appears in reference to a loan.

Disputed Cases

Shemuel I 2:20

• Request – Radak Shemuel I 2:20 in his first explanation, R. Yeshayah MiTrani Shemuel I 2:20.
• Loan – R. Yosef Kara Shemuel I 2:20.¹
• Gift – Ibn Janah Sefer HaShorashim s.v. שאל, Radak Shemuel I 2:20 in his second explanation.²

Semantic Evolution

Intra-Biblical

Rabbinic Hebrew

In Tanakh, the noun שאלה is never used to mean simply a question or seeking of knowledge. This meaning appears first in Rabbinic Hebrew.

Modern Hebrew

¹ He points out that the preposition ‏"לה'"‏ rather than ‏"מה'"‏ supports a meaning of "giving to" rather than "requesting of."

² Radak's explanation, too, is motivated by the presence of the preposition "ל".