איכות
Hebrew edit
Etymology edit
Root |
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א־י־ך (ʾ-y-k) |
From אֵיךְ (éykh, “how”) + ־וּת (-út, “-ness, -ity; a suffix forming nouns, especially abstract nouns”),[1] similar to the coinage of Latin quālitas (from which English quality is derived) ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kʷo- (“who, how”).
Pronunciation edit
Audio: (file)
Noun edit
אֵיכוּת • (eikhut) f (plural indefinite איכויות / אֵיכֻיּוֹת)
- quality [from the Middle Ages]
- c. 1140, Yehuda Halevi, Judah ibn Tibbon (Translator to Hebrew), Hartwig Hirschfeld (Translator to English),[2] Kuzari, Article 5:2:
- וְאֹמַר כִּי הַמּוּחָשִׁים לֹא הִשַּׂגְנוּ בְחוּשֵׁינוּ כִּי אִם כַּמּוּתָם וְאֵיכוּתָם, וְיִגְזֹר הַשֵּׂכֶל כִּי הֵם נְשׂוּאוֹת בְּנוֹשֵׂא, וְהַנּוֹשֵׂא הַהוּא יִקְשֶׁה לְהַעֲלוֹת צוּרָתוֹ עַל לֵב, וְאֵיךְ נַעֲלֶה עַל לֵב צוּרַת דָּבָר שֶׁאֵין לוֹ כַמּוּת וְלֹא אֵיכוּת?
- As regards tangible objects, we can perceive their quantity and quality by means of our senses, whilst reason maintains that they are borne by a fulcrum which is difficult to imagine. How can we imagine a thing that has neither quantity nor quality?
- c. 1140, Yehuda Halevi, Judah ibn Tibbon (Translator to Hebrew), Hartwig Hirschfeld (Translator to English),[2] Kuzari, Article 5:2:
Derived terms edit
- אֵיכוּת הַסְּבִיבָה (quality of the environment)
- הַבְטָחַת אֵיכוּת (“quality assurance”)
References edit
- ^ Moshe Leib Lilienblum, להרחבת השפה (leHarkhavat haSafá, literally “to the extension of the language”), 2009-12-24, at the Ben Yehuda Project.
- ^ Kitab al Khazari, Part Five, 2. The Rabbi.