אחוז

Hebrew

Etymology

Root
א־ח־ז (ʾ-kh-z)

From the root א־ח־ז ('-ḥ-z). The form of the word is that of an adjective formed from the pa'al verb אָחַז and meaning "taken" or "held". The adjective is attested as far back as the book of Numbers. The noun presumably derives from it.

Adjective

אָחוּז • (akhúz) (feminine אֲחוּזָה, masculine plural אֲחוּזִים, feminine plural אֲחוּזוֹת)

held, grasped
אָחוּז בְּיָדוֹ
held in his hand
held in place, fastened, fixed
- Esther 1:6, with translation from the King James Version:
  חוּר כַּרְפַּס וּתְכֵלֶת אָחוּז בְּחַבְלֵי בוּץ וְאַרְגָּמָן עַל גְּלִילֵי כֶסֶף וְעַמּוּדֵי שֵׁשׁ
  Where were white, green, and blue, hangings, fastened with cords of fine linen and purple to silver rings and pillars of marble
taken proportionally
- Numbers 31:30, with translation of the Jewish Publication Society:
  וּמִמַּחֲצִת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל תִּקַּח אֶחָד אָחֻז מִן הַחֲמִשִּׁים
  And of the children of Israel's half, thou shalt take one drawn out of every fifty

Related terms

Noun

אָחוּז • (akhúz) m (plural indefinite אֲחוּזִים, singular construct אֲחוּז־)

A hundredth, a percent: used to express percentages.
14.5%: ארבעה-עשר אחוזים וחצי ― arba'á-asár akhuzím v'khétzi ― fourteen and a half percent

20%: עשרים אחוז ― esrím akhúz ― twenty percent
A percent, a percentage.
איזה אחוז … ? ― éize akhúz … ? ― What percent(age) … ?

אחוז גבוה ― akhúz gavóah ― a high percentage

Usage notes

As shown in the examples above, the singular form אָחוּז is often used even for the semantic plural.