BAAL

Baal

(noun) any of numerous local fertility and nature deities worshipped by ancient Semitic peoples; the Hebrews considered Baal a false god

Source: WordNet® 3.1

---

Etymology

Proper noun

Baal (countable and uncountable, plural Baals or Baalim)

(mythology, biblical) A storm and fertility god of the Phoenician and Canaanite pantheons, reckoned as chief of the gods by the 1st millennium BC.

(mythology, biblical, sometimes lowercase) Various other Baalim, understood as distinct patron gods or as local patron aspects the great god Baal.

(Christianity) One of the demons or fallen angels of Satan.

(often, lowercase) A false deity or idol; (obsolete, pejorative) Catholic or Orthodox icons of the saints.

Usage notes

The latinized spelling and anglicized pronunciation is still used for the expanded senses, but modern scholarship increasingly notes the ayin of the original name by spelling it Baʿal or Ba'al and pronouncing it more in line with the original Hebrew form. Misunderstood as a solar deity by 19th century scholarship; misunderstood as a collective term for various patron gods by 19th and 20th century scholarship prior to the discovery of inscriptions at Ugarit showing these to have been understood as aspects of a single divinity, whose worship gradually supplanted that of El. These aspects are sometimes distinguished by epithets: Baalberith, Beelzebub, Beelzebul, etc.

The Hebraic plural Baalim is particularly used for its appearances in the Bible, where it may refer to gods or idols of the god. The anglicized plural is more common in other contexts.

Anagrams

• AABL, Bala, LABA, alba, blaa, laab

Source: Wiktionary

---

Ba"al, n.; Heb. pl. Baalim (. Etym: [Heb. ba'al lord.]

1. (Myth.)

Definition: The supreme male divinity of the Phoenician and Canaanitish nations.

Note: The name of this god occurs in the Old Testament and elsewhere with qualifying epithets subjoined, answering to the different ideas of his character; as, Baal-berith (the Covenant Baal), Baal-zebub (Baal of the fly).

2. pl.

Definition: The whole class of divinities to whom the name Baal was applied. Judges x. 6.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

---

Do you know this game?

Wordscapes is a popular word game consistently in the top charts of both Google Play Store and Apple App Store. The Android version has more than 10 million installs. This guide will help you get more coins in less than two minutes of playing the game. Continue reading Wordscapes: Get More Coins