bimah

noun

bi·​mah ˈbē-mə How to pronounce bimah (audio)
variants or less commonly bima
Synonyms of bimahnext
: a raised platform in a synagogue from which the Torah is read

Examples of bimah in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The flags of the U.S. and Israel will both be displayed on the bimah, or raised platform, at the front of the sanctuary. — Frank E. Lockwood, Arkansas Online, 13 Oct. 2023 The discovery this week follows the 2019 unearthing of the Tuscan baroque-style bimah, the synagogue’s central prayer platform, in the same dig by a team of international scholars headed by Jon Seligman, director of the antiquities authority’s Excavations, Surveys and Research Department. — Cnaan Liphshiz, sun-sentinel.com, 1 Sep. 2021

Word History

Etymology

Yiddish & Late Hebrew; Yiddish bime, from Late Hebrew bīmāh, from Late Greek bēma raised platform — more at bema

First Known Use

1941, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of bimah was in 1941

Rhymes for bimah

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Browse Nearby Words

bimaculate
bimah
bimana
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Cite this Entry

“Bimah.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bimah. Accessed 14 Apr. 2025.

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Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for bimah

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