The number 18 in gematria
Significance in the sources
חי (chai, “alive, living”) is ח 8 + י 10 = 18. This is the best-known gematria in everyday Jewish life. Gifts to charity or at celebrations are often given in multiples of 18 (“multiples of chai”). That is a popular custom based on the arithmetic, not a law.
The central prayer of every weekday service is called the Shemoneh Esreh, “the Eighteen”. The Talmud records that Shimon HaPakuli arranged the eighteen blessings in order before Rabban Gamliel in Yavneh (Megillah 17b). The weekday Amidah today has nineteen blessings, but it kept the name.
Hebrew words with the value 18
| Word | Strong’s gloss | Strong’s no. |
|---|---|---|
| אֲזַי אזי | at that time | H233 |
| אֵיבָה איבה | hostility | H342 |
| דּוּגָה דוגה | fishery, hook for fishing | H1729 |
| דּוּחַ דוח | thrust, cleanse | H1740 |
| חוּד חוד | tie, propound | H2330 |
| חָטָא חטא | miss, sin, forfeit; crime, penalty; criminal | H2398, H2399, H2400 |
| חַי חי | alive, raw, fresh; alive, life (Aramaic) | H2416, H2417 |
| יָגָה יגה | grieve; push away | H3013, H3014 |
| יָדַד ידד | handle, throw, lots | H3032 |
Names with the value 18
- אביה Abijah H29
- בוי Bavvai H942
- יוב Job H3102
Words and glosses: Strong’s Hebrew Dictionary via the Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon (CC BY 4.0). Values are for the consonants only; vowel points are ignored. Check any of them in the calculator, for example אזי, איבה, דוגה.
About the number 18
- 18 = 2 × 3 × 3.
- Its digit sum reduces to 9 (Mispar Katan Mispari).
- As a Hebrew numeral, 18 is written י״ח. See Hebrew numerals.
English words with Ordinal value 18
aback, acacia, adage, ale, beef, big, boa, can, dam, deed, die, em, head, jag, lea, mad, me.
English Ordinal (A = 1 … Z = 26) is a modern cipher with no link to Hebrew gematria; see the English gematria calculator.