Lexical Summary
meah or meyah: hundred, hundreds, 100
Original Word:מֵאָה
Part of Speech:Noun Feminine
Transliteration:me'ah
Pronunciation:meh-AH
Phonetic Spelling:(may-aw')
KJV: hundred((-fold), -th), + sixscore
NASB:hundred, hundreds, 100, 200, hundredth, one hundred, two hundred
Word Origin:[(properly) a primitive numeral]
1. a hundred
2. also as a multiplicative and a fraction
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
hundredfold
Or metyah {may-yaw'}; properly, a primitive numeral; a hundred; also as a multiplicative and a fraction -- hundred((-fold), -th), + sixscore.
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origina prim. root
Definitionhundred
NASB Translation1,100,000* (1), 1,200* (1), 1,222* (1), 1,247* (2), 1,254* (4), 1,290* (1), 1,335* (1), 1,400* (2), 1,700* (3), 1,760* (1), 1,775* (2), 100 (14), 100,000* (7), 108,100* (2), 110* (1), 112* (3), 120* (4), 120,000* (5), 122* (2), 123* (2), 127* (3), 128* (4), 130* (1), 138* (1), 139* (1), 14,700* (1), 140* (1), 148* (1), 150* (4), 151,450* (2), 153,600* (2), 156* (1), 157,600* (2), 16,750* (1), 160* (1), 17,200* (1), 172* (1), 180* (1), 180,000* (3), 185,000* (2), 186,400* (2), 188* (1), 2,172* (2), 2,200* (1), 2,300* (1), 2,322* (1), 2,400* (2), 2,600* (2), 2,630* (1), 2,700* (1), 2,750* (1), 2,812* (1), 2,818* (1), 20,200* (1), 20,800* (1), 200 (7), 200,000* (4), 212* (1), 218* (1), 22,200* (1), 22,273* (1), 22,600* (1), 220* (2), 223* (2), 232* (1), 242* (1), 245* (3), 25,100* (1), 250* (5), 250,000* (1), 273* (1), 28,600* (1), 280,000* (2), 284* (1), 288* (1), 3,200* (1), 3,300* (1), 3,600* (2), 3,630* (1), 3,700* (1), 3,930* (1), 30,500* (2), 300* (11), 300,000* (4), 307,500* (2), 32,200* (2), 32,500* (1), 320* (2), 323* (1), 324* (1), 328* (1), 337,500* (4), 345* (2), 35,400* (2), 372* (2), 392* (2), 4,500* (8), 4,600* (2), 40,500* (3), 400* (5), 400,000* (3), 41,500* (2), 410* (1), 42,360* (2), 43,730* (1), 435* (2), 44,760* (1), 45,400* (1), 45,600* (1), 45,650* (2), 450* (2), 454* (1), 46,500* (2), 468* (1), 470,000* (1), 5,400* (1), 500* (3), 500,000* (1), 52,700* (1), 53,400* (3), 530* (1), 54,400* (2), 57,400* (2), 59,300* (2), 6,200* (1), 6,720* (2), 6,800* (1), 60,500* (1), 600* (8), 600,000* (1), 601,730* (2), 603,550* (6), 62,700* (2), 621* (2), 623* (1), 628* (1), 64,300* (1), 64,400* (1), 642* (2), 648* (1), 650* (1), 652* (2), 655* (1), 666* (3), 667* (1), 675* (1), 675,000* (1), 690* (1), 7,100* (1), 7,337* (2), 7,500* (1), 7,700* (2), 700* (5), 721* (1), 725* (1), 730* (1), 736* (2), 74,600* (2), 743* (2), 745* (1), 76,500* (1), 760* (2), 775* (1), 8,580* (1), 8,600* (1), 800,000* (1), 822* (1), 832* (1), 845* (1), 928* (1), 945* (1), 956* (1), 973* (2), eleven* (3), hundred (220), hundredfold* (1), hundreds (27), hundredth (2), one hundred (1), two hundred (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
I.
583 (Late Hebrew
id.; MI
20 (dual); SI
5 , (dual); Phoenician (dual); Assyrian
mê (probably, Dl
§ 75), Tel Amarna
mê-at Wkl
TelAm 20*; Arabic

Sabean Os
ZMG x. 1856, 49; CIS
iv. i. 6, 4; 46, 6; Eut
Sin 457; Ethiopic

; Aramaic ,

; Palmyrene 300Vog
Palm 6, 4; Nabataean Eut
Nab 8, 9); —
Genesis 6:3 144t.; construct
Genesis 5:3 30t. (on
Ecclesiastes 8:12 see below); plural absolute
Genesis 5:9 324t. ( only
Genesis 5:4,30); Kt
2 Kings 11:4 3t.
2 Kings 11; dual (-)
Genesis 11:19 76t. (but
1 Samuel 18:27 read () We Dr Kit Bu HPS); —
hundred: —
, (I) following by singular of noun enumerated:Genesis 33:19;Joshua 24:32 (both E);Judges 7:19;1 Kings 18:13;2 Kings 4:43;1 Kings 7:2;Ezekiel 40:19 +;2 Kings 23:33; 2Chronicles 25:6; 27:5; 36:3;Ezra 8:26; = 100,0001 Kings 20:29 6t. Kings Chronicles; compare alsoGenesis 17:17 (P),2 Samuel 8:4;Isaiah 65:20 (twice in verse), and followed by collective noun2 Samuel 8:4 =1 Chronicles 18:4,1 Kings 5:3; (2) less often followed by pluralGenesis 26:12 (J),2 Samuel 24:3 =1 Chronicles 21:3,1 Kings 18:4, etc.; (3) seldom, and late, preceded by plural noun:Jeremiah 52:23,Ezekiel 42:2, compareEzra 2:69; 2Chronicles 3:16; 4:8; 29:32; (4) exceptional isEzra 8:26; also, with ellipsis,Deuteronomy 22:19 (i.e. shekels);2 Samuel 16:1 (i.e. cakes); (5) without noun enumerated, especially =a hundred (men, persons)Judges 20:10 (twice in verse);Amos 5:3 (twice in verse);Leviticus 26:8 (twice in verse) (H),1 Chronicles 12:14;Proverbs 17:10 100(blows),Ecclesiastes 6:3 100(children),Ecclesiastes 8:12 100(times). — OnNehemiah 3:1;Nehemiah 12:39 see below
, (I) foll, by singular,1 Samuel 18:27;1 Samuel 30:10;2 Samuel 15:11,1 Samuel 25:18;2 Samuel 16:1,1 Kings 10:16 2Chronicles 9:15,1 Samuel 15:4 +,Genesis 11:23 (P); (2) less often followed by pluralJoshua 7:21 (JE),2 Samuel 14:26,1 Samuel 25:18,1 Samuel 30:21, compareEzra 8:4; (3) also preceded by plural noun:Genesis 32:15,Genesis 32:15 (E),1 Kings 7:20, compare1 Chronicles 15:8; 2Chronicles 29:32;Ezra 2:65; (4) with ellipsisJudges 17:4; (5) as predicate, 1Chron 12:32 (33 van d. H).
— (1) alone, =hundreds,1 Samuel 29:2by hundreds, so2 Samuel 18:4 (both + thousands); especiallycaptains of (the) hundredsExodus 18:21,25 (E),2 Kings 11:4,9,10,15 +; (2) multiplied, followed by noun enumerated, in singular:Judges 7:6, 300men, compareJudges 7:7;Judges 7:8;Judges 7:16;Judges 8:4;Exodus 12:27 (E), etc.;Genesis 15:13 (JE) 400years;2 Samuel 24:9 500,000, compare 2 Chronicles 13:17;Exodus 14:7 (J) 600chariots;Judges 20:15,16 700men;2 Samuel 23:8 800slain;Judges 4:3,13 900chariots; (3) less often followed by plural noun:Judges 15:4 300foxes;Job 1:3 500she-asses, etc.; (4) rare, and chiefly late, after plural noun1 Kings 11:3 300concubines, compare1 Kings 7:42 2Chronicles 4:13;1 Chronicles 4:42; 2Chron 14:8 etc.; after n.collective 2Chronicles 35:9; (5) rare isExodus 30:24 (P); (6) ellipsis of n.,Genesis 45:22 (E), etc.
Genesis 11:10;Genesis 21:5;Genesis 25:7 (all P) + 25 t. P,1 Chronicles 25:9;Esther 1:4 (DrIntr. 124) (also with other numerals, see
below);Ecclesiastes 8:12 100times , sc. , or perhaps only apparently construct (Köii. 228 compare Ew§ 269 b. 279 e). —Nehemiah 5:11 see
, (1) with noun expressed once, or not at all, earlier usage, usually with before ten if no unit follows, otherwise without before ten (see Köii. 218 ff.):Judges 2:8;1 Kings 10:14 666talents, etc. (exceptions areNehemiah 7:24 andNehemiah 7:31); (2) chiefly late, with noun and repeated:Genesis 23:1 (P) (compare SI5.6 DaExpos. Times. May, 1898).
, chiefly late, with repeated: —Numbers 7:86 (P);Exodus 6:16 (P), etc.; with noun after ten and after hundred,Genesis 5:23(P), etc. — On these usages see, further, Köii. 217 ff. DaSynt. §§ 36 R. 3, 37 (d) Ges §§ 97, 134 and especially HernerSynt. d. Zahlw-rter im AT (1893).
Nehemiah 5:11 =a hundredth partof the money; but read quite possiblythe debt (GeiJüd. Zeitschr. viii. 1870, 227 Gr.)
Kt see .
, , see .
[, ] see .
[] see .
(see Biblical Hebrew); — absolute after noun enumerator,Ezra 6:17;Ezra 7:22 (4 t. in verse), soEzra 6:17,Daniel 6:1, and dualEzra 6:17.
see . see .
Topical Lexicon
Scope of the TermUsed about 578 times, מֵאָה frames everything from patriarchal ages to royal treasuries. Its ubiquity allows it to serve as a literary thread that binds history, law, worship, wisdom, and prophecy into one coherent testimony to the faithfulness and order of God.
Patriarchal Ages and Genesis Chronology
• Genesis uses מֵאָה to mark the lifespans that structure primeval and patriarchal history (Genesis 5;Genesis 11).
• Abraham’s “one hundred years” at Isaac’s birth (Genesis 21:5; cf. 17:17) turns the number into a monument of grace: God keeps covenant when human resources are spent.
• The motif continues with Isaac’s harvest of “a hundredfold” during famine (Genesis 26:12), presenting מֵאָה as a cipher for miraculous provision.
Covenant Structure and Community Organization
• Moses, copying Jethro’s counsel, appoints “commanders of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens” (Exodus 18:21;Deuteronomy 1:15). The hundred–man unit becomes the backbone of Israel’s civic and military framework.
• In Judges, Gideon splits his three hundred men into three companies of one hundred (Judges 7:16-20), proving that victory depends on obedience rather than numerical superiority.
Tabernacle and Temple Measurements
• The courtyard of the wilderness tabernacle stretches “one hundred cubits long” (Exodus 27:18; 38:9-11). Ezekiel’s visionary temple repeats the dimension (Ezekiel 40:47; 41:13), showing that sacred space is shaped by divinely fixed numbers.
• Such precision teaches that worship must conform to God’s revealed pattern, not human preference.
Legal Fines, Redemption, and Economics
• A false accuser of a bride pays “one hundred shekels of silver” (Deuteronomy 22:19), an amount large enough to deter slander yet calibrated to preserve proportional justice.
• Land dedicated to the LORD is valued “at fifty shekels of silver for every homer of seed” (Leviticus 27:16), implying a field that produces one hundred ephahs.
• Ezra is authorized to draw “up to one hundred talents of silver, one hundred kors of wheat, one hundred baths of wine” (Ezra 7:22), indicating Persian confidence that temple worship was worth lavish support.
Royal Administration and Tribute
• Solomon’s daily menu includes “one hundred sheep” (1 Kings 4:22-23), signaling abundance under covenant blessing.
• Under evil kings the same unit exposes greed: Pharaoh Neco fines Judah “one hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold” (2 Kings 23:33).
Prophetic and Wisdom Imagery
• Ecclesiastes twice employs מֵאָה to unveil vanity: a man who fathers “a hundred children” yet never enjoys God’s gifts (Ecclesiastes 6:3) or a sinner who “does evil a hundred times” (Ecclesiastes 8:12). Quantity without godliness is futility.
• Isaiah’s millennial vision promises longevity: “The one who dies at one hundred years will be considered a youth” (Isaiah 65:20), portraying reversal of the curse.
Theology of Multiplication
Through Abraham’s impossible age, Isaac’s hundredfold yield, and prophetic pictures of overflowing life, מֵאָה functions not merely as arithmetic but as a recurring sign that God amplifies His blessings far beyond natural limits. Even when applied to fines or temple taxes, the number reinforces divine ownership of wealth and justice.
Ministry Principles
1. Encourage faith that God can produce super-abundant fruit where resources seem inadequate (Genesis 26:12;Matthew 13:8).
2. Organize people and projects in orderly, accountable groups modeled on the “hundreds” ofExodus 18.
3. Maintain financial integrity; biblical fines and valuations guard holiness and protect the vulnerable.
4. Keep eschatological hope alive: Isaiah’s “hundred-year youth” calls believers to labor with the expectation of renewal and resurrection.
Representative References
Genesis 17:17; 21:5; 26:12
Exodus 27:18
Leviticus 27:16
Deuteronomy 22:19
Judges 7:16-20
2 Kings 11:4; 23:33
1 Chronicles 29:7
Ezra 7:22
Nehemiah 5:11
Ecclesiastes 6:3; 8:12
Isaiah 65:20
Ezekiel 40:47
In every context, מֵאָה reminds the reader that the God who numbers the stars also numbers ages, armies, harvests, and days—and delights to magnify His glory by turning what seems merely “one hundred” into evidence of His inexhaustible grace.
Forms and Transliterations
בְּמֵאָ֖ה בְּמֵאָ֣ה בְּמֵאָ֥ה בְּמֵאָה֙ במאה הַ֠מֵּאוֹת הַמֵּא֑וֹת הַמֵּא֔וֹת הַמֵּא֗וֹת הַמֵּא֡וֹת הַמֵּא֣וֹת ׀ הַמֵּאָ֔ה הַמֵּאֽוֹת׃ הַמֵּאוֹת֙ הַמָּאתַ֙יִם֙ הַמֵּאֹ֗ות הַמֵּאֹ֣ות המאה המאות המאות׃ המאתים וְהַמֵּא֑וֹת וְהַמֵּא֔וֹת וְהַמֵּא֖וֹת וְהַמֵּא֜וֹת וְהַמֵּא֡וֹת וְהַמָּאתָ֑יִם וּמְאַ֖ת וּמְאַ֣ת וּמְאַ֨ת וּמְאַת֙ וּמֵ֣אָה וּמֵ֥אָה וּמֵאָ֑ה וּמֵאָ֖ה וּמֵאָ֗ה וּמֵאָ֤ה וּמֵאָ֥ה וּמֵאָ֧ה וּמֵאָ֨ה וּמֵאָֽה׃ וּמֵאָה֙ וּמֵאָה֮ וּמֵאָה־ וּמָאתַ֔יִם וּמָאתַ֖יִם וּמָאתַ֙יִם֙ וּמָאתַ֣יִם וּמָאתַ֧יִם וּמָאתָ֑יִם וּמָאתָֽיִם׃ והמאות והמאתים ומאה ומאה־ ומאה׃ ומאת ומאתים ומאתים׃ לְמֵא֖וֹת לְמֵאָ֣ה לְמֵאָה֙ לִמְאַ֣ת לִמְאַ֥ת לַמֵּאָ֜ה למאה למאות למאת מְאַ֖ת מְאַ֣ת מְאַ֥ת מְאַ֧ת מְאַ֨ת מְאַת֙ מֵ֣אָה מֵ֥אָה מֵֽאָה־ מֵא֑וֹת מֵא֔וֹת מֵא֖וֹת מֵא֗וֹת מֵא֛וֹת מֵא֜וֹת מֵא֣וֹת מֵא֤וֹת מֵא֥וֹת מֵא֧וֹת מֵא֨וֹת מֵאָ֑ה מֵאָ֔ה מֵאָ֖ה מֵאָ֛ה מֵאָ֡ה מֵאָ֣ה מֵאָ֤ה מֵאָ֥ה מֵאָ֧ה מֵאָ֨ה מֵאָֽה־ מֵאָֽה׃ מֵאָה֙ מֵאָה֩ מֵאָה־ מֵאֹ֖ת מֵאֹ֧ת מֵאֽוֹת׃ מֵאוֹת֙ מָאתַ֔יִם מָאתַ֖יִם מָאתַ֙יִם֙ מָאתַ֛יִם מָאתַ֣יִם מָאתַ֤יִם מָאתַ֥יִם מָאתַ֨יִם מָאתָ֑יִם מָאתָֽיִם׃ מאה מאה־ מאה׃ מאות מאות׃ מאת מאתים מאתים׃ bə·mê·’āh bəmê’āh bemeAh ham·mā·ṯa·yim ham·mê·’āh ham·mê·’ō·wṯ hammaTayim hammāṯayim hammê’āh hammê’ōwṯ hammeAh hammeOt lam·mê·’āh lammê’āh lammeAh lə·mê·’āh lə·mê·’ō·wṯ ləmê’āh ləmê’ōwṯ lemeAh lemeot lim’aṯ lim·’aṯ limAt mā·ṯa·yim mā·ṯā·yim maTayim māṯayim māṯāyim mê’āh mê’āh- mə’aṯ mê’ōṯ mê’ōwṯ mê·’āh mê·’āh- mə·’aṯ mê·’ō·wṯ mê·’ōṯ meAh meAt meOt ū·mā·ṯa·yim ū·mā·ṯā·yim ū·mê·’āh ū·mê·’āh- ū·mə·’aṯ umaTayim ūmāṯayim ūmāṯāyim ūmê’āh ūmê’āh- ūmə’aṯ umeAh umeAt vehammaTayim vehammeot wə·ham·mā·ṯā·yim wə·ham·mê·’ō·wṯ wəhammāṯāyim wəhammê’ōwṯ
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