Word Study for H1794 (דָּכָה)

dâkâh /daw-kaw'/ Ask about this word

Roota primitive root (compare דַּךְ, דָּכָא)

Meaningto collapse (phys. or mentally)

KJV usagebreak (sore), contrite, crouch.

Word Study

In depth

A plain-language study of dâkâh — the range of meaning it carries, how Scripture actually uses it, and where it points. Written for readers who don’t know the original language.

Core Meaning & Semantic Range

The Hebrew word dâkâh, represented by H1794, is a primitive root meaning to collapse, either physically or mentally. It is translated as to break (sore), be contrite, or to crouch. Appearing 5 times in 5 unique verses, this term describes a state of being crushed, humbled, or broken, whether through divine action, personal anguish, or malevolent intent.

Biblical Occurrences & Contextual Analysis

In scripture, H1794 is used to convey different forms of being broken. It describes the physical pain of bones God has broken, an affliction that paradoxically can lead to rejoicing Psalms 51:8. It also portrays profound suffering, as when the psalmist feels sore broken in a desolate "place of dragons" Psalms 44:19 or when anguish leads to being feeble and sore broken Psalms 38:8. In a contrasting sense, it depicts the wicked man who croucheth in order to make the poor fall Psalms 10:10. The most significant spiritual use is in describing the contrite heart, which is an acceptable sacrifice to God Psalms 51:17.

Related Words & Concepts

Several related words help clarify the meaning of H1794:

H7665 shâbar (to burst... break... crush): This word is often used for being physically or emotionally shattered. It appears alongside H1794 to describe the "broken and a contrite heart" that God accepts Psalms 51:17.
H3820 lêb (the heart): As the center of feelings and will, the heart is the object of the breaking and contrition described by H1794, whether from personal anguish Psalms 38:8 or spiritual repentance Psalms 51:17.
H7817 shâchach (to sink or depress... humble self, be... low, stoop): Used in parallel with H1794 in Psalms 10:10, this term reinforces the physical act of crouching or being brought low, but in the context of a wicked person humbling himself for deceitful purposes.

Theological Significance

The theological weight of H1794 is seen in its varied applications:

The Posture of Repentance: The term is central to understanding what pleases God. A contrite H1794 heart, alongside a broken H7665 spirit, is identified as the true sacrifices H2077 of God, which He will not despise Psalms 51:17.
Divine Discipline: God is depicted as the one who has broken H1794 the psalmist's bones Psalms 51:8 and has sore broken H1794 His people Psalms 44:19. This illustrates that hardship and a state of being crushed can be an instrument of God's purpose.
Predatory Wickedness: In contrast to godly contrition, H1794 can describe the posture of evil. The wicked man croucheth H1794 not in humility before God, but as a predator preparing for the poor to fall H5307 into his trap Psalms 10:10.

Summary

In summary, H1794 provides a powerful depiction of what it means to be collapsed or broken. It carries a profound spiritual meaning, signifying the contrite heart that is precious to God. At the same time, it can describe immense suffering and affliction, as well as the deceitful crouching of the wicked. The word dâkâh illustrates the critical distinction between being broken in humility toward God and being crushed by oppression or sin.

How the KJV Renders It

Translation

Strong’s lists the renderings but not their weight. These are counted from the King James text of the tagged verses — the bar under each is how often the translators actually reached for it. Select one to filter the occurrences below.

Grammatical Forms

Morphology

In the Hebrew Old Testament, this word appears as a verb across 4 occurrences, inflected in 3 grammatical forms — each row is one form, and the bar is how often it is that form. Select any form to read what each part of its name means, and to filter the occurrence list to it.

דִכִּיתָ
נִדְכֶּה
נִדְכֵּיתִי

Theographic Context

Context

The people, places, and span of history the verses containing this word touch on — drawn from the theographic tagging of Scripture. Select any name to isolate its verses in the occurrence list.

Biblical Distribution

Distribution

5 verses, all in Psalms — and none of the other 38 Old Testament books.

Every Occurrence

Concordance

Every verse where the word is tagged in the King James text. Filter by book, by the English word the translators chose, by grammatical form, or search within the verses.

Sources. Definition and numbering: James Strong, Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (1890). Morphology: STEPBible / Tyndale House (CC BY). Verse tagging: the King James text keyed to Strong’s numbers. Every count on this page is computed from the tagged corpus, not estimated.