when it stands in a closed syllable with quiescent Šewâ after a preceding Seghôl or Pathaḥ, e.g. וַיֶּאְסֹר, נֶאְדָּר näʾdār, יַאְדִּ֫ימוּ yaʾdîmû. Even in such cases the consonantal power of א may be entirely lost, viz.
[c] (a) when it would stand with a long vowel in the middle of a word after Šewâ mobile. The long vowel is then occasionally thrown back into the place of the Šewâ, and the א is only retained orthographically, as an indication of the etymology, e.g. רָאשִׁים heads (for reʾāšîm), מָאתַ֫יִם two hundred (for meʾātháyim), שָֽׁאטְךָ Ez 25 for שְׁאָֽטְךָ; בּוֹדָאם Neh 6 for בּֽוֹדְאָם; מאוּם Jb 31, Dn 1 for מְאוּם; פֻּארָה for פְּאֻרָה Is 10; חֹטִאים ḥôṭîm, 1 S 14 for חֹֽטְאִים (cf. § 74 h, and § 75 oo); הָֽראוּבֵנִי Nu 34, from רְאוּבֵן; so always חַטֹּאת or חַטֹּאות 1 K 14, Mi 1, &c., for חַטְּאוֹת. Sometimes a still more violent suppression of the א occurs at the beginning of a syllable, which then causes a further change in the preceding syllable, e.g. מְלָאכָה work for מַלְאָכָה (as in the Babylonian punctuation), יִשְׁמָעֵאל for יִשְׁמַעְאֵל; שְׂמֹאל or שְׂמֹאול the left hand, ground form simʾâl.
[d] (b) When it originally closed a syllable. In these cases א is generally (by § 22 m) pronounced with a Ḥaṭeph, ־ֲ or ־ֱ. The preceding short vowel is, however, sometimes lengthened and retains the following א only orthographically, e.g. וַיָּ֫אצֶל Nu 11 for וַיַּֽאֲצֵל (cf. Ju 9), and פָּארוּר Jo 2 for פַּֽאֲרוּר; לֵאמֹר for לֶֽאֱמֹר; לִֽאלֹהִים for לֶֽאֱלֹהִים; but the contraction does not take place in לֶֽאֱלִילֶ֫יהָ Is 10. The short vowel is retained, although the consonantal power of א is entirely lost, in וַֽאדֹנָי, &c. (see § 102 m), וַיַּאת Is 41, וָֽאַבֶּדְךָ Ez 28 for וָֽאֲאַבֶּדְךָ; cf. Dt 24, 1 K 11, Is 10.
[e] Instead of this א which has lost its consonantal value, one of the vowel letters ו and י is often written according to the nature of the sound, the former with ô and the latter with ô and î, e.g. רֵים buffalo for רְאֵם. At the end of the word ה also is written for א, יְמַלֵּה he fills for יְמַלֵּא Jb 8 (see below, l).
[f] 3. When א is only preserved orthographically or as an indication of the etymology (quiescent), it is sometimes entirely dropped (cf. § 19 k), e.g. יָצָ֫תִי Jb 1 for יָצָ֫אתִי; מָלֵ֫תִי Jb 32 for מָלֵאתִי; מָצָ֫תִי Nu 11; וַתֹּ֫הֶז 2 S 20; וַיְרַפּוּ Jer 8 for וַיְרַפְּאוּ; וַתַּזְּרֵ֫נִי 2 S 22, but וַתְּאַזְּרֵנִי ψ 18; תּוֹמִם Gn 25 for תְּאוֹמִם; אֲחַטֶּנָּה 31, for , אֲחַטְּאֶנָּה; שֵֽׁלָתֵךְ 1 S 1 for שְׁאֵֽלָ״; רֵמִים ψ 22 for רְאֵמִים; גֵּוָה Jb 22 for גְּאֵוָה; הַבֵּֽרֹתִי 1 Ch 11 for הַבְּאֵֽר״, and so 2 S 23; שֵׁרִית 1 Ch 12 for שְׁאֵרִית; לַהְשׁוֹת 2 K 19 Kethîbh for לְהַשְׁאוֹת (cf. Is 37); חֵמָה Jb 29 for חֶמְאָה.[1] In מַכֹּ֫לֶת
