Soul in Hebrew is נְשָׁמָה (neshamá).
It can also be said נפש, רוח, or רוח חיים, depending on the meaning. Below are the vowel points, how each word is said, its gender and its plural.
soul
/səʊl/ /soʊl/
The stress falls on the vowel in colour.
These are the Hebrew words for soul as a noun.
the spirit or essence of a person that is often believed to live on after the person's death
- נְשָׁמָהנשמהneshamáfeminineIn the Hebrew dictionary
- נֶפֶשׁנפשnéfeshfeminineIn the Hebrew dictionary
- רוּחַרוחrúakhmasculineIn the Hebrew dictionary
life, energy, vigour
- רוח חייםruakh khayímfeminine
- נְשָׁמָהנשמהn'shamáfeminineIn the Hebrew dictionary
soul music
- נְשָׁמָהנשמהn'shamáfeminineIn the Hebrew dictionary
person, especially as one among many
- נֶפֶשׁנפשnéfeshfeminineIn the Hebrew dictionary
- נפש חיהnéfesh hayáfeminine
This is more about the Hebrew word נְשָׁמָה.
- Written with vowel points
- נְשָׁמָה
- Written without vowel points
- נשמה
- Said
- neshamá
- Plural
- נְשָׁמוֹת
- Its meanings in English
- soul, breath, soul, spirit, essence, gist, darling
The Hebrew dictionary's page for נשמה, with its synonyms and rhymes
These English words share a Hebrew word with soul.
These words come before and after soul in the list.
These are the questions people ask about soul in Hebrew.
How do you say soul in Hebrew?
soul in Hebrew is נְשָׁמָה, said neshamá. Without vowel points it is written נשמה. Its plural is נְשָׁמוֹת.
What are other Hebrew words for soul?
Besides נשמה, soul can be said נֶפֶשׁ (néfesh), רוּחַ (rúakh), רוח חיים (ruakh khayím), or נפש חיה (néfesh hayá), depending on the meaning.
Is נשמה masculine or feminine?
The word נשמה is feminine.
What else does נשמה mean in English?
Besides soul, נשמה can mean breath, soul, spirit, essence, gist, and darling.
The Hebrew translations, transliterations, genders and plurals on this page are adapted from Wiktionary's entry soul and its entries for the Hebrew words, read on 5 November 2026, and are shared under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.