Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun The candle used to light the other eight candles of a Hanukkah menorah.
- noun A person who assists in the running of a synagogue or its religious services, especially the reading of the Torah.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun Judaism The
candle used tolight the other eight candles of aHanukkah menorah .
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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The unlit candle could be the shamash, which is not required for the mitzva, he said.
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The menorah has a ninth "helper" flame -- known as the shamash -- used to light the other candles.
The Full Feed from HuffingtonPost.com The Huffington Post News Editors 2011
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A "shamash" is a servant, usually the person who looks after the synagogue, and there is something about personifying this humble candle as a beadle that amused me as a child.
NYT > Home Page By HOWARD JACOBSON 2010
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The nine-branch Menorah holds eight candles, one for each night of Hanukkah, and a central candle called a "shamash" from which the other eight are lit.
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Hanukkah is an eight-day festival signified by the nine-branch Menorah, which holds eight candles, one for each night, and a central candle called a "shamash" from which the other eight are lit.
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The center flame, the "shamash" or servant flame, rises from the base and serves to light the others.
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The ninth candle stands apart from the other eight and is called the "shamash," used to light the candles.
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So now there are two menorahs in my grandmother's window, one tall silver one that she kindles each night boasting their colors and luminous light, and a small humble brass menorah with 50-year-old orange candles perfectly staged, except for the shamash that is now slightly singed.
Chava Tombosky: Germany's First Lights Chava Tombosky 2011
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So now there are two menorahs in my grandmother's window, one tall silver one that she kindles each night boasting their colors and luminous light, and a small humble brass menorah with 50-year-old orange candles perfectly staged, except for the shamash that is now slightly singed.
Chava Tombosky: Germany's First Lights Chava Tombosky 2011
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So to, if each show in Matisyahu's Festival of Light is it's own unique flame, then the shamash, this opening show, was a helping of pure holiday fire.
Josh Fleet: Festival Of Light, Mystery And Miracles: Matisyahu's Hasidic Reggae Hanukkah Tour Opens (PHOTOS) Josh Fleet 2010
asativum commented on the word shamash
"Shamash the glorious sun" from The Epic of Gilgamesh.
June 17, 2008