Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be like him.Proverbs 26:4
Original language and places
Reference data from open datasets, shown as published by their sources. Word-by-word English is a literal guide, not a translation.
Original language (Hebrew)
אַל־תַּ֣עַן כְּ֭סִיל כְּאִוַּלְתּ֑וֹ פֶּֽן־תִּשְׁוֶה־לּ֥וֹ גַם־אָֽתָּה׃
- אַל־'al-“may not”Particle, negative · from אַל · “not” · Strong's H0408
- תַּ֣עַןTa.'an“you answer”Verb, qal, jussive, 2nd person, masculine, singular · from עָנָה · “to answer” · Strong's H6030B
- כְּ֭סִילKe.sil“a fool”Adjective, masculine, singular, absolute · from כְּסִיל · “fool” · Strong's H3684
- כְּאִוַּלְתּ֑וֹke.'i.val.To“according to foolishness his”Preposition + Noun, feminine, singular, construct + Suffix, pronominal, 3rd person, masculine, singular · from אִוֶּ֫לֶת · “folly” · Strong's H0200
- פֶּֽן־pen-“lest”Particle · from פֶּן־ · “lest” · Strong's H6435
- תִּשְׁוֶה־tish.veh-“you should become like”Verb, qal, imperfect, 2nd person, masculine, singular · from שָׁוָה · “be like” · Strong's H7737A
- לּ֥וֹlo“<to> him”Preposition + Suffix, pronominal, 3rd person, masculine, singular · from Os3m · “him” · Strong's H9033
- גַם־gam-“also”Adverb · from גַּם · “also” · Strong's H1571
- אָֽתָּה׃'A.tah“you”Pronoun, personal, 2nd person, masculine, singular · from אַתָּ֫ה · “you(m.s.)” · Strong's H0859A
- Hebrew and Aramaic words: STEP Bible (STEPBible.org), based on work at Tyndale House, Cambridge. CC BY 4.0. Source (version ed476a8)