man
a.dam denotes a human person or humanity, including humans considered in contrast with God or nonhuman things.
The attested singular absolute form most often refers broadly to human beings or humanity, whether as the created human population, those who live, sin, labor, or have hearts known by God. It also identifies an individual person in actions such as praying, ruling, pursuing, or receiving judgment, and it can mark the human sphere in contrast with God, idols, or trees.
Senses in use
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Humanity and human beings generally · dominant
The singular absolute form is used for people collectively or for humanity as a class. In Deuteronomy 4:32 the APB renders the clause about God creating “man upon the land,” while Deuteronomy 8:3 sets human life under God’s provision; 1 Kings 8:39 speaks of the hearts of “all the sons of man.”
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An individual person in a particular situation · common
The same singular absolute form can identify a person in a specific relation or action. In 1 Kings 8:38 the APB renders a person bringing prayer and supplication, and in 2 Samuel 23:3 it renders a righteous ruler “over man”; 1 Samuel 17:32 places the term in the clause about a man’s heart failing.
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The human sphere contrasted with God or nonhuman things · occasional
Several clauses use the singular absolute form to distinguish humans from another category. In 1 Samuel 15:29 the APB contrasts God with “a human being,” Deuteronomy 20:19 asks whether field trees are human, and 2 Kings 19:18 describes objects as the work of human hands rather than God.
In the Anselm Paraphrase: Across these verses, the APB variously uses “man,” “human being,” “humankind,” “people,” and phrases such as “human hands” and “human bones.” Because the APB is a whole-verse paraphrase rather than word-aligned, those renderings indicate the clauses’ presentation rather than fixed equivalents in every instance.