il.lem describes persons, animals, or idols marked by an inability or absence of speech.

The attested use describes speechlessness or inability to speak, whether of people needing advocacy or gaining song, watchmen compared to dogs that cannot bark, idols that are mute, or a speaker with no arguments in his mouth.

1. Speechless or unable to speak · dominant

   The masculine singular form describes a person made unable to speak in Exodus 4:11, the tongue that will sing in Isaiah 35:6, those for whom another should open his mouth in Proverbs 31:8, and the psalmist as having no arguments in his mouth in Psalm 38:14. The masculine plural form applies to idols in Habakkuk 2:18 and to dogs that cannot bark in Isaiah 56:10; in those clauses the APB renders “mute idols” and “mute dogs.”

   Exodus 4:11Isaiah 35:6Proverbs 31:8Psalm 38:14Habakkuk 2:18Isaiah 56:10

In the Anselm Project Bible: Across the verses, the APB presents the condition with “mute,” including “mute idols” and “mute dogs,” and also describes its result through a tongue that will sing or a mouth with no arguments. These clauses confirm the broader speech-related setting rather than fixing a separate English rendering in every verse.