living thing
chay.yah denotes animal creatures, especially beasts of the field, and can also name Ezekiel’s visionary creatures.
The term most often denotes animal creatures in collective settings, particularly those of the field or land, whether in creation, alongside birds, or as animals that eat, multiply, and threaten. In Ezekiel’s vision it identifies the creatures associated with the wheels, while several contexts foreground wild animals as agents of danger or devouring.
Senses in use
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Animals as a collective class · dominant
Construct forms mark animals in relation to the field, land, or earth: in Genesis 1:25 the APB renders the clause “the beasts of the earth,” and in Genesis 9:10 it includes birds, animals, and creatures of the land. The same collective setting appears in Exodus 23:11, where what remains in a fallow year is eaten by animals of the field.
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Wild animals as a threat or devourer · common
The term can designate animals whose action endangers people or consumes bodies. In Deuteronomy 7:22 the APB renders animals of the field multiplying against Israel, while in Ezekiel 34:28 animals of the land are said not to devour them; Genesis 37:33 likewise places the absolute form in the claim that an animal ate Joseph.
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The creatures in Ezekiel’s vision · occasional
Plural absolute forms identify the beings moving beside the wheels in Ezekiel 1:15, where the APB renders “the living creatures.” Singular absolute forms then refer to their shared spirit or to the identified being: Ezekiel 10:20 says that the creature seen beneath the God of Israel was recognized as cherubim.
In the Anselm Project Bible: The APB variously presents the term as “animals,” “beasts,” “wild animals,” “living things,” and “living creatures,” according to each verse’s broader clause. These renderings confirm animal and visionary-creature contexts.