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Mi·chael

(mīkəl)

An archangel who appears in the Hebrew Scriptures as a protector of the Jews and in the New Testament as a leader of the angels in their war against Satan.

[Hebrew mîkā'ēl, who (is) like God? : mî, who; see my¹ in the Appendix of Semitic roots + kā, like + 'ēl, God; see ʾl in the Appendix of Semitic roots.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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