Prayer is called by [thirteen] names: cry, howl, groan, song, encounter, stricture, prostration, judgment, entreaty, standing, appeal and beseeching.


Midrash Rabbah on Deuteronomy 3:23; Sifri, ibid. These synonyms for prayer are derived from: Exodus 2:23-24, Jeremiah 7:16, Psalms 18:6, Deuteronomy 9:25, Psalms 106:30, Genesis 25:21, and Exodus 32:11 and Deuteronomy 3:23.