וַיִּתֵּ֨ן אֹתָ֜ם בְּמִשְׁמַ֗ר בֵּ֛ית שַׂ֥ר הַטַבָּחִ֖ים אֶל־בֵּ֣ית הַסֹּ֑הַר מְק֕וֹם אֲשֶׁ֥ר יוֹסֵ֖ף אָס֥וּר שָֽׁם׃
그들을 시위대장의 집 안에 있는 옥에 가두니 곧 요셉의 갇힌 곳이라
Rashbam
משרת ענבים, according to Menachem the word משרת is derived from the root שרת, as in Numbers 8,26 ושרת את אחיו, “he (the Levite) will assist his brethren (the priests) in the service, i.e. he will not be allowed to substitute for him.” The letter מ at the beginning of the word משרת would then have to be understood like the letter מ in מרמס In Isaiah 10,6 or as in the word משמר in Genesis 40,3, i.e. as a letter which converts a verb into a noun.
It is not possible to explain the word משרת as related to שרת, in the sense of assist, serve, except when it occurs in connection with service performed by human beings for their masters.
Therefore, I believe that the word משרת belongs to a category of verbs which have the peculiarity that the last letter of their root disappears when the verb (or noun derived from it) appears in the construct mode. An example is the verb קנה, acquired, or מקנה, acquisition, which when in the construct form becomes מקנת, “acquisition of.” (compare Exodus 12,44) Although this expression is not found elsewhere in the Torah it does occur in the Talmud, always referring to something which had been soaked in water, such as in Nazir 36 where it describes a Nazirite who had soaked his bread in grape juice. We also find an expression in Jeremiah 15,11אם לא שריתיך לטוב, which is explained there by Rashi as similar to Daniel 5,12 משרא, being freed form shackles. The word שריתיך in Jeremiah is understood as “I have scattered you,” if instead of with the letter ש it had been spelled with the letter ז. Compare Maleachi 2,3 where it appears as “I will strew, scatter, etc.” You will find this word in this sense in Numbers 17,2 when Eleazar is told to scatter the fire which had been on the pans on which the congregation of Korach had offered their incense. משרת ענבים in our verse also means anything which separated from the actual grapes and fell down. It is like a person after he had been freed from the chains that had held him captive.
It is not possible to explain the word משרת as related to שרת, in the sense of assist, serve, except when it occurs in connection with service performed by human beings for their masters.
Therefore, I believe that the word משרת belongs to a category of verbs which have the peculiarity that the last letter of their root disappears when the verb (or noun derived from it) appears in the construct mode. An example is the verb קנה, acquired, or מקנה, acquisition, which when in the construct form becomes מקנת, “acquisition of.” (compare Exodus 12,44) Although this expression is not found elsewhere in the Torah it does occur in the Talmud, always referring to something which had been soaked in water, such as in Nazir 36 where it describes a Nazirite who had soaked his bread in grape juice. We also find an expression in Jeremiah 15,11אם לא שריתיך לטוב, which is explained there by Rashi as similar to Daniel 5,12 משרא, being freed form shackles. The word שריתיך in Jeremiah is understood as “I have scattered you,” if instead of with the letter ש it had been spelled with the letter ז. Compare Maleachi 2,3 where it appears as “I will strew, scatter, etc.” You will find this word in this sense in Numbers 17,2 when Eleazar is told to scatter the fire which had been on the pans on which the congregation of Korach had offered their incense. משרת ענבים in our verse also means anything which separated from the actual grapes and fell down. It is like a person after he had been freed from the chains that had held him captive.
Siftei Chakhamim
Prison. I.e., משמר does not mean that he merely placed guards (שומרים) over them, for in v. 19 it is written יֵאָסֵר בבית משמרכם (imprisoned in your place of משמר). Rashi did not explain on 41:10 that משמר means prison because there it is clearly written in 40:3 that it was a בית הסוהר (jail).
Tur HaArokh
ויתנהו אל בית הסוהר מקום אשר אסירי המלך, “he placed him in the jail in which the King’s prisoners were kept.” According to Ibn Ezra the term בית הסוהר is a specifically Egyptian term. This is the reason why the Torah found it necessary to explain the meaning of the term by writing that it was the place in which the King’s prisoners were kept. Nachmanides writes concerning Ibn Ezra’s observation that Ibn Ezra made no contribution at all with his excuse for the apparent repetition, but that the letter ה at the beginning of the word סוהר indicates that this was a very well known jail, the one specially reserved for the king’s prisoners This explains why the King’s baker and the King’s cupbearer were placed in that jail where they met Joseph. It is also possible that the wording in chapter 40,3 indicates that prisoners kept in that jail were dealt with by the King personally, and not by regular judges and courts. The Torah’s reporting that this was the jail Potiphar placed Joseph in, is an indication that Joseph was considered as a V.I.P. by his former master.