Between 1955 and 1965, he was editor of Leshoneynu (Our Language), the principal periodical of the Academy of the Hebrew Language. In 1961 he was appointed vice president of the Academy of the Hebrew Language and, in the same year, was appointed to head the Historical Dictionary of the Hebrew Language project, serving in such capacity until 1992. In 1973, following the death of Naftali Herz Tur-Sinai, Ben-Haim was appointed as the second president of the Academy of the Hebrew Language, holding that post until 1981.