how to say “to come together” in Hebrew
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/להתכנס-1.mp3″ /]לְהִתְכַּנֵּס
A phrase appearing in the prayers of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot reads:
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/להתכנס-2.mp3″ /]ונפוצותינו כנס מירכתי ארץ.
And gather our dispersed from the corners of the earth.
The word כנס[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/להתכנס-3.mp3″ /] in that phrase means (you should) gather, so that to gather people together is the active-intensive לכנס[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/להתכנס-4.mp3″ /].
Now that’s, to gather when talking about gathering other people. To include yourself in the gathering, or to describe a gathering that people do on their own, you’d use the reflexive-intensive verb להתכנס[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/להתכנס-1.mp3″ /].
For example:
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/להתכנס-5.mp3″ /]כל שנה, אנחנו מתכנסים בסוכה של סבתא וסבא.
Every year, we gather in Grandma and Grandpa’s sukkah.
In honor of Sukkot, I will be taking a vacation from publishing Your Daily Dose of Hebrew.
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/media-files/chag-sameach.mp3″ /]חג שמח!
