how to say “first of all” in Hebrew

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קודם-כול-1.m4a” /]קֹדֶם כֹּל

The Hebrew equivalent of the English expression first of all is קודם כול[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קודם-כול-1.m4a” /], often written קודם כל.

קודם[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קודם-כול-2.m4a” /] means initially or before, and כול[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קודם-כול-3.m4a” /] means all, so קודם כול means literally, before all.

For example:

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קודם-כול-4.m4a” /]אתה יכול לצאת, אבל קודם כול אתה צריך לשטוף כלים.

You (a teenage boy) can go out, but first of all you need to wash (the) dishes.

קודם meaning initially is pronounced differently from another word spelled the same way: in קודם[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קודם-כול-5.m4a” /] meaning previous or preceding, stress the last syllable of the word. Whereas the קודם meaning before or initially is about time, קודם meaning previous is about priority and order.

For example:

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קודם-כול-6.m4a” /]אני קודם לך בתור.

I’m before you (I precede you, a male) in line.