how to say “fellow human being” in Hebrew
כּוֹכַב לֶכֶת Can’t read Hebrew yet? For a while, Hebrew speakers would simply call a planet פְּלָנֶטָה . That is, until the makers of Modern Hebrew came up with a better term: כּוֹכַב לֶכֶת, or a walking star. כוכב לכת brings together the old and the new, beautifully illustrating two facts:…
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/בגד-ים-1.m4a” /]בֶּגֶד יָם Summer is upon us here in the northern hemisphere. One of the most important summer items is variably called a swimsuit, a bathing suit or swim trunks. All these terms focus on the action taken while donning the garment. Hebrew’s term focuses not on the action, but on the place where the suit might be worn:…
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/חוף-הים-#.m4a” /]חוֹף הַיָּם If you’re stuck in the cold and rainy northern hemisphere, you might just be dreaming of חוף הים[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/חוף-הים-#.m4a” /] – the beach. This expression means literally the coast of the sea. And when Israelis talk about going to the beach, they tend to shorten the expression to just הים[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/חוף-הים-#.m4a” /] – literally,…
having trouble seeing the print? לְהַשְׁמִין Get talking… in Hebrew. Class starts next Sunday, October 30 around the country with Ulpan La-Inyan. The Jewish holiday season is now over both in Israel and abroad. And just as in other cultures and religions, Jews have a tendency to gain weight over the holidays….
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/חווה-1.m4a” /]חַוָּה You may know חווה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/חווה-1.m4a” /] as a name, the original Hebrew version of Eve. You may also know that the biblical story of אדם וחווה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/חווה-2.m4a” /] – Adam and Eve – explains this first lady’s name: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/חווה-3.m4a” /]וַיִּקְרָא הָאָדָם שֵׁם אִשְׁתּוֹ חַוָּה כִּי הִוא הָיְתָה אֵם כָּל חָי. (בראשית ג’, כ’) And…