how to say “helicopter” in Hebrew
מַסּוֹק
The people at the Academy of the Hebrew Language work hard to introduce newly-constructed authentic Hebrew words into the vernacular, trying to catch up with the masses who already use foreign words for inventions of recent centuries such as the telephone (the term they came up with, שַׂח רָחוֹק
listen and repeat, never made it) and the helicopter: מַסּוֹק listen and repeat.
listen and repeat, never made it) and the helicopter: מַסּוֹק listen and repeat.Whereas many Israelis still use הֶלִיקוֹפְּטֶר listen and repeat, the use of מסוק is becoming more and more commonplace.
listen and repeat, the use of מסוק is becoming more and more commonplace. The word מסוק is constructed from the root נ.ס.ק (n.s.k), a poetic root in Biblical Hebrew meaning rising up, and a mundane one in Aramaic meaning the same thing.
As happens with roots whose first letter is נ (n), that first root letter drops off in certain constructions, such as in the word מסּוק. Nevertheless, מסוק retains the hard consonant quality of the נ, as indicated in the dot in the letter ס (s). Thus in the plural, it’s מַסּוֹקִים listen and repeat with an ah vowel (not מְסוֹקִים listen and repeat), for example:
listen and repeat with an ah vowel (not מְסוֹקִים listen and repeat), for example:מַסּוֹקִים רַבִּים עוֹבְרִים מֵעַל הָעִיר שֶׁלָּנוּ.
Many helicopters are passing over our city.