how to say “desert” in Hebrew
מִדְבָּר
I love spending time in the desert, especially in Israel. There’s something about the quiet, the dryness and the wind that soothes my soul.
The Hebrew word for desert is מִדְבָּר . Its root is ד.ב.ר (d.b.r), which has two meanings in Biblical Hebrew: word (as in לְדַבֵּר – to speak) and disaster (as in דֶּבֶר – pestilence).
. Its root is ד.ב.ר (d.b.r), which has two meanings in Biblical Hebrew: word (as in לְדַבֵּר – to speak) and disaster (as in דֶּבֶר – pestilence).The latter meaning of the root is the one at play in our word, מדבר, as a desert is a disastrous place for most living things.
For example:
מִדְבַּר הַסָּהָרָה הוּא הַגָּדוֹל וְהַחַם בְּיוֹתֵר בָּעוֹלָם.
The Sahara Desert is the largest and hottest in the world.
In adjective form, the word becomes מִדְבָּרִי when describing something masculine and מִדְבָּרִית when describing something feminine.
when describing something masculine and מִדְבָּרִית when describing something feminine.For example:
רוּחַ מִדְבָּרִית מְלַטֶּפֶת אֶת עָרְפִּי.
A desert wind caresses the back of my neck.