תַּשְׁבֵּץ listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet? The root שׁ.ב.צ (sh.b.ts) means checkered or plaited. Thus a slot on a calendar is called a מִשְׁבֶּצֶת listen and repeat, and an informal way of saying to book an appointment is לְשַׁבֵּץ פְּגִישָׁה listen and repeat. For example: שִׁבַּצְתִּי אֶת הַפְּגִישָׁה שֶׁלָּךְ…
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/להתנצל-#.m4a” /]לְהִתְנַצֵּל The Hebrew word for to apologize is the התפעל verb להתנצל[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/להתנצל-#.m4a” /]. The word first appears in Biblical Hebrew in the context of removing jewelry in an act of shame and submission. This very physical act was down in the presence of someone else, so the word is followed with a form…
רַכֶּבֶת קָלָה All kinds of less-than-pleasant things have been going in Israel over the past day or so. However, something refreshing has taken place as well: The Jerusalem Light Rail today started transporting passengers after nine years of building. The Hebrew word for train is רַכֶּבֶת (rah-KEH-vet), deriving from the same root as…
מִדְבָּר listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet? 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 listen and repeat. Its root is ד.ב.ר (d.b.r), which has two meanings in Biblical…
having trouble seeing the print? מְחֻבָּר, מְחֻבֶּרֶת highly recommended for further vocabulary growth in honor of today’s national holiday From the Biblical book of Psalms: יְרוּשָׁלִַם הַבְּנוּיָה כְּעִיר שֶׁחֻבְּרָה לָהּ יַחְדָּו. Built-up Jerusalem is as a city that was joined together with itself. In case we get lost in the obscurity of that statement, the…