today there was a big one – how do you say “demonstration” in Hebrew?


This one was requested by Ruti. If you would like to request a word to be featured on Ktzat Ivrit, please click. It’s still summer in Israel. The bike ride from my rented German Colony apartment to Yeshivat HaKotel in the Old City (where I deliver Ivrit La-Inyan classes) requires that I take…
לְמַנֵּף A crane or a lever in Hebrew is a מָנוֹף (mah-NOHF). To leverage – to use resources to gain a desired outcome (rough definition) – is לְמַנֵּף (leh-mah-NEF) in Hebrew. It’s an active-intensive פיעל (pee-EL) verb. Check out our Summer 2011 classes for adults as well as teens in our…
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/שביתה-1.m4a” /]שְׁבִיתָה With even the airport closing about once a year due to disgruntled employees, the word for strike is core vocabulary in Hebrew. The word is שביתה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/שביתה-1.m4a” /]. You may recognize as its root the word שבת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/שביתה-2.m4a” /] – the Sabbath: שבת is the day of rest, the day when the workers “go on strike.”…
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מטהר-אוויר-1.m4a” /]מְטַהֵר אֲוִיר Sometimes it’s a preemptive strike. Other times it comes after learning the hard way. But it’s always a good idea to place some kind of air freshener in the restroom. The Hebrew word for air freshener is מטהר אוויר[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מטהר-אוויר-1.m4a” /] – literally, air purifier. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מטהר-אוויר-2.m4a” /]למטהר האוויר הזה יש ניחוח של תותים. This…
להתאחד If you live in Israel, surely you’ve heard of the health care provider, מְאוּחֶדֶת (meh-oo-KHEH-deht). In English, it would be called United – like the airline. The word is feminine since it refers to קוּפַּת חוֹלִים (koo-PAHT khoh-LEEM) – health care provider (literally, “sick people’s register” – we could also use some health care…