Author: Ami Steinberger

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/להתפנותב-#.m4a” /]לְהִתְפַּנּוֹת If you’ve taken our Level 1 course, you know forms of the simple verb לפנות[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/להתפנותב-#.m4a” /] – to turn. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/להתפנותב-#.m4a” /]אתה צריך לפנות שמאלה ברמזור. You (a male) need to turn left at the light. לפנות in a passive sense means available or turned from the other (busy) direction – פנוי[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/להתפנותב-#.m4a”…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/סידורים-#.m4a” /]סִדּוּרִים Looking at the word above, you might think I’m talking about prayer books. These are סידורים[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/סידורים-#.m4a” /] as well. But since סידור[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/סידורים-#.m4a” /] in its essence means putting things in order, it applies to both a prayer book with all the prayers set in the right order, as well as something that needs to…

חֹמֶר לְשִׁנּוּן[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/review-1.mp3″ /] Review Material Can’t read Hebrew yet? You spent time on your Hebrew this week. Use these review materials to make it yours to keep.  Flashcards . Scatter . Gravity . Test [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/review-2.mp3″ /]שבת שלום, וסוף שבוע נעים! Shabbat Shalom, and have a nice weekend!

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/לפצות-פה-#.m4a” /]לִפְצוֹת פֶּה This dramatic expression comes straight from the Bible, where the ground opens up its mouth to swallow up dissidents: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/לפצות-פה-#.m4a” /]וּפָצְתָה הָאֲדָמָה אֶת פִּיהָ וּבָלְעָה אֹתָם וְאֶת כָּל אֲשֶׁר לָהֶם. (במדבר ט”ז, ל’) The earth shall open its mouth and swallow them and all their belongings. (Numbers 16:30) Over time,…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/מרצה-#.m4a” /]מַרְצֶה While פרופסור[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/מרצה-#.m4a” /] does mean professor, it’s not the word that Israelis students tend to use to refer to the person who teaches them at the university level. The word they prefer is מרצה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/מרצה-#.m4a” /] – literally, lecturer: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/מרצה-#.m4a” /]גיגלתי אותה – היא מרצה בטכניון. I googled her – she’s…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/לגגל-#.m4a” /]לְגַגֵּל Just as Google became not only a household term but also a verb in English, it has in Hebrew as well. Thus instead of לחפש באינטרנט[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/לגגל-#.m4a” /] – to search on the internet, Israelis today say simply לגגל[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/לגגל-#.m4a” /] – to google. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/לגגל-#.m4a” /]כבר לא צריך לחפש בספרייה – אפשר…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/כברא-#.m4a” /]כְּבָר The Hebrew word כבר[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/כברא-#.m4a” /] means not just the literal already, but so much more. In some cases it means yet, as in: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/כברא-#.m4a” /]שרה, קנית כבר כרטיסים להופעה? Sarah, have you bought tickets yet to the show? And in other cases, when paired with a negating word such as לא[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/כברא-#.m4a”…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/מופע-#.m4a” /]מוֹפָע The Hebrew word for a show is מופע[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/מופע-#.m4a” /], deriving from the root י.פ.ע[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/מופע-#.m4a” /]. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/מופע-#.m4a” /]דוד, בדוק איזה מופעים יש בתל אביב ביום חמישי. David, check what shows there are in Tel Aviv on Thursday. To refer specifically to a performance such as a rock concert, use the…

חֹמֶר לְשִׁנּוּן[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/review-1.mp3″ /] Review Material Can’t read Hebrew yet? You spent time on your Hebrew this week. Use these review materials to make it yours to keep.  Flashcards . Scatter . Gravity . Test [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/review-2.mp3″ /]שבת שלום, וסוף שבוע נעים! Shabbat Shalom, and have a nice weekend!

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/מושבה-#.m4a” /]מוֹשָׁבָה Some of you may know this word from the Religious-Zionist camps of North America, Camp Moshava. Without insinuating that Jews and Israelis are trying to take over the world, מושבה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/מושבה-#.m4a” /] does mean colony. In today’s usage, מושבה generally refers to neighborhoods in Israel established by foreign nations such the Greeks and…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/כמה-#.m4a” /]כַּמָּה Technically, this word is supposed to be pronounced with an emphasis on the last syllable: כַּמָּה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/כמה-#.m4a” /]. But the sweeping majority of Israelis will look at you funny if you try saying it that way in a sentence, instead, put the emphasis on the first syllable: כמה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/כמה-#.m4a” /]. The word…