Author: Ami Steinberger

מַחְזִיק מַפְתְּחוֹת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מחזיק-מפתחות-1.mp3″ /] You’re coming towards the end of your trip, and it’s time to buy souvenirs – מַזְכָּרוֹת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מחזיק-מפתחות-2.mp3″ /]. Beyond the “all I got was this t-shirt” gift, a very economical trinket is a key chain. The Hebrew term for this is מַחְזִיק מַפְתְּחוֹת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מחזיק-מפתחות-1.mp3″ /] – literally, a holder of keys….

רְחִיפָה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/רחיפה-1.mp3″ /] So you’ve been staying in your צִימֶר[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/רחיפה-2.mp3″ /] (private guest house) in the coastal town of Netanya. You surfed all morning. Now it’s time for some airborne action. The Hebrew term for paragliding is רְחִיפָה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/רחיפה-1.mp3″ /], coming from the root ר.ח.פ (r.kh.p) meaning hovering. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/רחיפה-3.mp3″ /]אֲנִי מְפַחֵד…

לִגְלוֹשׁ[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לגלוש-1.mp3″ /] Suppose you’re on a weekend getaway in Netanya, Israel, which is situated on the beach. And suppose you like to surf – לִגְלוֹשׁ[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לגלוש-1.mp3″ /]. You might ask the man selling falafel on the boardwalk: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לגלוש-2.mp3″ /]אֵיפֹה אֶפְשָׁר לִגְלוֹשׁ? Where can I surf? לגלוש is used not only for surfing the…

בֵּית הַאֲרָחָה, צִימֶר[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/צימר-1.mp3″ /] Now’s the time of year for vacation, at least in the northern hemisphere. While some like to rough it, others like to stay in hotels or guest houses. The Hebrew term for guest house is בֵּית הַאֲרָחָה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/צימר-2.mp3″ /] – literally, house of hospitality. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/צימר-3.mp3″ /]יֵשׁ חֲדָרִים…

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 Game Test [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/review-2.mp3″ /]שַׁבָּת שָׁלוֹם, וְסוֹף שָׁבוּעַ נָעִים! Shabbat Shalom, and have a nice weekend!

דּוֹבֵר עִבְרִית[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/דובר-1.mp3″ /] One of the first words you’ll learn in a conversational-Hebrew course is some form of the active-intensive verb לְדַבֵּר[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/דובר-2.mp3″ /] – to speak. When reading literary texts, you may come across a simple form of that word, as in the Biblical verse: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/דובר-3.mp3″ /]כֵּן בְּנוֹת צְלָפְחָד דֹּבְרֹת. ([audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/דובר-4.mp3″…

מַמְטֵרָה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/ממטרה-1.mp3″ /] The common Hebrew word for rain is גֶּשֶׁם[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/ממטרה-2.mp3″ /], while the word for rain shower or torrent is מָטָר[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/ממטרה-3.mp3″ /]. Both come from Biblical Hebrew, and both serve as roots for several other useful words. מטר becomes מִטְרִיָּה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/ממטרה-4.mp3″ /] – umbrella, as well as a word that people trying…

הַקֹּטֶב הַצְּפוֹנִי[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קוטב-1.mp3″ /] The Hebrew word קֹטֶב[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קוטב-2.mp3″ /] means pole, as in one of two points at the ends of an object. Thus הַקֹּטֶב הַדְּרוֹמִי[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קוטב-3.mp3″ /] is the South Pole, while הַקֹּטֶב הַצְּפוֹנִי[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קוטב-1.mp3″ /] is the North Pole. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קוטב-4.mp3″ /]הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ זוֹרַחַת כָּל הַיּוֹם בַּקַּיִץ בַָּקֹּטֶב הַצְּפוֹנִי. The sun…

זְרִיחָה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/זריחה-1.mp3″ /]   The Hebrew word for sunrise is זְרִיחָה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/זריחה-1.mp3″ /], which comes from the simple verb לִזְרוֹחַ[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/זריחה-2.mp3″ /] meaning to shine or to rise when referring to the sun. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/זריחה-3.mp3″ /]נִשְׁאַרְנוּ עֵרִים כָּל הַלַּיְלָה, עַד הַזְּרִיחָה. We stayed awake all night, until sunrise. You may recognize this word’s…

  גְּבִירָה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/גבירה-1.mp3″ /]   Last week I posted about what a man is called Hebrew. I said that while Hebrew has three common words for this, it only has one for woman – אִשָּׁה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/גבירה-2.mp3″ /]. Several people emailed me, asking why I did not include the word גְּבֶרֶת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/גבירה-3.mp3″ /] as another way…