חֹמֶר לְשִׁנּוּן 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 שַׁבָּת שָׁלוֹם, וְסוֹף שָׁבוּעַ נָעִים! Shabbat Shalom, and have a nice weekend!
פְּרִיצַת דֶּרֶךְ Can’t read Hebrew yet? To break into a house is לִפְרוֹץ לְתוֹך בַּיִת , where לפרוץ is a simple verb of the root פ.ר.צ (p.r.ts) and means to break in or to break through. Likewise, a פְּרִיצָה לְבַיִת is a break-in to (one’s) home. On a happier note,…
פֵּרוֹת מְיֻבָּשִׁים Can’t read Hebrew yet? Today in Israel sales of dried fruits will be up by several hundred percent as the country marks the occasion of ט”וּ בִּשְׁבָט Tu Bishvat, the 15th of the Hebrew month of Shevat – when Jews celebrate the budding of spring. The word for fruit is פְּרִי (note…
רַכֶּבֶת תַּחְתִּית Can’t read Hebrew yet? The word תַּחַת means below or under, while מִתַּחַת means underneath (literally, from under) as in: הַנְּיָרוֹת נִמְצָאִים מִתַּחַת לַשֻּׁלְחָן. The papers are under the table. תחת also means one’s behind in slang. תַּחְתִּית means the bottom or lower part of something,…
הוֹרָאוֹת Can’t read Hebrew yet? The word תּוֹרָה comes from the root י.ר.ה (y.r.h) meaning instruction, so that the Torah could also be called the Book of Instruction. Here’s a video about this. This same root gives rise to the common word for instruction, הוֹרָאָה , which derives from the…
אוֹדוֹתֵנוּ Can’t read Hebrew yet? Just as English has various words for about – regarding, in reference to, etc – so does Hebrew. עַל is the most common word, as in: אֲנַחְנוּ לֹא מְדַבְּרִים עַל אֹתוֹ אָדָם. We’re not talking about the same person. Then there’s לְגַבֵּי …
חֹמֶר לְשִׁנּוּן 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 שַׁבָּת שָׁלוֹם, וְסוֹף שָׁבוּעַ נָעִים! Shabbat Shalom, and have a nice weekend!
מַעְיָן Can’t read Hebrew yet? The common Hebrew name מַעְיָן – given mostly to girls but also to boys – means spring or well. For example: אֵזוֹר בֵּית שְׁאָן נִקְרָא “עֵמֶק הַמַּעְיָנוֹת.” The Beit Shean region is called “The Valley of the Springs.” A synonym of מעין…
גָּאוֹן, גְּאוֹנִי Can’t read Hebrew yet? If you like Israeli music, you’ve likely come across at least a couple of songs by Yehoram Gaon, such as this one. The name Gaon – גָּאוֹן – means excellence or majesty in Biblical Hebrew, but in Modern Hebrew it means genius. For example:…
נְטִיָּה Can’t read Hebrew yet? The Hebrew verb לִנְטוֹת , of the root נ.ט.ה (n.t.h), means to tend or to be inclined. For example: אֲנִי נוֹטֶה לְהַצְבִּיעַ לְמִפְלָגוֹת קְטַנּוֹת. I (a male) tend to vote for a small parties. Likewise, נְטִיָּה means tendency, as in the phrase…
אוֹטוֹ, מְכוֹנִית, רֶכֶב Can’t read Hebrew yet? 1. In contemporary English we say car, but way back when, people used to call their cars automobiles. One of Hebrew’s three words for car is an abbreviation of that word: אוֹטוֹ . Take the opening line from this children’s song for example: …