(sometimes spelled and pronounced הַפְלָיָה ). [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/הולך-רגל-#.m4a” /]הוֹלֵךְ רֶגֶל The English word pedestrian comes from Latin – it isn’t a word readily understood by people just starting to learn English. Hebrew’s expression, on the other hand, is more accessible: הולך רגל[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/הולך-רגל-#.m4a” /] – literally, foot walker. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/הולך-רגל-#.m4a” /]יש שם מעבר להולכי רגל. There’s a pedestrians’ crossing over there.
Can’t read Hebrew yet? שַׁעֲוָה The Israelites in the desert would still have gotten in trouble, but they would also have saved themselves a lot of money had they used wax instead of gold when they made the calf. They could have painted it gold. The Modern Hebrew word for wax is…
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/ילודה-#.m4a” /]יְלוּדָה The Hebrew word for child is ילד[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/ילודה-#.m4a” /], so it should come as no surprise that the word for birthrate is ילודה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/ילודה-#.m4a” /]. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/ילודה-#.m4a” /]בניגוד למדינות אחרות במערב, הילודה בישראל ממשיכה לגדול. In contrast to other countries in the West, the birthrate in Israel continues to grow. You…
לשלוף One of my favorite Hebrew verbs is לִשְׁלוֹף (leesh-LOHF) – to draw, as in, to draw a sword. That’s the meaning found in the Bible. But I can also pull a rabbit out of a hat… or a word from my memory – אֲנִי שׁוֹלֵף אֶת הַמִּלָּה מֵהַזִּכָּרוֹן (ah-NEE shoh-LEFF et hah-mee-LAH…
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/תחביב-#.m4a” /]תַּחְבִּיב One thing I’ve been doing with the extra time on my hands is improving my Arabic, part of my hobby of learning languages. The Hebrew word for hobby is תחביב[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/תחביב-#.m4a” /], as in: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/תחביב-#.m4a” /]כדי לנצל את הזמן, אפשר לפתח תחביב. In order to make the most of (our) time, (we)…
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/כהה-עור-#.m4a” /]כֵּהֶה עוֹר חשוך[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/כהה-עור-#.m4a” /] means dark when referring to darkness – the absence of light. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/כהה-עור-#.m4a” /]חשוך פה. It’s dark (in) here. כהה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/כהה-עור-#.m4a” /], however, refers to dark as distinguished from a light or bright color, so that כהה עור[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/כהה-עור-#.m4a” /] means dark-skinned when referring to a male, while כהת…