how to say “have a good day” in Hebrew
יוֹם טוֹב[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/יום-טוב-1.mp3″ /]
If it’s 10am, you might say to your friend, “have a good day.” The most common Hebrew equivalent, יוֹם טוֹב[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/יום-טוב-1.mp3″ /], translates just the good day part. This is what you’d wish someone using Modern Hebrew, though in pre-Modern Hebrew, יום טוב refers to a Jewish festival.
You could also use the full expression. Speaking to a male, it’s:
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/יום-טוב-2.mp3″ /]שֶׁיִהְיֶה לְךָ יוֹם טוֹב.
And speaking to a female, it’s:
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/יום-טוב-3.mp3″ /]שֶׁיִהְיֶה לָךְ יוֹם טוֹב.
These mean literally, that you should have a good day.
But what happens if the day is already well underway? In this case, Hebrew speakers are likely to say:
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/יום-טוב-4.mp3″ /]הֶמְשֵׁךְ יוֹם טוֹב.
Have a good rest of the day.
Broken down literally:
המשך[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/יום-טוב-5.mp3″ /] – continuation
המשך יום[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/יום-טוב-6.mp3″ /] – continuation of a day
המשך יום טוב[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/יום-טוב-4.mp3″ /] – a good continuation of a day
