[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/נשבע-1.m4a” /]אֲנִי נִשְׁבָּע לְךָ! Why does the word שבועה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/נשבע-2.m4a” /] – an oath – have as its root the number seven – שבע[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/נשבע-3.m4a” /]? Various explanations are offered, from the cabbalistic to the historical. In any case, to swear is the nifal verb להישבע[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/נשבע-4.m4a” /] (a great example of how nifal is not a passive form in…
מִדְבָּר Can’t read Hebrew yet? I love spending time in the desert, especially in Israel. There’s something about the quiet, the dryness and the wind that soothes my soul. The Hebrew word for desert is מִדְבָּר . Its root is ד.ב.ר (d.b.r), which has two meanings in Biblical Hebrew: word (as in…
הֲכָנוֹת Can’t read Hebrew yet? The word for to prepare something, in Hebrew, is the active-causative verb לְהָכִין . The root is כ.ו.נ (k.w.n), the same as many common Hebrew words including כֵּן – yes and נָכוֹן – correct. For example: הֵכַנְתִּי אֲרֻחַת עֶרֶב טְעִימָה מְאֹד. I prepared a very tasty dinner….
הַפְסָקַת אֵשׁ Can’t read Hebrew yet? The Hebrew word for a break is הַפְסָקָה , an active-causative verb of the root פ.ס.ק (p.s.k) meaning pause. For example: הָעוֹבְדִים יָצְאוּ לְהַפְסָקַת צָהֳרַיִם. The employees went out for an afternoon break. And אֵשׁ is fire. So a ceasefire, or a…
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/איבר-#.m4a” /]אֵיבָר I’m not referring to organ the instrument – that’s אורגן[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/איבר-#.m4a” /]. I’m talking about an organ that helps enables our body to function. The Hebrew word for that is איבר[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/איבר-#.m4a” /]. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/איבר-#.m4a” /]הם מתפללים לרפואת כל האיברים והגידים. They pray for the healing of all the organs and tendons. איבר…