how to say “to hell with it” in Hebrew
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/לעזאזל-#.m4a” /]לַעֲזָאזֵל
Although in day-to-day speech לעזאזל[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/לעזאזל-#.m4a” /] has fallen out of use, you’ll still find it in subtitles for Israeli TV and film in place of your favorite English curse word. It can mean anything from to hell with it and what the hell? to other items I don’t want to spell out on this blog.
Here’s an example:
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/לעזאזל-#.m4a” /]מה לעזאזל הוא חשב לעצמו?
What the hell was he thinking?
Where does this word come from? Straight from the Torah. As part of the יום כיפור[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/לעזאזל-#.m4a” /] Temple service, a lottery chose between two goats, one to be sacrificed on the altar for G-d, and the other to be cast off a desert cliff לעזאזל – to Azazel. This latter goat would take with it, symbolically, the sins of the People of Israel down to the depths of the abyss. It was a scapegoat.
What about the word for hell itself? For that you’ll have to watch today’s video.
