how to say “to pet” in Hebrew

ByAmi Steinberger

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/ללטף-#.m4a” /]לְלַטֵּף

The Hebrew word for to pet or to caress (a human being as well) is ללטף[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/ללטף-#.m4a” /].

For example:

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/ללטף-#.m4a” /]איזה כלב חמוד שם בפתח, בא לי ללטף אותו.

What a cute dog there in the doorway, I feel like petting it.

ללטף is a פיעל verb whose root is ל.ט.פ[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/ללטף-#.m4a” /]. The root does not appear in Biblical Hebrew, but I suspect that it is Semitic as it’s related to the Arabic word لطيف (la-TEEF – think Queen Latifah), one of whose meanings is pet.

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/ללטף-#.m4a” /]חג פסח שמח!

Happy Passover Holiday!

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