how to say “polite” in Hebrew
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/מנומס-1.m4a” /]מְנֻמָּס
Some might scoff and say there’s no word in Hebrew for polite. And, in a way, they’d be right, since the word מנומס[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/מנומס-1.m4a” /] – polite – comes to Hebrew via the Greek word νομος (nomos) meaning law or custom.
Thus manners in Hebrew are נימוסים[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/מנומס-2.m4a” /].
For example:
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/מנומס-3.m4a” /]אין להם נימוסים.
They have no manners.
Here’s מנומס in action, albeit in the plural:
[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/מנומס-4.m4a” /]הם ילדים מאוד לא מנומסים.
They are very impolite children.
