how to say “useful” in Hebrew

  having trouble seeing the print? שִׁמּוּשִׁי    Level 4 Hebrew course  opening in Tel Aviv this Sunday!   If you’re conversant in Hebrew, you most likely know the Hebrew word for to use something – לְהִשְׁתַּמֵּש (leh-heesh-tah-MESH), as in הִיא מִשְׁתַּמֶּשֶׁת בָּעֵט עַכְשָׁו (hee meesh-tah-MEH-shet bah-ET ahkh-SHAHV) – she is using the pen now.  The root is ש.מ.ש…

how to say “to become” in Hebrew

  having trouble seeing the print? לִהְיוֹת לְ…   Further build your Hebrew vocabulary with…     There is no one-to-one translation of to become into Hebrew. Here are instead several options to express it, each with a slightly different connotation. 1. …לִהְיוֹת ל (lee-h-YOHT leh…) – literally, to be to… This the most literary form, the one found…

how to say “judgmental” in Hebrew

  having trouble seeing the print? שִׁפּוּטִי   The Torah portion to be read this Shabbat by Jews around the world is called מִשְׁפָּטִים (meesh-pah-TEEM), literally, ordinances or rules. The root of this word is שׁ.פ.ט (sh.p.t), meaning judgment.  To judge, in both the legalistic sense and in the interpersonal sense, is לִשְׁפּוֹט (leesh-POHT), while a שׁוֹפֵט (shoh-FET) is…

how to say “to recover” in Hebrew

  having trouble seeing the print? לְהִתְאוֹשֵׁשׁ     Enter code “ULI” for an exclusive Ulpan La-Inyan discount.  To “get better” from an illness is לְהַבְרִיא (leh-hahv-REE) or לְהַחְלִים (leh-hahkh-LEEM). But recovery doesn’t have to be from an illness – it could be from a shock or a spiritual low as well. The Hebrew word for to recover is לְהִתְאוֹשֵׁש (leh-heet-oh-SHESH),…

How to say “bonfires” in Yiddish and Hebrew

קומזיץ, מדורה   A common word used in Israel for bonfires is קוּמְזִיץ (KOOM-zeets). This word comes from Yiddish and means, literally, come, sit (say the word out loud and right away you’ll notice the Germanic similarity in the sounds).   To an Israeli, the word קומזיץ brings to mind the bonfire and all that is…