לֶאֱכוֹל אֶת הָעוּגָה וּלְהַשְׁאִיר אֹתָהּ שְׁלֵמָה Can’t read Hebrew yet? Sometimes we want it all. But you can’t have your cake and eat it too… or אִי אֶפְשָׁר לֶאֱכוֹל אֶת הָעוּגָה וּלְהַשְׁאִיר אֹתָהּ שְׁלֵמָה. Literally – It’s not possible to eat the cake and leave it complete. Broken down:…
חֹמֶר לְשִׁנּוּן Review Material Can’t read Hebrew yet? You spent time on your Hebrew this week. Use these review materials to make it yours to keep. Flashcards Game Test שַׁבָּת שָׁלוֹם, וְסוֹף שָׁבוּעַ נָעִים! Shabbat Shalom, and have a nice weekend!
זִכּוּי כַּסְפִּי Can’t read Hebrew yet? If you’re not happy with a product you bought in Israel, you’ll find many shops reluctant to give a refund, but happy to give store credit. The term for such credit is זִכּוּי כַּסְפִּי (literally, monetary credit) or simply זיכוי , of the root…
הֶחְזֵר כַּסְפִּי Can’t read Hebrew yet? A refund in Hebrew is הֶחְזֵר כַּסְפִּי – literally, a returning of funds. But more often than not, you’ll hear people abbreviating the expression to simply החזר . For example: תִּרְאִי אִם תּוּכְלִי לְקַבֵּל הֶחְזֵר מֵהַחֲנוּת. See if you can get a refund from…
לָשִׂים Can’t read Hebrew yet? The word לָשִׂים – to put or to place – is a simple verb of the hollow variety, of the root שׂ.י.מ (s.y.m). For example: שִׂימִי אֶת הַשַּׂקִּיּוֹת עַל הַשֻּׁלְחָן. Put the bags on the table. (to a female) This word is at least as old…
חֹמֶר לְשִׁנּוּן Review Material Can’t read Hebrew yet? Review, practice and test yourself on this week’s doses of Hebrew! Flashcards Game Test שַׁבָּת שָׁלוֹם, וְסוֹף שָׁבוּעַ נָעִים! Shabbat Shalom, and have a nice weekend!
סַל, סַלְסִלָּה, טֶנֶא Can’t read Hebrew yet? Hebrew has several words for basket, each with a distinct meaning: 1. סל סַל is your typical weaved basket that can hold several kilos of fruit and other items. A metaphoric usage familiar to those of you who have made aliyah (immigrated…
שַׂקִּית Can’t read Hebrew yet? Hebrew has different words for the various types of bags, but we’ll focus here on the ones you find at (or bring to) the supermarket or the department store. The Modern-Hebrew word for this modern invention is שַׂקִּית . The word derives from the Biblical…
שְׂפַת אֵם Can’t read Hebrew yet? Hebrew has two words for language, and both are named after parts of the mouth: שָׂפָה – the common word, literally lip לָשׁוֹן – the more poetic word, literally tongue, also referring to the study of language Hebrew’s expression for native language or mother tongue uses the lip metaphor: שְׂפַת…
לְהִסְתַּכֵּל עַל חֲצִי הַכּוֹס הַמְּלֵאָה Can’t read Hebrew yet? Is the glass half empty or half full? Conventional wisdom dictates: see the glass as half full. Hebrew joins a slew of languages that translate that important phrase, producing the dictum: צָרִיךְ לְהִסְתַּכֵּל עַל חֲצִי הַכּוֹס הַמְּלֵאָה, וְלֹא עַל חֲצִי הַכּוֹס הָרֵיקָה. Literally –…
לְהִתְמַלֵּא Can’t read Hebrew yet? מָלֵא for something masculine and מְלֵאָה for something feminine mean full, as in filled to capacity. For example: הַמָּקוֹם מָלֵא בַּאֲנָשִׁים. The place is full of people. and הַבֶּטֶן שֶׁלִּי מְלֵאָה. My stomach is full. For something to get filled up,…