Your Daily Dose of Hebrew

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/הממשלה-1.m4a” /]הַמֶּמְשָׁלָה You may know the term for prime minister – ראש הממשלה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/הממשלה-2.m4a” /], literally, the head of the government. The word ממשלה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/הממשלה-3.m4a” /] – government – comes from the root מ.ש.ל[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/הממשלה-4.m4a” /] meaning reign. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/הממשלה-5.m4a” /]זה לא תלוי בנו, אלא בהחלטת הממשלה. It doesn’t depend on us, but on the…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/להמשיך-1.m4a” /]לְהַמְשִׁיךְ, לְהִמָּשֵׁךְ If you’ve taken our Level 1 course, you know the expression: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/להמשיך-2.m4a” /]אתה ממשיך ישר… You continue straight… That’s speaking to a male. To a female its: את ממשיכה ישר…[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/להמשיך-3.m4a” /] ממשיך[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/להמשיך-4.m4a” /] and ממשיכה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/להמשיך-5.m4a” /] are usages of the active-causative verb להמשיך[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/להמשיך-6.m4a” /] – to continue…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/לא-יזיק-1.m4a” /]לֹא יַזִּיק להזיק[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/לא-יזיק-2.m4a” /], an active-causative verb of the root נ.ז.ק[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/לא-יזיק-3.m4a” /], means to damage or to harm. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/לא-יזיק-4.m4a” /]יותר מדי מים יכול להזיק לפרחים. Too much water can harm the flowers. להזיק makes an appearance in the expression it can’t hurt – זה לא יזיק[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/לא-יזיק-5.m4a” /], or simply, לא…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/החזר-מלא-1.m4a” /]הֶחְזֵר מָלֵא The full expression for refund – a monetary return – is החזר כספי[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/החזר-מלא-2.m4a” /], where כספי[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/החזר-מלא-3.m4a” /] means monetary and החזר[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/החזר-מלא-4.m4a” /] means return. But the shortened version is simply החזר. A full refund is החזר מלא[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/החזר-מלא-1.m4a” /]. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/החזר-מלא-5.m4a” /]עולים חדשים של 2017 זכאים לקבל החזר מלא אצלנו. New immigrants (to…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/השנה-1.m4a” /]הַשָּׁנָה You may know the Hebrew word for today or this day  – היום[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/השנה-2.m4a” /]. It’s also the title of a song by Ehud Banai. היום means literally the day: same structure works for this week – השבוע[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/השנה-3.m4a” /], this year – השנה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/השנה-4.m4a” /], etc. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/השנה-5.m4a” /]כמה עולים הגיעו לארץ…

חֹמֶר לְשִׁנּוּן[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/review-1.mp3″ /] 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 . Scatter . Gravity . Test [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/review-2.mp3″ /]שבת שלום, וסוף שבוע נעים! Shabbat Shalom, and have a nice weekend! =”410″> Flashcards . Scatter . Gravity . Test [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/review-2.mp3″ /]שבת שלום, וסוף שבוע…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/חמוד-1.m4a” /]חָמוּד The Land of Israel has many names in the Bible, one of which is ארץ חמדה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/חמוד-2.m4a” /] – translated roughly as the coveted land. The root ח.מ.ד[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/חמוד-3.m4a” /] means desire or coveting, as in the Biblical commandment לא תחמוד[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/חמוד-4.m4a” /] – do not covet. ח.מ.ד is also the root of the words חמוד[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/חמוד-1.m4a”…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/כלבלב-1.m4a” /]כְּלַבְלַב, גּוּר כְּלָבִים The Hebrew word for dog is כלב[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/כלבלב-2.m4a” /] for a male and כלבה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/כלבלב-3.m4a” /] for a female. Using the basic word, a puppy is a כלבלב[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/חמוד-7.m4a” /] or a כלבלבה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/כלבלב-4.m4a” /], for a male and female respectively. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/כלבלב-5.m4a” /]אימצנו כלבלב. We adopted a (male) puppy. But…

Correction: The title of yesterday’s email read רִבּוּי מְשִׁימוֹת, with a שׁ. The title should have read רִבּוּי מְשִׂימוֹת with a שׂ. The phrase means multitasking. [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/חלוקת-תפקידים-1.m4a” /]חֲלֻקַּת תַּפְקִידִים The Hebrew word for labor or work is עבודה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/חלוקת-תפקידים-2.m4a” /]. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/חלוקת-תפקידים-3.m4a” /]פעם מפלגת העבודה הובילה. The Labor party used to be the leading one (used…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/ריבוי-משימות-1.m4a” /]רִבּוּי מְשִׂימוֹת The Hebrew word for task is משימה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/ריבוי-משימות-2.m4a” /]. It derives from the root ש.י.מ[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/ריבוי-משימות-3.m4a” /] meaning to place or to put: a task is something a person might apply or put themselves to. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/ריבוי-משימות-4.m4a” /]זאת משימה לא פשוטה. This is not a simple task. Multitasking is ריבוי משימות[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/ריבוי-משימות-1.m4a” /], where…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/להתחנן-1.m4a” /]אֲנִי מִתְחַנֵּן! The Hebrew word for to beg or to plead – להתחנן[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/להתחנן-2.m4a” /] – goes all the way back to Biblical times. In fact, it appears in the title of last week’s Torah portion – ואתחנן[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/להתחנן-3.m4a” /] – and I pleaded. Here’s an example in Modern Hebrew: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/להתחנן-4.m4a” /]אמא, אני מתחננת, תקני לנו…