Your Daily Dose of Hebrew

קָשׁוּחַ[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קשוח-1.mp3″ /] The word for hard is קָשֶׁה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קשוח-2.mp3″ /], whose root is the three letters that appear in the word. The word for tough, as a character trait, is קָשׁוּחַ[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קשוח-1.mp3″ /]. Its root is ק.שׁ.ח (k.sh.kh), almost the same as קשה. The word in context: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/קשוח-3.mp3″ /]הִיא בּוֹסִית קְשׁוּחָה מְאֹד. She’s…

רַכּוּת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/רכות-1.mp3″ /] If you’ve got some Hebrew under your belt, you may know the pair of opposites רַךְ[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/רכות-2.mp3″ /] – soft, and קָשֶׁה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/רכות-3.mp3″ /] – hard. Softness is a higher-level word. In Hebrew, it’s רַכּוּת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/רכות-1.mp3″ /]. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/רכות-4.mp3″ /]הַכֻּתְנָה מַעֲנִיקָה רַכּוּת מְרַבִּית. Cotton provides maximum softness. רכות means softness in…

בִּמְיֻחָד, בִּפְרָט[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/במיוחד-1.mp3″ /] The Hebrew word for special is מְיֻחָד[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/במיוחד-2.mp3″ /], so especially – literally, with special or with “specialness” – is בִּמְיֻחָד[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/במיוחד-3.mp3″ /]. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/במיוחד-4.mp3″ /]הוּא לֹא גָּבוֹהַּ בִּמְיֻחָד. He’s not especially tall. Now, that’s the basic word. A more polished, specific expression in English is in particular, which…

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 Game Test [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/review-2.mp3″ /]שַׁבָּת שָׁלוֹם, וְסוֹף שָׁבוּעַ נָעִים! Shabbat Shalom, and have a nice weekend!

שְׁגִיאָה, טָעוּת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/טעות-1.mp3″ /] Hebrew has two words for mistake – שְׁגִיאָה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/טעות-2.mp3″ /] and טָעוּת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/טעות-3.mp3″ /], both deriving from Biblical Hebrew. While they’re often used interchangeably, there is a subtle difference. שגיאה is related to the Biblical-Hebrew בִּשְׁגָּגָה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/טעות-4.mp3″ /] – by mistake. It refers to an error made when there was another…

מַחְזִיק מַפְתְּחוֹת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מחזיק-מפתחות-1.mp3″ /] You’re coming towards the end of your trip, and it’s time to buy souvenirs – מַזְכָּרוֹת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מחזיק-מפתחות-2.mp3″ /]. Beyond the “all I got was this t-shirt” gift, a very economical trinket is a key chain. The Hebrew term for this is מַחְזִיק מַפְתְּחוֹת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מחזיק-מפתחות-1.mp3″ /] – literally, a holder of keys….

רְחִיפָה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/רחיפה-1.mp3″ /] So you’ve been staying in your צִימֶר[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/רחיפה-2.mp3″ /] (private guest house) in the coastal town of Netanya. You surfed all morning. Now it’s time for some airborne action. The Hebrew term for paragliding is רְחִיפָה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/רחיפה-1.mp3″ /], coming from the root ר.ח.פ (r.kh.p) meaning hovering. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/רחיפה-3.mp3″ /]אֲנִי מְפַחֵד…

לִגְלוֹשׁ[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לגלוש-1.mp3″ /] Suppose you’re on a weekend getaway in Netanya, Israel, which is situated on the beach. And suppose you like to surf – לִגְלוֹשׁ[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לגלוש-1.mp3″ /]. You might ask the man selling falafel on the boardwalk: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לגלוש-2.mp3″ /]אֵיפֹה אֶפְשָׁר לִגְלוֹשׁ? Where can I surf? לגלוש is used not only for surfing the…

בֵּית הַאֲרָחָה, צִימֶר[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/צימר-1.mp3″ /] Now’s the time of year for vacation, at least in the northern hemisphere. While some like to rough it, others like to stay in hotels or guest houses. The Hebrew term for guest house is בֵּית הַאֲרָחָה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/צימר-2.mp3″ /] – literally, house of hospitality. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/צימר-3.mp3″ /]יֵשׁ חֲדָרִים…

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 Game Test [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/review-2.mp3″ /]שַׁבָּת שָׁלוֹם, וְסוֹף שָׁבוּעַ נָעִים! Shabbat Shalom, and have a nice weekend!

דּוֹבֵר עִבְרִית[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/דובר-1.mp3″ /] One of the first words you’ll learn in a conversational-Hebrew course is some form of the active-intensive verb לְדַבֵּר[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/דובר-2.mp3″ /] – to speak. When reading literary texts, you may come across a simple form of that word, as in the Biblical verse: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/דובר-3.mp3″ /]כֵּן בְּנוֹת צְלָפְחָד דֹּבְרֹת. ([audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/דובר-4.mp3″…