Your Daily Dose of Hebrew

  אָכִיל  listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet?       In English, to express that an object or concept is capable of doing something, we usually add the suffix -able or -ible, as in reasonable and edible. Sometimes we add -ous as a suffix to express the same, as in poisonous – something…

  פִּטְרִיּוֹת, אִטְרִיּוֹת  listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet?       Some words are good to learn in pairs. The Hebrew words for mushroom and noodles are a great example.   Mushrooms in Hebrew are פִּטְרִיּוֹת listen and repeat, while a single mushroom is a פִּטְרִיָּה listen and repeat.   Noodles are אִטְרִיּוֹת listen and repeat,…

לְהַאֲכִיל Can’t read Hebrew yet?   Since  the topics in this week’s Torah portion tend to revolve around food, I’ll dedicate this week’s entries to that favorite pastime – eating. To eat is לֶאֱכוֹל listen and repeat. The root is א.כ.ל (a.k.l), and it’s a simple verb. Plugging that root into the causative verb form, we…

  הַגְרָלָה  listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet?     The ancient Hebrew root ג.ר.ל (g.r.l) appears already in Torah, where it refers to lots – גּוֹרָלוֹת listen and repeat. In Modern Hebrew we use the word גּוֹרָל listen and repeat to mean destiny or fate.   As a raffle is something given to chance or fate, the Hebrew word…

  אֲנַחְנוּ לֹא מְשַׁדְּרִים עַל אֹתוֹ גַּל  listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet?     In English, we talk about people thinking differently by invoking metaphors such as not quite seeing eye to eye, or not being on the same page. Hebrew invokes the metaphor of broadcasting:   .אֲנַחְנוּ לֹא מְשַׁדְּרִים עַל אֹתֹו גַּל We don’t…

  כּוֹכַב לֶכֶת  listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet?     For a while, Hebrew speakers would simply call a planet פְּלָנֶטָה listen and repeat.   That is, until the makers of Modern Hebrew came up with a better term: כּוֹכַב לֶכֶת, or a walking star.   כוכב לכת brings together the old and the new, beautifully…

  קָהָל  listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet?     The Hebrew word for audience is quite an ancient one, as Moses would address the audience – הַקָּהָל listen and repeat – of the wandering People of Israel for forty years in the desert.   A modern example:   הַקָּהָל מַקְשִׁיב. The audience is listening.  listen    The…

  אַחְדּוּת  listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet?   Difficulties cause strife and tension, but they sometimes serve to unify people.   To unify people is לְאַחֵד אֲנָשִׁים listen and repeat.   For example:   הַמְּאֹרָע הַקָּשֶׁה אֵחֵד אֶת הַמִּשְׁפָּחָה. The difficult event unified the family.  listen    To unify, as in to come together, is לְהִתְאַחֵד listen…