Your Daily Dose of Hebrew

  having trouble seeing the print? סוּג שֶׁל…        Check out our world-class  conversational Hebrew program     When they want to express similarity without being too specific (or to say “no” or “not really” without actually saying it), English speakers use the expression sort of or kind of. Often this is a response to a…

  having trouble seeing the print? עִבְרִית מִקְרָאִית     Check out our world-class  conversational Hebrew program   video version! The Torah portion to be read this Shabbat by Jews around the world features the Biblical version of the origin of the many human languages. So I thought now would be a good time to feature an…

  having trouble seeing the print? תֵּבַת דֹּאַר     Check out our world-class  conversational Hebrew program     The Hebrew term for mailbox is תֵּבַת דֹּאַר – literally, a box of mail. דואר comes from the Aramaic word for messages passed around by couriers, those people who would run frantically from place to place. תיבת is the construct…

  having trouble seeing the print? מַחְסוֹם     Check out our world-class  conversational Hebrew program   This word, of the Biblical-Hebrew root ח.ס.מ (kh.s.m), means barrier or blockade – like those that Israel set up to keep terrorists out. An example: כְּדֵי לְהַגִּיעַ לָעִיר מוֹדִיעִין מִכְּבִישׁ 443, צָרִיךְ לַעֲבוֹר מַחְסוֹם. In order to get to the city Modiin…

  having trouble seeing the print? דֵּעָה     Check out our world-class  conversational Hebrew program     The Hebrew word for opinion comes from the root for knowledge – ד.ע.ה (d.a.h). The word is דֵּעָה. For example: הִיא בֶּן אָדָם מַשְׂכִּיל, וְיֵשׁ לָהּ דֵּעָה בָּעִנְיָן. She is an educated person, and she has an opinion on the matter….

  having trouble seeing the print? תָּפוּר עָלָיו/עָלֶיהָ     Sometimes people take on a job or position that fits them like a glove – it’s as if they were born for the task, or that the task is tailor-made for them. In Hebrew, we say, תָּפוּר עָלָיו when referring to a male. It means, literally, it’s tailored…

  having trouble seeing the print? מָקוֹר       Our popular Hebrew classes start next week around the country!   Spots are still available.     The Torah portion to be read this Shabbat by Jews around the world is the first in the Torah, בְּרֵאשִׁית (beh-reh-SHEET) – Genesis. It tells the story of how the world…

  having trouble seeing the print? לֶאֱסוֹר     Our popular Hebrew classes start next week around the country!   Spots are still available. לֶאֱסוֹר, an active-simple פָּעַל verb, means to forbid. Its origin goes back to Biblical Hebrew, where it means to bind someone or something or to tie up. Here’s a Modern-Hebrew example:   אָסַרְתִּי עָלָיו לַחְצוֹת אֶת הַכְּבִישׁ…

  having trouble seeing the print? לְהַרְשׁוֹת, לָתֵת ל…     Our popular Hebrew classes start next week around the country!   Spots are still available.     For such a famously legalistic text, the Hebrew Bible doesn’t have proper words for to allow or to forbid. So Modern Hebrew borrows from Mishnaic root for permission and authority,…

  having trouble seeing the print? לְהִתְפַּקֵּעַ מִצְּחוֹק      Our popular Hebrew classes start next week around the country!   Spots are still available.   Laughing is one of the most enjoyable of all human activities. To crack up, to fall off one’s seat, to die of laughter – these all have equivalents in Hebrew, though the most…