Blog – Your Daily Dose of Hebrew

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   Blast from the Past Crossword Puzzle! [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!

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/סוף-העולם-1.m4a” /]זֶה לֹא סוֹף הָעוֹלָם Some expressions don’t translate literally from English to Hebrew, one example being it’s not true! and !לא נכון[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/סוף-העולם-2.m4a” /]. Other expressions do translate literally. One example is it’s not the end of the world – זה לא סוף העולם[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/סוף-העולם-1.m4a” /]. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/סוף-העולם-3.m4a” /]לכלכת את המפה? זה לא…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/תחרותי-1.m4a” /]תַּחֲרוּתִי The Hebrew word for competition is תחרות[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/תחרותי-5.m4a” /], which I discussed around the time of the US presidential election four years ago. In that post I point out that this word’s root is ח.ר.ה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/תחרותי-2.m4a” /] meaning anger or wrath – which makes sense, since competition requires the type of energy that often comes with anger. Someone competitive…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לא-נכון-1.m4a” /]לֹא נָכוֹן! Two Israeli kids, a sister and a brother, are fighting in the backseat of the family car. אמא[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לא-נכון-2.m4a” /] – Mother – turns her head to shush them, but her daughter says: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לא-נכון-3.m4a” /]הוא התחיל! He started! To which the son replies: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לא-נכון-1.m4a” /]לא נכון! Not true! Note…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לרמות-1.m4a” /]לְרַמּוֹת You’re playing poker and your friend tries to pull a fast one on you. You might call him out with: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לרמות-2.m4a” /]רמאי! Cheater! Or: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לרמות-3.m4a” /]אתה מרמה! You’re cheating! לרמות[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לרמות-1.m4a” /] is to cheat. It’s an active-intensive verb of the root ר.מ.ה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/לרמות-4.m4a” /], which means deception in this case…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/נשבע-1.m4a” /]אֲנִי נִשְׁבָּע לְךָ! Why does the word שבועה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/נשבע-2.m4a” /] – an oath – have as its root the number seven – שבע[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/נשבע-3.m4a” /]? Various explanations are offered, from the cabbalistic to the historical. In any case, to swear is the nifal verb להישבע[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/נשבע-4.m4a” /] (a great example of how nifal is not a passive form in…

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   Blast from the Past Crossword Puzzle! [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!

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/סוכנות-נדלן-1.m4a” /]סוֹכְנוּת נַדְלָ”ן You may know of the Jewish Agency for Israel. Some of you may even work there. The organization’s name in Hebrew is הסוכנות היהודית[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/סוכנות-נדלן-2.m4a” /], where סוכנות[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/סוכנות-נדלן-3.m4a” /] means agency. Likewise, an agent is a סוכן[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/סוכנות-נדלן-4.m4a” /] (male) or סוכנת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/סוכנות-נדלן-5.m4a” /] (female). Now, just as Hebrew borrows from Aramaic…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/משכנתא-1.m4a” /]מַשְׁכַּנְתָּא The English word mortgage derives from French, where the words mort (dead) and gage (pledge) combine to imply that this loan, this pledge to return the money, dies either when the loan is paid back in full, or when the borrower fails to pay it back. (Online Etymological Dictionary) The Hebrew word, משכנתא[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/משכנתא-1.m4a” /], also…