Blog – Your Daily Dose of Hebrew

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מההתחלה-1.m4a” /]מֵהַהַתְחָלָה The opening word of the Book of Genesis is בראשית[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מההתחלה-2.m4a” /] – in the beginning. But ראשית[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מההתחלה-3.m4a” /] is not the common word for beginning – in fact, commentators scratch their heads as to why this word is used here in this form (it means literally beginning of), generating all sorts of interpretations. In any case,…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/אתה-צוחק-עלי-1.m4a” /]אַתָּה צוֹחֵק עָלַי? In Hebrew, when we talk about making fun of someone, we talk literally about laughing on them. So to make fun of is לצחוק על[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/אתה-צוחק-עלי-2.m4a” /]. For example, if a man were stopped by a police officer for running a stop sign but proceeded to argue with the cop’s grammar, the cop…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מאחורינו-1.m4a” /]מֵאֲחוֹרֵינוּ In Israel, the Jewish holiday season is behind us (outside of Israel there’s one more day). So you might hear Israelis say: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מאחורינו-2.m4a” /]החגים מאחורינו, חוזרים לשגרה. The holidays are behind us, (we’re) going back to the routine. מאחורינו[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מאחורינו-1.m4a” /] comes from the root א.ח.ר[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/מאחורינו-3.m4a” /], which means behind both in…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/שלט-עצור-1.m4a” /]שֶׁלֶט עֲצֹר The term for stop sign they teach in Israeli drivers education is תמרור עצור[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/שלט-עצור-2.m4a” /] – literally, stop signpost. However, most Israelis call that red and white hand symbol שלט עצור[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/שלט-עצור-1.m4a” /] – stop sign, where שלט[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/שלט-עצור-3.m4a” /] means posted sign just like any other, and !עצור[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/שלט-עצור-4.m4a” /] is the imperative (command)…

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/אוקיינוס-1.m4a” /]אוֹקְיָנוּס The largest body of water that the first readers of the Hebrew Bible knew was the Mediterranean. They called it הים הגדול[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/אוקיינוס-2.m4a” /] – the Great Sea. Thus there’s no word in Biblical Hebrew – or Modern Hebrew, for that matter – for ocean. Instead, we use the same word that English borrowed from Ancient…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/על-שפת-הנהר-1.m4a” /]עַל שְׂפַת הַנָּהָר The Hebrew word for lip is שפה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/על-שפת-הנהר-2.m4a” /]. Believe it or not, this word is quite versatile: it also means language and bank (of a river, a sea, etc). In a connected “of” (construct) state, שפה becomes שפת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/על-שפת-הנהר-3.m4a” /], so that a river bank is שפת נהר[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/על-שפת-הנהר-4.m4a” /] – literally, a bank…

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/תחת-כפית-השמים-1.m4a” /]תַּחַת כִּפַּת הַשָּׁמַיִם In English, to indicate that our activity is taking place outdoors, at night, we say under the stars. The expression in Hebrew is תחת כיפת השמים[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/תחת-כפית-השמים-1.m4a” /] – literally, under the dome of the heavens. So that you might hear: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/תחת-כפית-השמים-2.m4a” /]כולם מוזמנים לערב קסום תחת כיפת השמים….

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″ /]שַׁבָּת שָׁלוֹם, וְסוֹף שָׁבוּעַ נָעִים! Shabbat Shalom, and have a nice weekend!

[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/אור-ירוק-1.m4a” /]אוֹר יָרוֹק Since the invention of the traffic light, red light means stop, and green light means go. Green light in Hebrew is אור ירוק[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/אור-ירוק-1.m4a” /]. Like in English, it’s used both literally and proverbially. For example: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/אור-ירוק-2.m4a” /]הוא נתן לי אור ירוק לפרוייקט! He gave me a green light for the project!…