Blog – Your Daily Dose of Hebrew

הַר הַבַּיִת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/הר-הבית-1.mp3″ /] The Hebrew word for mountain is הָר[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/הר-הבית-2.mp3″ /], and the word for temple is מִקְדָּשׁ[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/הר-הבית-3.mp3″ /]. In the case of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem, the term is בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/הר-הבית-4.mp3″ /] – literally, the house of the temple. But you won’t hear anyone in Israel – religious or…

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!

תַּפְנִית[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/תפנית-1.mp3″ /] If you’ve taken our Level 1 class, you know the word for to turn – לִפְנוֹת[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/תפנית-2.mp3″ /], as in: [audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/תפנית-3.mp3″ /]בָּרַמְזוֹר, אַתְּ פּוֹנָה שְׂמֹאלָה. At the traffic light, you (a female) turn left. The root of לפנות is פ.נ.ה (p.n.h), which forms the base of the word for a change…

כּוֹנָן קָשִׁיחַ[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/כונן-קשיח-1.mp3″ /] We’ve seen that while the generic Hebrew word for hard is קָשֶׁה[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/כונן-קשיח-2.mp3″ /], the word for tough, at least when describing a person, is קָשׁוּחַ[audioclip url=”https://archive.ulpan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/כונן-קשיח-3.mp3″ /], of the root ק.שׁ.ח. (k.sh.kh). That same root forms the word for stiff or rigid – also hard – when describing an object –…

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…