שְׂפַת אֵם listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet? Hebrew has two words for language, and both are named after parts of the mouth: שָׂפָה listen and repeat – the common word, literally lip לָשׁוֹן listen and repeat – the more poetic word, literally tongue, also referring to the study of language Hebrew’s expression for native language or mother tongue uses…
לְהִסְתַּכֵּל עַל חֲצִי הַכּוֹס הַמְּלֵאָה listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet? Is the glass half empty or half full? Conventional wisdom dictates: see the glass as half full. Hebrew joins a slew of languages that translate that important phrase, producing the dictum: צָרִיךְ לְהִסְתַּכֵּל עַל חֲצִי הַכּוֹס הַמְּלֵאָה, וְלֹא עַל חֲצִי הַכּוֹס הָרֵיקָה….
לְהִתְמַלֵּא listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet? מָלֵא listen and repeat for something masculine and מְלֵאָה listen and repeat for something feminine mean full, as in filled to capacity. For example: הַמָּקוֹם מָלֵא בַּאֲנָשִׁים. The place is full of people. listen and הַבֶּטֶן שֶׁלִּי מְלֵאָה. My stomach is full. listen For…
חֹמֶר לְשִׁנּוּן Review Material listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet? Review, practice and test yourself on this week’s doses of Hebrew! Flashcards Game Test שַׁבָּת שָׁלוֹם, וְסוֹף שָׁבוּעַ נָעִים! Shabbat Shalom, and have a nice weekend! listen and repeat
מִתְחַשֵּׁק לִי… listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet? The Hebrew word for that basic feeling of desire or the urge to live and enjoy is חֵשֶׁק listen and repeat. אֵין לִי חֵשֶׁק לָצֵאת הַיּוֹם. I don’t have the oomph to go out today. listen To say I feel like… or I don’t feel like…, you’d…
לְהַשְׁכִּיב listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet? לִשְׁכַּב listen and repeat means to lie down. For example: בְּשַׁבָּת אַחַר הַצָּהֳרַיִם, אַבָּא שׁוֹכֵב עַל הַסַּפָּה. On Shabbat afternoon, Dad lies down on the sofa. listen לשכב is an intransitive form (more or lesss) of an active-simple verb, whose root is שׁ.כ.ב (sh.k.b). In order…
*** Yesterday’s dose’s sound files were mislinked, so you may have had trouble hearing them. My apologies. You can hear the sound files now by visiting this page. מַעֲקֶה listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet? The Torah prescribes that homeowners put some kind of fencing or railing on their roofs, so that…
אָהוּב, אֲהוּבָה listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet? The Hebrew word for love is אַהֲבָה listen and repeat (yep, just like the Dead Sea brand), whose root is א.ה.ב (a.h.b). To love is לֶאֱהוֹב listen and repeat, an active-simple verb. It also means to like. For example: אֲנִי אוֹהֵב פַּסְטָה. I like pasta….
דּוֹר listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet? Most Hebrew nouns appear masculine in both singular and plural forms, or feminine in singular and plural forms. For example, שָׁעוֹן listen and repeat is a clock, while שְׁעוֹנִים listen and repeat are clocks; and חַיָּה listen and repeat is an animal, while חַיּוֹת listen and repeat are animals. Some…
חֹמֶר לְשִׁנּוּן Review Material listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet? Review, practice and test yourself on this week’s doses of Hebrew! Flashcards Game Test שַׁבָּת שָׁלוֹם, וְסוֹף שָׁבוּעַ נָעִים! Shabbat Shalom, and have a nice weekend! listen and repeat
שׁוֹפֵט listen and repeat Can’t read Hebrew yet? We’ve seen that מִשְׁפָּט listen and repeat refers to that unit of speech or writing called sentence, and that its root is שׁ.פ.ט (sh.p.t) meaning judgment. Likewise, a judge in most courts is a שׁוֹפֵט listen and repeat or שׁוֹפֶטֶת listen and repeat (male and female, respectively). An example from…