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השָׁ ידחֲ תירִבְעִ
• The basics of Hebrew
isolated Final Numerical Meaning Sound/Phonetic Symbol
ProNuNciatioN & alPhabet
Form Form Value
תיבֵּפְלֶאָ The Hebrew Alphabet א * 1 ox aleph /a/ [Amish]
בּ
** 2 house beht /b/ [boat]
n Like all Semitic languages, Hebrew is written and read from right to left, on a ב
*** house veht /v/ [vet]
horizontal line
ג
n There are no capital letters ** 3 camel gee-mel /g/ [good]
ד
n There are 22 letters, plus 4 derived, for a total of 26, each letter representing a ** 4 door dah-let /d/ [door]
consonant, though four letters also function as vowels: א, ה, ו and י ה 5 window heh /h/ [house]
n Only six letters change shape in absolute final form ו 6 hook vahv /v/ [victory]
n Vowel signs are placed beneath, above or to the side of each letter ז
7 weapon zah-yin /z/ [zoo]
n Letters are never joined together because each letter stands alone
ח
8 fence heht /h/ [Pesah]
n Written forms, not shown here, are known as German or cursive script; printed
ט
forms are known as Ashuri or square script, used in books, magazines, newspapers 9 snake teht /t/ [Toy]
and any printed documents י 10 hand yohd /j/ [yet] — /i/ [meet]
n Each letter has also a numerical value כּ ** 20 palm (hand) kahf /k/ [key]
כ ך
Foreign Sounds Not Found in Hebrew *** palm (hand) khahf /kh/ [chutzpah]
׳ג stands for the soft sound of ג g, as in gel: ׳גרְוֹ׳ג “George,” סנ׳ג “jeans” ל 30 ox-goad lah-med /l/ [low]
מ ם
׳ז ק׳ז־ן׳ַז 40 water mem /m/ [month]
stands for the soft sound dji /ž/, as in measure: “Jean-Jacques”
נ ן
׳צ ןילִפְּ׳צַ ילִרְ׳צַ 50 fish nun /n/ [nose]
stands for the sound tch /č/, as in chore: “Charlie Chaplin”
ס
60 prop sah-mekh /s/ [sun]
Vowel Signs ע
70 eye ah-yin /’/ [law officer]
n There are 12 vowels: 5 short and 7 long פּ ** 80 mouth peh /p/ [poor]
n Most vowel signs are placed below the consonant פ *** ף mouth feh /f/ [faith]
צ ץ
Short Vowels 90 fish-hook tsah-dee /ts/ [pots]
n a (Patah): [as in manicure] a short horizontal line below the consonant: אַ ק 100 back of head kof /q/ [coke]
n e (Seghol): [as in let] 3 dots forming an equilateral triangle placed below the ר 200 head rehsh /r/ [rose]
consonant: אֶ שׁ 300 tooth sheen /š/ [shoe]
אִ
n i (Hiriq): [as in pit] 1 dot below the consonant: שׂ
*** tooth seen /s/ [sun]
אָ
n o (Qamas Qatan): [as in cola] like a small letter T placed below the consonant: ת תּ
** 400 sign tav /t/ [toy]
אֻ
n u (Qubbus): [as in nut] 3 dots positioned diagonally below the consonant:
* Always silent at the end of a word; at the beginning or in the middle
Long Vowels
of a word, it can be pronounced as /a/, /e/, /i/, /o/, or /u/, depending
אָ
n ā (Qamas): [as in father] like a small letter T placed below the consonant: on the vowel sign that accompanies it [see below]
n ē (Tsereh): [as in prey] 2 horizontal dots below the consonant: אֵ ** These consonants, ד, ג, בּ, כּ, פּ, ת also known as beGaD KeFaT,
n ē (Tsereh): [as in prey] 2 horizontal dots below the consonant followed by the letter can also be written without a dot, known as a dagesh; however,
י יאֵ
(yohd): when they occur at the beginning of a word, they retain the dagesh;
n ī (Hirq): [as in marine] 1 dot below the consonant followed by the letter י (yohd): יאִ in contemporary spoken Hebrew, gee-mel גּ and dah-let דּ (with or
n ō (Holam): [as in oh!] 1 dot above the letter וֹ (vahv): וֹא without a dot [ג and ד]) are pronounced as if they did not have the
ֹא
n ō (Holam): [as in oh!] 1 dot over the left-hand corner of the consonant: dot; the other consonants, though, are pronounced more harshly when
וּ וּ
n ū (Shuruq): [as in astute] 1 dot in the middle of the letter (vahv): accompanied by the dot: b, k, p, t without the dot become v, kh, f, th;
ת תּ
in Modern Standard Hebrew, and are pronounced as t /t/
קָזחָ שׁגֵדָּ לקַ שׁגֵדָּ
Dagesh Forte Dagesh Lene *** Derived form
n The dagesh is a point placed inside a letter
הּ
n It indicates that the consonant in which it occurs has been doubled and that it should Mappiq
רפֶסֵּהַ הּ
be pronounced doubled: /hasséfer/ “the book” n The mappiq is a dot found in the final heh to indicate that it
הּסָוּס
ע ח ה א ר should be read as a consonant: /sūsāh/ “her horse” vs.
n This dagesh can be placed in all letters except the gutturals: , , , and
הסָוּס הּצָרְאַ הצָרְאַ
/sūsa/ “mare”; /’aretsáh/ “her land” vs.
because this letter cannot be doubled
/’aretsa/ “to the land”
קָוחָ שגֵדָּ
n This type of dagesh is called (dagesh forte)
Syllables
ת פ כ ד ג ב
n The dagesh can also be inserted in the letters , , , , and , to indicate the
ל ָ
difference between the spirant (prolonged) and aspirate (pronounced with an “h” n A consonant and a vowel form a typical Hebrew syllable: /l/ + /ā/
לָ י וּ וּי
תִיבַּ לכָּ => /lā/; /y/ + /ū/ => /yū/
sound) renderings of these letters: /bā’it/ “house”; /kāl/ “all, every.”
n A syllable is “closed” if it ends with a silent vowel (a consonant
לקַ שׁגדָּ ןבֵּ ןכֵּ
n This type of dagesh is called (dagesh lene) without a vowel): /bēn/ “son”; /kēn/ “yes”
1
Pronunciation & alphabet (continued)
The Sheva Sign n Most abstract names that denote a state or a
n The sheva is a sign, not a vowel quality only have the plural form: םיִנפָּ “face”;
ְ
n It is made of 2 dots placed in a straight vertical line and positioned below a letter to show the total םירִשָׁי םירִוּעְנ
“rectitude”; “youth”
תסֶֶנכְּ תיבֵּ
absence of vowel in a word: “synagogue”
םיהִוֹלאֱ םיִיּחַ יַנֹדאֳ
n The words “God”; “life”;
n It is omitted at the end of a word
ך תּ ךְלֵ תְּאַ “Lord” also have no plural form
n Exceptions: and occasionally also can take a sheva at the end of word: “go!” “you” (f. s.)
n There are masculine nouns with feminine
n There are two types of sheva, vocal and silent
באָ
n Vocal Sheva: Occurs at the beginning of a word, a syllable following a closed vowel, and following a plural endings and vice versa: “father”
long vowel; it is pronounced as the English e /∂/ (schwa) in nice: ןחָכְשַׁ “forgetful”; וּרמְ־שְִׁי “there → תוֹבאָ “fathers”; השָׁיאִ “woman/
is myrrh”; םדָאָ יֵנבְּ “humanity” wife” → םישִָׁנ “women/wives”; הָנשָׁ and
ןוֹכּרְדַּ ךְעַכַּ
n Silent Sheva: Occurs in closed syllables and at the end of a word: “passport”; “bagel” םיִנשָׁ “year” → תוֹנשָׁ “years;” הלָּמִ “word”
א ה ח ע
n Instead of a sheva, the letters , , and take the following signs: םילִּמִ
→ “words”
אֳ הָיּיִנואֳ
n Hataph Qamas: [as in dough]: [a combination of a Qamas + a Sheva] “ship”
אֲ הדָוֹבעֲ Dual
n Hataph Patah: [as in lard]: [a combination of a Patah + a Sheva] “work, job”
n The dual is used with things and people that
אֱ םיהִוֹלאֱ
n Hataph Seghol: [as in hen]: [a combination of a Seghol + a Sheva] “God”
give the idea of duality—it is not used to refer
Roots to the number two (2)
n Hebrew words are divided into families, called roots n It is used with double organs of the body as
n Usually a root is made of three consonants, strong letters (also known as radicals), that give the idea well as for things that come in pairs: םיִידַָי
of something םִילַגְרַ םִייַנְזוֹאָ
“hands”; “feet”; “ears”;
n A root of three consonants is called triliteral םִיתַפָשְׂ םִילַעֲַנ
“lips”; “shoes”
n In most dictionaries words should be looked up according to their root, NOT alphabetically
םִימַ םִימַשָ
n by adding letters and vowels to the beginning, middle or end of the root, new words are created, all n Exceptions: “water” and “sky”
related to the basic idea are not used in the singular, and so the ending
םִי
is not dual but a regular plural form
n The dual is not used with verbs, pronouns or
NouNs, adjectiVes & ProNouNs
adjectives
m. = masculine; f. = feminine; s. = singular; pl. = plural Some irregular Plurals
תבַּ תוֹנבָּ
Indefinite Article “A/An”; daughter → daughters
דשַׁ
“Some” דחָאֶ (m.) & תחַאַ (f.) n Exception: “breast” (m.) םיהִוֹלאֱהָ God (pl.)
n There are also nouns that have no special
שׁיאִ םישִָׁנאֲ
דָי םאֵ ןֶזוֹא man → men/people
n “A/an” is expressed by either the number one: ending: “hand”; “mother”; “ear”
םימִחֲרַ
דחָאֶ תחַאַ דחָאֶ שׁיאִ הלְָילַ תוּרישֵׁ mercy (m. pl.)
(m.) and (f.): “a man”; n Some exceptions: “night” (m.);
ןבֵּ םיִנבָּ
תחַאַ השָּׁיאִ הדֶשָׂ תִיבַּ son → sons
“a woman” “service” (m.); “field”; “house” (m.)
n Or by nothing: רפֶסֵ “a book” or “book”; דוֹדּ “an n Cities, towns, geographical areas and countries םיִּיחַ life (m. pl.) םִימַ water (m. pl.)
uncle” or “uncle”; ברֶעֶ “(an) evening” are usually feminine: ןוֹבּסילִ “Lisbon”; השָּׁיאִ wife/woman → םישִָׁנ wives/women
n The plural equivalent is “some”: הגָוּע “a cake”; לגָוּטרוֹפּ “Portugal”; ביבִאָ לתֵּ “Tel Aviv”; םיִנפָּ face (m./f. pl.)
תוֹגוּע
“some cakes” םִילַשָׁוּרְי “Jerusalem”; לאֵרָשְִׂי “Israel”; םִימַשָׁ sky (m. pl.)
Definite Article הַ “The” הדָָנקָ “Canada”; הילְטַיאִ “Italy”; רוּשּׁאַ קוּשׁ market → םיקִָושְׁ markets
n The definite article, “the,” is expressed by the “Assyria”; הָילרַטסוֹא “Australia” רוֹשׁ ox → םירִָושְׁ oxen
letter הַ, which is attached to the noun as a prefix: n Nouns ending in הֶ and י ִ are usually תוּלגָּ Diaspora (f.) → תוֹיּלֻגָּ Diasporas (f.)
הרֶוֹמּהַ “the teacher” masculine, especially those that designate males, תוּנחֲ store/shop (f.) → תוֹיֻּנחֲ stores/shops (f.)
n The first letter following the article is strengthened people, angels, months of the Hebrew year, and
ראַוֹתּ םשֶׁ
by taking a dot (dagesh) וּהָימְרְִי הדֶוּהְי The Adjective
rivers: “Jeremiah”; “Judah”;
n If the first letter of the noun to which it is attached ןצָיִנ יִולֵ ךְאָלְמַ n An adjective usually follows the noun it modifies
“Nissan”; “Levi”; “angel”;
has a dot (dagesh) it is omitted and must always agree with it in gender and
n The letter הַ becomes הָ if it precedes words סוּליִנהַ “the Nile”; לאֵרָשְִׂי ץרֶאֶ “Israel” number
beginning with ר ע א and becomes הֶ if it םיבִּרַ n All adjectives have four (4) forms:
הֶ, חָ, כָ ם The Plural • masculine singular
precedes the sounds and
n The gender of a noun is determined by the • masculine plural
רכָָז הבָקְֵנ singular form • feminine singular
Masculine & Feminine Nouns
n The plural of masculine nouns and adjectives • feminine plural
n Most nouns are stressed on the last syllable is usually formed by dropping any הֶ or י n The masculine singular is the basic form; all
n There is no special form to indicate the masculine ending and by adding םי to the singular: רפֶסֵ other forms (masculine plural and feminine
n Words indicating males are masculine: באָ “father” םירִפָסְ ידִוּהְי singular and/or plural) have different forms
“book” → “books”; “Jew” →
n The feminine is generally formed by adding the םידִוּהְי n The ending of the feminine singular is usually
“Jews”
suffix הָ to the masculine noun: דימִלְתַּ “student” הָ : הבָוט הדֶימִלְתַּ “a good student”;
n The plural of feminine nouns and adjectives is
(m.); הדָימִלְתַּ “student” (f.) הָ ת בוטּהַ דימִלְתַּהַ “the good student”
usually formed by dropping or and adding
הָ ת n If the noun is definite (i.e., if it is preceded by
n Usually nouns ending in either or are תוֹ: הפָּיכִּ תוֹפיכִּ
“skullcap” → “skullcaps”; the article) the adjective must also have the
תילִטַ
feminine by nature: “talith” (prayer shawl); הרָיטִ “castle” → תוֹריטִ “castles” article: ןטָקָהַ דלֶֶיהַ “the little the child” →
הצָיפִּ הרָוֹתּ תבֶכֶּרַ
“pizza;” “law”; “train” n There are exceptions: ןחָלְוּשׁ “table” (m.) → “the little child”; לוֹדגָּהַ ךְלֶמֶּהַ “the great the
n body organs that come in pairs or multiple parts
are usually feminine, including ןוֹשׁלָ “tongue” תוֹנחָלְוּשׁ “tables” (m. pl.); הָנשָׁ “year” (f.) king” → “the great king”; ןקֵָּזהַ שׁיאִהָ “the
and ןטֶבֶּ “belly” → םיִנשָׁ “years” (f. pl.) man the old” → “the old man”
2
n If the noun is definite and the adjective is not, the adjective Demonstratives םיִזמְוֹר םיִיוּנּבִּ
הפֶָי רפסֵּהַ
serves as a predicate (direct object): “the book
Singular Plural
beautiful” → “the book is beautiful”
הֶז הֶזּהַ הלֶּאֵ הלֶּאֵהָ
n When it functions as a direct object, it precedes the noun this (m.) with the article: these with the article:
םיהִוֹלאֱהָ לוֹדגָ תאז תאזּהַ הלֶּאֵ הלֶּאֵהָ
and it does not have the article: “God is this (f.) with the article: these with the article:
great”; ידִרַפָסְהָ בוט “the Sephardic man is good” אוּה that (m.) with the article: אוּההַ those (m.) םהֵ with the article: םהֵהָ
n When it refers to masculine and feminine nouns, איהִ איהִהַ ןהֵ ןהֵהָ
that (f.) with the article: those (f.) with the article:
the adjective must go in the masculine form:
וֹתוֹא םתָוֹא
םיבִוֹט תוֹצְמִוּ םיקִּוֹחֻ that/the same (m. s.) those/the same ones (m. pl.)
“good laws and
הֶזכָּ הלֶאֵכָּ וּלאֵכָּ
such/a kind of (m. s.) such (m. pl.) or
commandments”
התָוֹא ןתָוֹא
n With collective nouns (people, Earth), the adjective goes in that/the same (f. s.) those/the same ones (f. pl.)
the plural: םייכִֹבּ ץרֶאָהָ לכָּ “the entire Earth shall cry”; וּזכָּ or תאזכָּ or וֹזכָּ such/a kind of (f. s.) such (f. pl.) הלֶאֵכָּ or וּלאֵכָּ
ץרֶאָהָ םעַ םיבִּרָ
“man on Earth is numerous” → “there הֶזהַ שׁיאִהָ שׁיאִ הֶז
n Demonstratives are used as adjectives and pronouns: “this man”;
are many people in the world”
“this is a man”
Simple form of the adjective:
n In the presence of another adjective, it is always placed last: “the student the good this” →
בוֹט ערַ
“good” (m.s.) “bad” (m.s.) הֶּזהַ בוטּהַ דימִלְתַּהַ
“this good student”
םיִ םיבִוֹט םיעִרַ
m.pl. שׁיאִ הֶז
n As a pronoun: “this man” → “this is a man”
הָ הבָוֹט העָרַ
f.s.
תוֹ תוֹבוֹט תוֹערַ ימִ המַ
f.pl. Interrogative Pronouns: ? “Who?” ? “Which?” “Which One?” “What?”
א ה ח צ ר ?המַ ?המָ ?התָייאִרָ המָ
יִ n In front of the letters , , , , and , becomes : “what
Adjectives with the suffix
יתִדָ ימִַי have you seen?”
“religious” (m.s.) “marine” (m.s.)
חָ חֳ עָ הָ ?המַ ?המֶ ?יתִישִׂעָ המֶ
םיִ םיִיתִדָ םיִימִַי n In front of the letters , , , and , becomes : “what did I
m.pl.
?יתִאטָחָ המֶ
ת תיתִדָ תימִַי do?”; “which sin did I commit?”
f.s.
ה ?הֶזּמַ הֶזהמַ
תוֹ תוֹיתִדָ תוֹימִַי n Sometimes it is joined to the following word, though losing the : [instead of ]
f.pl.
“what is this?”
ה ֶ
Adjectives ending in lose this ending before they add n ?ימִ “who?” and ?המַ “which? which one? what?” are also used as indefinite pronouns,
the following suffixes: ארֵָי ימִ
thus translating: “everyone who/that, all those who/that, everything that”; “all those
םיִ םיאִָנ םיִנוּשׁמְ
m. pl. “handsome” “odd”
who are afraid”
הָ האָָנ הָנוּשׁמְ
f. s. “pretty” “odd”
תוֹ תוֹאָנ תוֹנוּשׁמְ רשֶׁאֲ
f. pl. “pretty” “odd” Relative Pronouns: “Who, Whom, Which, That”
Other adjectives are formed with: רשֶׁאֲ תִיבַּהַ לאֶ ךְלַהָ רשֶׁאֲ שׁיאִהָ
n There is only one form: “who”: “the man who went
n The construct case (possessive “of”; also see Construct רפֶסֵּבַּ רשֶׁאֲ םירִישִּׁהַ
to the house”; “the songs that are in the book”
שׁרֶקּהַ ירגְבִ
Case in the next column): garments of n The forms “to whom,” “with whom,” etc., are rendered by adding a suffix to a noun, verb or
holiness” => “holy garments” preposition: וילָאֶ רמַא רשֶׁאֲ שׁיאִהָ “the man with whom I speak/am speaking”;
n Prepositions: חוֹכּבַּ הווֹהְי לוֹק “the voice of God with םחֶלֶהָ וֹל יתְּתָָנ רשֶׁאֲ שׁיאִהָ “the man to whom I gave/have given a loaf of bread”;
force” → “God’s strong voice” םתֶרֵכַמֵ רשֶׁאֲ יתִא “to me whom you sold [something]”
n Periphrases (roundabouts) using the words ןבֵּ “son,” שׁיאִ n רשֶׁאֲ can also be used to express the meaning “in which,” thus translating the idea of time
“man,” לעַבַּ “lord of”: םירִבדְּ שׁיאִ “a man of words” → and place: ץעֵ ירִפְ וֹב רשֶׁאֲ “in which there is fruit of a tree”
ליחַ ןבֵּ
“an eloquent man”; “son of strength” → “a robust תוכימס ףוריצ
The Construct Case
הָנשָׁ תאַמְ ןבֶּ םהָרַבְאַ
man”; “Abraham was son of 100
n The construct case translates the possessive “of,” similar to the formation of possession
years” => “Abraham was 100 years old”; לֶועָ ןבֶ “son of in English: “the book of Sarah” → “Sarah’s book”; תסֶֶנכְּ תיבֵּ “house of assembly” →
injustice” → “unjust”; תירִבְּ ילֵעֲבַּ “lords of alliance” → “synagogue”
ה
n The definite article is placed only in front of the word denoting the possessed thing:
“allied”
ךְלֶמֶּהַ סוּס
תמֶאֶ םירִמָאֲ “horse of the king” [the king’s horse]
n Juxtapositions: “words of truth” => “true/
n The noun in the construct case never takes the definite article—it is implied:
truthful” םירִישִּׁהַ רישִׁ הרָוֹתּהַ רפֶסֵ
“Song of the Songs” → “The Songs of Songs”; “book of
Segholate Nouns the Torah” → “the book of the Torah, the Law”
n These are the nouns stressed on the next-to-last syllable, n The noun in the construct case loses the stress, which is transferred to the noun that determines
ךלֶמֶּהַ רבַדְ רבָדָ
ֶ רפֶסֵ it: “word of the king” [the king’s word] (instead of )
usually with (a seghol) as their last vowel: /séfer/
םיהִוֹלאֱהָ תבַהֲאַ
n The expression “love of God” means both “the love of God for
ןפֶוֹצ חרַפֶּ
“book”; /tsófen/ “code”; /pérakh/ “flower”
humankind” as well as “the love of the creatures for God”
n There is a stress change in the plural, the first vowel is n Segholate nouns in the construct case of plural nouns maintain their original vowels:
lost, and the second vowel becomes a Qamas (long ā) ָ : ץרֶאָהָ יכֵלְמַ “kings of the Earth” (instead of יכֵלְמֶ)
רפֶסֵ / séfer/ “book” → םירִפֶסְ /sfraím/ “books”; חבַשֶׁ n It can also be used in front of prepositions: הבָּ יבֵשְוֹי “the inhabitants in it” → “its
/shévakh/ “praise” → םיחִבשֶׁ /shvakhím/ “praises”; inhabitants”
רשֶׁאֲ
הלָמְשִׂ תוֹלמָשִׂ n In addition, it can be used in relative clauses, with or without : “the city where David
/símlah/ “women’s dress” → smalót/
דִודָ הָנחָ הָירְקִ
בלֶכֶּ םיבִלָכְּ encamped”
“women’s dresses”; /kélev/ “dog” → / klavím/
n More than one noun can be in the construct case: “vases of gold and silver” → “gold and
לגֶדֶּ םילִגָדְּ
“dogs”; /dégel/ “flag” → /degalím/ “flags” ףסֶכֶָו בהָָז ילֵכְּ
silver vases”
3
Nouns, Adjectives & Pronouns (continued)
ה תַ ןתֶּאַ ןהֵ הָּנהֵ
n Feminine nouns in the construct case change the final ָ into : (*) The feminine plural forms (“you” f. pl.) and or (“they” f.)
שׁיאִהָ תַנוּמתְּ “the picture of the man” are commonly used in formal speech, being substituted by their masculine
n Masculine plural nouns and nouns with a dual plural ending in םיִ counterparts in colloquial speech
change to יֵ before they are used in the construct case: םעָהָ יֵּיחַ (**) Used to refer back to a particular noun: ?איהִ הפיאֵ, וּנ ?הצָיפִּהַ
“the life of the people”; םָירְמִ יֵניעֵ “the eyes of Miriam” → “the pizza (f.)? where is it (f. s.)?” ?אוּה הפיאֵ, וּנ ?רדֶֶווסְהַ “the sweater
“Miriam’s eyes” (m.)? where is it?”
Personal Subject Pronouns ףוּנּהַ תומשְׁ Possessives & Pronominal Suffixes for Plural Nouns
לשֶׁ דִודָ לשֶׁ רפֶסֵּבַ
וּנחְַנאֲ יִנאֲ n The preposition “of” is used to form the possessive form:
we I
“the book of David” → “David’s book”
םתֶּאַ התָּאַ
you (m. pl.) you (m. s.)
n Possessives follow the noun
ןתֶּאַ תְּאַ הַ ילִשֶׁ בלֶכֶּהַ
you (f.)* you (f. s.) n The article is added to the first noun: “my dog” [“the dog
םהֵ אוּה אוּה of me”]
they (m. pl) he it (m. s.)**
ןהֵ הָּנהֵ איהִ איהִ n The pronominal suffixes are the same for all nouns in the plural
or they (f.)* she it (f. s.)**
Possessives Pronominal Suffixes
n Personal subject pronouns are used instead of the present tense for Plural Nouns
of the verb “to be” or to emphasize the subject or the verb of the ילִּשֶׁ וּנלָּשֶׁ וניֵ י
התָּאַ בוֹט םכָחָ אוּה םגָּ my (of me) our ּ our ַ my
sentence: “you are good”; “he also
is intelligent”; םתֶּאַ םכֶלָ “really to you (m. pl.)”; יתִרְמַאָ יִנאֲ ךָלְּשֶׁ your (m.) םבֶלָּשֶׁ your (m.pl.) םכֶיֵ your (m.pl.) ךָיֶ your (m.s.)
“it was I who said that” ךְלָּשֶׁ your (f.) ןבֶלָּשֶׁ your (f.pl.) ןכֶיֵ your (f.pl.) ךְִיַ your (f.s.)
n The third person singular can also translate the idea of being:
וֹלּשֶׁ םהֶלָּשֶׁ םהֶיֵ ויָ
םיהִוֹלאֱהָ אוּה התָּאַ his their (m.pl.) their (m.pl.) his/its
“you are God”
n With the article הַ, the third person singular and plural have a הּלָּשֶׁ her ןהֶלָּשֶׁ their (f.pl.) ןהֶיֵ their (f.pl.) הָיֶ her/its
אוּההַ םוֹיּהַ
demonstrative meaning (this/these/that/those): וּנירֶוּפּסִ ירַישִׁ ירַפָסְ
“our stories”, “my songs”, “my books”
“that day”
CONJUNCTIONS & PREPOSITIONS
ְו לכַאֱלֶ ירִאֲבַ
The Conjunction “And” n In front of a Hataph, it takes the vowel of the Hataph: “in order to eat”; “as a lion”
n It is expressed by the letter ְו, which is always n When they are followed by the article, they receive its vowel and the article is deleted:
שׁיאִלָ ל הֶ שׁיאִ םירִעָבֶּ ב הָ םירִעָ רפֶסֵּבַּ
“to the man” [ + + ]; “in the cities” [ + + ]; “in
attached as a prefix to the following word:
[רפֶסֵ +הַ +בְּ]
הדָוֹדְו דוֹדּ הלְָילְַו םוֹי the book”
“an uncle and an aunt”;
לגֶרֶָו דָי Unattached/Simple Prepositions
“day and night”; “a hand and a foot”
לאֶ לעַ דעַ
to, at, in the direction of because, on, about close/near to/until
n If the first letter of the noun to which it is attached
has a dot (dagesh) it is omitted: דימִלְתְַו הרֶוֹמ רחַאַ after, beyond, behind (of) תחַתַּ under ביבִסָ around
ןעַמַלְ רוּבעֲבַ ןִיבֵּ
“a teacher and a student” because of because of/for (in) between, among
n In front of a stressed syllable, it bears a ָ (qamas): ילִבְּ without וֹמכְּ like, as יְנפְלִ before, in front of, ago
וּנתְמָָו “and we shall die” לוּמ opposite, in front of, across from ידֵַי לעַ or דַי לעַ by, near, next to
n In front of a Hataph it takes its semivowel: יִנאֲַו Prepositions ןמִ [“From”] םעִ [“With”] תאֵ [“With”/“Near”]
“and I” ןמִ ץרֶאָהָ־ןמִ
n is usually linked with a hyphen (makef) to the words that follow: “from the
וּ ו מ פ פּ ב בּ
n It becomes in front of and
earth/land”
of consonants with a ְ (sheva): המלשְׁוּ “and n Sometimes the ן is assimilated to the following word, thus it is reduplicated with a dagesh:
Solomon”; הערְפַוּ “and Pharaoh”; תוֹנבַוּ השֶׁמּמִ “from Moses”
“and the daughters”; ךְלֶמֶוּ “and the king” n When תאֶ, ןמִ, and לְ are declined with the pronominal suffixes, they form the following
ְי ִו
n In front of (yod with a sheva) it becomes pronouns [also see Pronouns, pages 2-4]:
י הדָוּהיִו
and the yod loses the vowel : “and תאֶ לְ ןמִ
Judah” ְו ְו יתִּיאִ me/with me ילִ me/to me יִנּמֶּמִ from me
n In Modern Standard Hebrew is pronounced
ךָתְּיאִ ךָלְ ךָמְּמִ
you/with you (m. s.) you/to you (m. s.) from you
regardless of its environment
ךְתָּיאִ you/with you (f. s.) ךְלָ you/to you (f. s.) ךְמֵּמִ from you
בּ בְ לְ
Prepositions [“In”/“With”] [“As”] וֹתּיאִ him/with him/it וֹל him/to him/it וּנּמֶּמִ from him/it
[“To”/“For”/“Against”/“Because”] הּתָּיאִ her/with her/it הּלָ her/to her/it הָּנמֶּמּ from her/it
n Prepositions are always prefixed to the word וּנתִּיאִ us/with us וּנלָ us/to us וּנּמֶּמִ/וּנתָּיאִמֵ from us
בְּ בְ לְ
n The vocalization is usually a sheva: םכֶתְּיאִ you/with you (m. pl.) םכֶלָ you/to you (f. pl.) םכֶּמִ from you
רדֶחֶבְּ הפֶָי תִיבַבְּ בשֵׁוי ףסֵוֹי
“in a room”; ןכֶתְיאֶ you/with you (f. pl.) ןכֶלָ you/to you (f. pl.) ןכֶּמִ from you
ןגַבְּ
“Joseph lives in a beautiful house”; “at םתָּוֹיאָ them/with them (m. pl.) םהֶלָ them/to them (m. pl.) םהֶמֵ from them
םִימַבְּ טעֵבְּ בתֵוֹכּ השֶׁמ
home”; “with water”; ןתָוֹיא them/with them (f. pl.) ןהֶלָ them/to them (f. pl.) ןהֶמֵ from them
ךָלְ בֵיוֹאבְ
“Moses writes with a pen”; “to you”; “as לְ
n The declension of is also the equivalent of the verb “to have”
an enemy”; שׁיאִלְ “to/for a man”; םוֹיבְּ “in a day” n רפֶסֵ ילִ “I have a book” → “to me book”
n If the following word starts with a sheva, it gets n Usually, לְ found in conjunction with the word שֵׁי “there is/there are”
an i (Hiriq), thus originating a closed syllable: n בלֶכֶּ ןרחֲאַלְ שֵׁי “Aaron has a dog” → “There is to Aaron a dog”
רבַדְבִּ “in the name of”; תיִנוֹכמְבִּ “by car” n The negative is formed by the word ןיאֵ followed by לְ: בלֶכֶּ ןרחֲאַלְ ןיאֵ “Aaron does
not have a dog” → “there is no to Aaron dog”
4
VERbS
Model conjugation for all regular verbs:
םִי
Present Tense of the Verb “To Be” Suffixes: m. s. zero m. pl.
הָ תֶ תוֹ
n The verb “to be” is not used after the personal pronouns: f. s. or f. pl.
ברַ יִנאֲ
n “I am a rabbi” → “I rabbi” ךְלָהָ
“To Go”
לגָוּטרוֹפּמ םהֵ
n “They (m. pl.) are from Portugal” →
“They from Portugal” םיכִלְוֹה וּנחְַנאֲ we go ךְלֵוֹה יִנאֲ I go (m.)
הרֶוֹמ ףסֵוֹי
n “Joseph is a teacher” → “Joseph teacher” תוֹכלְוֹה וּנחְַנאֲ תכֶלֶוֹה יִנאֲ
we go (f.) I go (f.)
The Present Tense חוֹח ןמְַז םיכִלְוֹה םתֶּאַ you go (m. pl.) ךְלֵוֹה התָּאַ you go (m. s.)
n Verbs are conjugated in a way that is similar to the creation of תוֹכלְוֹה ןתֶּאַ תכֶלֶוֹה תְּאַ
you go (f.) you go (f. s.)
new words adding letters and vowels to the root—prefixes,
םיכִלְוֹה םהֵ ךְלֵוֹה אוּה
infixes and suffixes determine the tense, person and they go (m. pl.) he/it goes
gender of the verb form תוֹכלְוֹה ןהֵ or הָּנהֵ they go (f.) תכֶלֶוֹה איהִ she/it goes
n The basic form of the verb is the third person masculine
דבֵוֹע שׁיאִהָ
singular of the simple past, which is found in dictionaries “the man works/is working”
next to the meaning םילִכְוֹא וּנחְַנאֲ
“we (m.) eat/are eating”
םוּק ןיבִּ
n Only a few verbs (e.g., “to exist”; “to understand”) תוֹדמְוֹע תוֹרוֹמּהַ
“the teachers (f.) stand/are standing”
are listed in the infinitive form
n Verbs can be primitive or derived The Past Tense רבָעָה
n לטַקָ “to kill” and חלַשָׁ “to send” are primitive because n There is only one tense to denote past actions: יתִּרְמַאָ “I said, I have said, I did
other nouns are formed from their roots say, I had said”
n שׁרֵשֵׁ “to uproot” is derived, as it comes from the word n The past is formed by adding suffixes to the basic root
ׁשרֶשׁ n These suffixes indicate the person, gender and number; therefore, the use of the
“root”
personal pronouns is not necessary
n Verbs are divided between regular (strong) and weak, אל
n The negative used with the past tense is: “no/not”
depending upon the frequency with which they follow the
n The basic form of the verb is the third person masculine singular of the verb in the
לטָקָ
conjugation of the verb “to kill,” which was chosen as past tense, the simplest of all verbal forms
an example (model verb) because none of its consonants are
Model conjugation for all regular verbs that keep their three-root letters in all
altered during the entire conjugation
verbal forms:
n Weak verbs are those in which one of the three letters of the
root changes during the conjugation בתַכָּ
“To Write”
י
n Weak verbs contain one or more of the weak consonants: ,
וּנבְתַכָּ וּנחְַנאֲ יתִּבְתַכָּ יִנאֲ
ו ה א נ we wrote I wrote
, and , or have in the initial position
םתֶּבְתַכְּ םתֶּאַ תָּבְתַכָּ התָּאַ
n Like all Semitic languages, Hebrew has different verb forms: you wrote (m. pl.) you wrote (m. s.)
a simple form and derived/augmented forms ןתֶּבְתַכְּ ןתֶּאַ תְּבְתַכָּ תְּאַ
you wrote (f.) you wrote (f. s.)
לקַ
n The simple form is known as QAL “light, easy”: it is וּבתְכְּ םהֵ they wrote (m. pl.) בתַכָּ אוּה he wrote
simple in morphology (changes) and it conveys the idea of
וּבתְכָּ ןהֵ הָּנהֵ הבָתְכָּ איהִ
or they wrote (f.) she wrote
בתַכָּ הבָיתִכְּ
a simple action, e.g., “to write,” “writing,”
דיתִעָה
ביתִכְּ הבתָּכְמִ הבָתָּכְהַ The Future or Imperfect Tense
“spelling,” “letter,” “dictation”
n The derived forms add to the basic idea of QAL, such as n This tense is formed by adding prefixes and/or suffixes to the main root
intensity, repetition, etc.; from the QAL, all the other derived Model conjugation for all regular verbs that keep their three-root letters in all
forms are constructed, by either changing or doubling the verbal forms:
vowels, by adding prefixes or by doubling one or two radicals רמַשָׁ
“To Keep”
n There are seven forms/patterns for each Hebrew verb,
known as םיִניָיְנבִּ binyanim (buildings); each form/pattern רמשְִׁנ וּנחְַנאֲ we shall keep רמשְׁאֶ יִנאֲ I shall keep
changes the meaning of the verb וּרמְשְׁתִּ םתֶּאַ you will keep (m. pl.) רמשְׁתִּ התָּאַ you will keep (m. s.)
n Using as an example לטַקָ “to kill” the other forms are: הָנרָמשְׁתִּ ןתֶּאַ you will keep (f. p.) ירִמְשְׁתִּ תְּאַ you will keep (f. s.)
לטַקָ וּרמְשְִׁי םהֵ רמשְִׁי אוּה
1. QAL: “to kill” (basic form) they will keep (m. pl.) he will keep
הָנרְמשְׁתִּ ןהֵ הָּנהֵ רמשְׁתִּ איהִ
לטַקְִנ or they will keep (f. pl.) she will keep
2. Niph’al: “to kill oneself” or “to be killed” (reflexive
or passive form) n The second person m. s. and the third person f. s. are always identical; so are the
לטֵּקִ second and third person f. pl. verb endings
3. Pi’el: “to kill violently” (intensive action, repetition,
לאַ
cause) The Negative + The Future or Imperfect Tense => Negative Imperative
לאַ
4. Pu’al: לטַּקֻ “to be killed violently” (passive form of Pi’el) n When antecedes the future/imperfect tense, it translates the negative imperative:
“do not!/don’t!”
5. Hiph’il: ליטִּקְהִ “to have someone killed” (to cause n To negate a sentence in the future, use א ֹ ל: תלֶדֶּהַ תאֶ רוֹגסְתְּ לאַ “do not
something/someone to do something)
רחָמָ תלֶדֶּהַ תאֶ רוגסת אל
shut the door!” “you shall not shut the door
לטִקְהָ
6. Hoph’al: “to be sent to kill someone” (passive
שׂעַתּ לאַ השֶׂעֲתַ א ֹ ל
form of Hiph’il) tomorrow!” “don’t do it!” “you shall not do it!”
7. Hitpa’el: לטֵּקַתְהִ “to kill oneself violently” (reflexive The Imperative יוּוּיצִ
form of Pi’el) n The Imperative is formed by dropping the prefix תִּ from the second person s. and
n All verbs form the present tense with suffixes that are also pl. of the future tense:
used for nouns/adjectives וּרמְשְׁ םתֶּאַ רמשְׁ התָּאַ
you, keep! (m. pl.) you, keep! (m. s.)
n Usually the personal pronoun or a noun precedes the verb form
הָנרָמשְׁ ןתֶּאַ ירִמְשְׁ תְּאַ
you, keep! (f. pl.) you, keep! (f. s.)
n This verb form translates: “I go, I am going, I do go”
5
Verbs (continued)
The Infinitive לעופה־םש + ל Masculine Feminine Masculine Feminine
n Except for passive verbs, all verbs have the infinitive form 0 ספֶאֶ*** 60 םישּׁשִׁ
n The construct infinitive is invariable: it can have prefixes ½ יצִחֲ*** 70 םיעִבְשִׁ
and suffixes attached to it, but it is always introduced by the
ל 1 דחָאֶ* תחַאַ* 80 םיִנוֹמשְׁ
letter
י ל 2 םִיַנשְׁ [יֵנשְׁ]** םִיתַּשְׁ [יתֵּשְׁ]** 90 םיעִשְׁתִּ
n Verbs with as their first letter drop it before adding and
a ת is placed at the end of the word: תעַדַלָ “to know”; 3 השָׁלשְׁ שׁלשָׁ 100 האָמֵ (תוֹאמֵ)***
ץוּרלָ “to run” 4 העָבָּרְאַ עבַּרְאַ 200 םיִיתַאמָ
n The same happens to the root ךְלה “go” → תכֶלֶל “to 5 השָּמִחֲ שׁמֵחָ 300 תוֹאמֵ שׁוֹלשְׁ
go,” which is used as an impersonal form of imperative, 6 השָּׁשִׁ שׁשֵׁ 400 תוֹאמֵ עבַּרְאַ
especially when addressed to no one (abstract idea), to 7 העָבְשִׁ עבַשֶׁ 500 תוֹאמֵ שׁמֵחֲ
children, animals and/or groups of people (i.e., friends,
soldiers and students) 8 הָנוֹמשְׁ הֶנוֹמשְׁ 600 תוֹאמֵ־שׁשֵׁ
n It also translates the expression “in order to”: בתּכְלִ “in 9 העָשְׁתִּ עשַׁתֵּ 700 תוֹאמֵ עבַשְׁ
order to write” 10 הרָשָׂעֲ רשֶׂעֶ 800 תוֹאמֵ הֶנוֹמשְׁ
The Infinitive Absolute 11 רשָׂעָ דחַאַ הרֵשְׂעֶ תחַאַ 900 תוֹאמֵ עשַׁתְּ
n In biblical Hebrew, the infinitive could also be followed by 12 רשָׂעָ םיְנשְׁ הרֵשְׂעֶ םיתֵּשְׁ 1,000 ףלֶאֶ (םיפִלָאֲ)***
יתִּרְכַָז רוֹכָז
either the future or the past tense: “I really 13 רשָׂעָ השָׁלשְׁ הרֵשְׂעֶ שׁלשְׁ 2,000 םיִיפַּלְאַ
remembered!” 14 רשָׂעָ העָבָּרְאַ הרֵשְׂעֶ עבַּרְאַ 3,000 םיפִלָאֲ תשֶׁוֹלשְׁ
The Direct Object Particle תאֶ or תאֵ 15 רשָׂעָ השָּׁמִחֲ הרֵשְׂעֶ שׁמֵחֲ 4,000 םיפִלָאֲ תעַבַּרְאַ
n It is used every time the direct object of the verb is explicitly 16 רשָׂעָ השָּׁשִׁ הרֵשְׂעֶ שׁשֵׁ 5,000 םיפִלָאֲ תשֶׁמֵחֲ
לאעֵמָשְִׁיתאֶ האָרָםהָרָבְאַ
defined, known or implied: 17 רשָׂעָ העָבְשִׁ הרֵשְׂעֶ עבֵשְׁ 6,000 םיפִלָאֲ תשֶׁשֵׁ
“Abraham saw Ishmael”; Ishmael is the direct object
n If there is more than one direct object in a sentence, תאֶ 18 רשָׂעָ הָנוֹמשְׁ הרֵשְׂעֶ הֶנוֹמשְׁ 7,000 םיפִלָאֲ תעַבְשִׁ
must be repeated before each noun: 19 רשָעָ העָשְׁתִּ הרֵשְׂעֶ עשַׁתְּ 8,000 םיפִלָאֲ תַנוֹמשְׁ
תרֶבֶוֹחהַ תאְֶו רפֶסֵּהַ תאֶ חקַלָ ןרהֲאַ “Aaron took 20 םירִשְׂעֶ*** 9,000 םיפִלָאֲ תעַשְׁתִּ
the book and the pamphlet” 21 דחַאְַו םירִשְׂעֶ תחַאְַו םירִשְׂעֶ 10,000/myriad םיפִלָאֲ תרֶשֶׂעֲ or
ןילִרְבֶּ תאֶו ןוֹבּסילִ תאֶ בהֵוֹא יִנאֲ
“I love Lisbon 22 םִיַנשְְׁו םירִשְׂעֶ םיתַּשְְׁו םירִשְׂעֶ הבָבָרְ (תוֹבבָרְ) [only one form]
and berlin”
23 השָׁלשְְׁו םירִשְׂעֶ שׁלשְָׁו םירִשְׂעֶ 1,000,000 ןוֹילְמִ (םיִנוֹילְימִ)
24 העָבָּרְאְַו םירִשְׂעֶ הבַּרְאְַו םירִשְׂעֶ [only one form]
Numbers
25 השָּמִחְֲו םירִשְׂעֶ שׁמֵחְָו םירִשְׂעֶ 1,000,000,000 דרְאַילְימִ [only one form]
Cardinal Numbers םיִּידוסְי םירפָסְמִ 26 השָּׁשְִׁו םירִשְׂעֶ שׁשְֵׁו םירִשְׂעֶ * See Indefinite Article “A/An,”
n Most numbers have two (2) forms: masculine and feminine “Some,” page 2
27 העֶבְשְִׁו םירִשְׂעֶ עבַשְֶׁו םירִשְׂעֶ
n The feminine form, not the masculine, is used for counting, ** יֵנשְׁ (m.) and יתֵּשְׁ (f.) are used
calculating and telephone numbers 28 הָנוֹמשְְׁו םירִשְׂעֶ הֶנוֹמשְְׁו םירִשְׂעֶ
when the number two (2) is followed
n Numbers 1 through 10 agree with theה noun they describe 29 העָשְׁתְִּו םירִשְׂעֶ עשַׁתְֵּו םירִשְׂעֶ by a noun; םִיַנשְׁ (m.) and םִיתַּשְׁ
n Numbers 3 to 10 take the f. ending when they refer to
masculine nouns; therefore, they appear as feminine in the 30 םישִׁוֹלשְׁ (f.) are used when the number two (2)
appears separately or if not followed
masculine column 40 םיעִבָּרְאַ by a noun
n Numbers usually precede the noun, except for the
number one (both masculine and feminine forms); in 50 םישִׁימִחֲ *** Only one form
biblical Hebrew, numbers may follow the noun םיירודיס םירפָסְמִ
Ordinal Numbers
n As adjectives, numerals are masculine and feminine
n There are only ordinal forms for 1 through 10; for all other numbers, the cardinal forms are used
n Numbers 11 through 19 have masculine and feminine forms,
n Ordinals can precede or follow the object referred to (i.e., being numbered)
though colloquially only the masculine forms are used
תיעִיבִרְ
n The feminine forms are used to express fractions: ¼
n The numbers 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80 and 90 do not have
separate masculine and feminine forms Masculine Feminine Masculine Feminine
n Starting with 21, compound numbers are connected to each 1st ןוֹשׁארִ הָנּוֹשׁארִ 6th ישִּׁשִׁ תישִּׁשִׁ
ְו ַו וּ
other by the conjunction “and”: , , or ; therefore, they
2nd יִנשְׁ תיִנשְׁ 7th יעִיבִשְׁ תיעִיבִשְׁ
have a masculine and a feminine form
n Numbers 30 to 90 are formed by the plural form of their 3rd ישִׁילִשְׁ תישִׁילִשְׁ 8th יִנימִשְׁ תיִנימִשְׁ
corresponding units: 10-20, 3-30, 4-40, 5-50, 6-60, 7-70, 4th יעִיבִרְ תיעִיבִרְ 9th יעִישִׁתְּ תיעִישִׁתְּ
8-80, 9-90
5th ישִׁימִחֲ תישִּׁימִחֲ 10th ירִישִׂעֲ תירִישִׂעֲ
n Hundreds and thousands also have only one form
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ISBN-13: 978-142320586-9 include every aspect of this subject. It is intended for use as a supplement for course work and
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ISBN-10: 142320586-3
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