how to say “recess” in Hebrew
פַּגְרָה Some of you sent me messages asking why you haven’t been receiving Your Daily Dose of Hebrew for the past few days. I had neglected to announce that for the holiday period between the Jewish holidays of סוכות and שמחת תורה I would be on recess – פגרה. So here’s an announcement: לתקופת החגים […]
how to say “at the last minute” in Hebrew
בָּרֶגַע הָאַחֲרוֹן Hebrew’s main version of at the last minute is ברגע האחרון – literally, at the last moment. For example: טיסות ברגע האחרון הן לא תמיד יקרות. Flights at the last minute are not always expensive. (listen to full conversation) Broken down: ברגע – at the moment האחרון – the last There’s also the colloquial expression, בדקה התשעים – at the 90th […]
Weekly YDDH Review
חֹמֶר לְשִׁנּוּן Review Material You spent time on your Hebrew this week. Use these review materials to make it yours to keep. To take full advantage of the review material, click on “Choose a study mode” in the bottom right corner of the box above. שבת שלום, וסוף שבוע נעים! Shabbat Shalom, […]
how to say “flight” in Hebrew
טִיסָה Hebrew has two words for to fly in the air: there’s לעוף, which is for living beings, and לטוס for aircraft of various types. A flight, therefore, is טיסה. For example: במקום להוציא כל כך הרבה כסף על טיסות, אפשר לטייל כאן בארץ. Instead of spending so much money on flights, we can travel here in […]
how to say “instead” in Hebrew
בִּמְקוֹם You could think of the English instead of as in place of – for example, “I’m ordering fries instead / in place of onion rings.” Hebrew’s expression translates in place of: במקום, as in: במקום לצאת עם החברים, הוא רק יושב בחדר ורואה סדרות. Instead of going out with friends, he just sits in his room and […]
how to say “TV show” in Hebrew
סִדְרַת טֵלֵוִיזְיָה While in English we talk about a TV show, in Hebrew we call it a TV series – סדרת טלוויזיה, or סדרה for short. For example: היפים והאמיצים היא אחת הסדרות המוצלחות ביותר בהיסטוריה. The Bold and the Beautiful is one of the most successful shows in history. You may have noticed the root ס.ד.ר (order, as […]
how to say “brave” in Hebrew
אַמִּיץ The Hebrew root א.מ.צ means strong, bold, alert. It appears such words as מאמץ – an effort and אמיץ – brave, when referring to a male. Brave referring to a female is אמיצה, as in: היא בחורה אמיצה ביותר. She is a very brave young woman. (listen to full conversation) Bravery or courage is אומץ.
Weekly YDDH Review
חֹמֶר לְשִׁנּוּן Review Material You spent time on your Hebrew this week. Use these review materials to make it yours to keep. To take full advantage of the review material, click on “Choose a study mode” in the bottom right corner of the box above. שבת שלום, וסוף שבוע נעים! Shabbat Shalom, […]
how to say “arbitrary” in Hebrew
שְׁרִירוּתִי The English word arbitrary could mean random or high-handed/authoritative (think about the legal process of arbitration). For the former, Israelis tend to use רנדומלי – random. But for the latter, the word is שרירותי. For example: הוא מקבל באופן קבוע החלטות שרירותיות. He makes arbitrary decisions on a regular basis. (full conversation) שרירותי is related to the word […]
how to say “on a regular basis” in Hebrew
בְּאֹפֶן קָבוּעַ Regular in the sense of everyday, in Hebrew, is רגיל. This word comes from רגל – foot, something that moves at a regular pace (despite their similarity, the English regular most likely did not derive from רגיל, nor vice-versa). רגיל also means used to, as in: היא רגילה לקום כל בוקר בשעה שבע. She is used to getting up […]
how to say “refund” in Hebrew
הֶחְזֵר You may know the basic Hebrew word for to return or to come back: לחזור, a simple verb. There’s also להחזיר – to return (something), a הפעיל verb: תחזיר את הכדור למקום, דני! Put the ball back in its place, Danny! It’s possible also להחזיר כסף – to return money or to refund. And the word for refund or reimbursement itself? […]