Streetwise Hebrew

There is a lot of ground to cover with the Hebrew root ע.ב.ר., so we will dedicate the next few episodes to it. This episode is all about its nouns. We talk about the weather, border crossing, chord transitions, allergies, airport transit, and even cover some history about immigrants from the 1950’s. Listen to the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Avar – Past tense – עבר Hu avar – He passed, crossed – הוא עבר Maavar Taba – The Taba Crossing – מעבר טאבה Maavar gvul – Border crossing – מעבר גבול Onat maavar – Spring or fall – עונת מעבר Maavar chatsiya – Crosswalk – מעבר חצייה “Maavar dira be-click” – Moving apartments with one click – מעבר דירה בקליק Nos’im be-maavar – Transit passengers – נוסעים במעבר Moshav ba-maavar – Aisle seat – מושב במעבר “Efshar chalon?”, “efshar maavar?” – Could I have a window/aisle seat? – אפשר חלון, אפשר מעבר Maavarim – Passages, transitions – מעברים “Maavarim chalakim ve-neimim ve zormim bein accord le-accord” – Smooth, nice, flowing transitions between chor

After the terrible tragedy in Har Meron, public calls to find those responsible, האשמים, grow louder. In order to better understand what’s going on in Israeli media, Guy felt it was necessary to cover the word אשמה and its shoresh אשמ. This episode is all about blame, guilt, charges and allegations. Listen to the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: “Ani achrai, aval achrayut ein perusha ashma” – I am responsible, but responsibility does not mean blame – אני אחראי, אבל אחריות אין פירושה אשמה Ashma – Blame, fault, charge – אשמה Rigshot ashma – Feelings of guilt – רגשות אשמה Ze be-ashmatech – It’s your fault – זה באשמתך Ha-sar omer she-ze lo be-ashmato – The minister says it’s not his fault – השר אומר שזה לא באשמתו Be-ashmat mi ze – Whose fault is it? – ?באשמת מי זה “Ze lo ashmati!” – It’s not my fault! – זה לא אשמתי Mode ba-ashma – Guilty as charged – מודה באשמה Lehodot ba-ashma – To plead guilty – להודות באשמה “Achra’im, lo ashemim” – Responsible, not guilty – אחראים, לא אשמים Ashem, ash

This episode is all about the location of the stress we place on spoken Hebrew words and names, and what happens when we shift that emphasis around. Guy explains why the way Israelis and Americans say “Mazal Tov” differs so greatly, and how these shifts in stress play out in the spoken language. Listen to the All-Hebrew Version on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Ta’am – Word stress, emphasis – טעם MoSHE – Stressed at the end of the word MOshe – Stressed in the beginning of the word Hat’ama – Accentuation – הטעמה YAkov / ya-ah-KOV – Jacob – יעקב BAruch / baRUCH – ברוך YAniv / yaNIV – יניב DAvid / daVID – דויד Ashdod version of French names: JACqueline, RObert, BAbette, MIchel, MOrris  French version: JacqueLINE, roBERT, BaBETTE, miCHEL, moRRIS MAzel toff (Yiddish) – Congratulations – מזל טוב maZAL tov (IL) – Congratulations – מזל טוב shiv’AH (IL) – Shiva – שבעה SHIva (US) – Shiva – שבעה ooGA – Cake – עוגה OOga (child language) – Cake – עוגה MashkanTA (formal) – Mortgage – משכנתאMashKANta (colloquial) – Mo

This is the fourth and final episode dedicated to ק-ד-מ, the root that keeps on giving. How do we say, “right of way,” “unprecedented prices” and the “Pre-Eurovision contest” in Hebrew? Or how about, “I was here before you, lady!”? Listen to the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Kadima – Forward, onward – קדימה Zchut kdima – Right of way – זכות קדימה Matan zchut kdima – Giving the right of way – מתן זכות קדימה Kodem – Before – קודם Ani hayiti kodem – I was here first – אני הייתי קודם Kdimut – Priority – קדימות Yesh lahem kdimut, hem ovdim be-beit cholim – They have priority, they work in a hospital – יש להם קדימות, הם עובדים בבית חולים Takdim – Precedent – תקדים Takdim mishpati – Legal precedent – תקדים משפטי Mechir hasar takdim – Unprecedented price –  מחיר חסר-תקדים Hasar takdim, harsrat takdim, hasrei tadkim, hasrot takdim – חסר תקדים, חסרת תקדים, חסרי תקדים, חסרות תקדים Mechina kdam tsva’it – Pre-army preparatory program – מכינה קדם-צבאית Kdam Eurovision – Pre-Eurovision – קדם-איר

Believe it or not, we Israelis aren’t always running late. Some of us even tend to arrive ahead of schedule. Yes, you read that right! In Hebrew, we have a special verb which means to arrive ahead of time. Guy explains. Hear the All-Hebrew Version of this Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Lehakdim – To be early, to show up early – להקדים Lif’amim anachnu makdimim – Sometimes we arrive ahead of time – לפעמים אנחנו מקדימים Efshar ulai lehakdim tipa? Ze beseder im ani akdim tipa? – Is it possible to arrive earlier? – אפשר אולי להקדים טיפה Yesh mashehu yoter mukdam? – Is there something earlier than this? – יש משהו יותר מוקדם Hikdamti tipa – I’m here a bit early – הקדמתי טיפה Ani makdim tipa – I am running a bit early – אני מקדים טיפה Ani akdim tipa – I’ll be a bit early – אני אקדים טיפה Tuchal/tuchli lehakdim tipa? – Would you be able to arrive a bit earlier? – תוכל, תוכלי להקדים טיפה Yesh lecha tor be-eser, ata yachol lehakdim tipa? – You’ve got an appointment for 10am, would you be able to come e

“Hey! Check out my Facebook page, and my Twitter, oh, and my TikTok account, and don’t forget my Instagram page.” In Hebrew this is called קידום עצמי, self promotion. On this episode, Guy explains words and phrases related to promotion, all derived from the root ק-ד-מ. Listen to the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Kidum – Promotion – קידום Hu kibel kidum, hi kibla kidum – He/She got a promotion – הוא קיבל קידום, היא קיבלה קידום Kidum mechirot – Sales promotion – קידום מכירות Kidum no’ar – Youth development – קידום נוער Kidum atarim – Website optimization – קידום אתרים Kidum digitali, kidum be-google – Search engine optimization – קידום דיגיטלי, קידום בגוגל Kidum atsmi – Self promotion – קידום עצמי Ata chayav lekadem organit et ha-atar shelcha – You have to promote your website organically – אתה חייב לקדם אורגנית את האתר שלך Lekadem et tahalich ha-shalom – To advance the peace process – לקדם את תהליך השלום Ani rotse lekadem bi-vracha et… – I’d like to give a warm welcome to… – אני רו

There’s a fairly new Hebrew slang term out in the wild which means “move on!” We Israelis say, תתקדם! The root קדמ in the binyan hitpael form will be our focus today, as Guy explains what advanced level courses and a mobile app upgrade have to do with קדמ. Listen to the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Mitkadem – Advanced – מתקדם Yoel mesamen she-kedai lehitkadem le’evran – Yoel signals we should start moving towards them – יואל מסמן שכדאי להתקדם לעברן Titkadem, titkadem, ata ro’e oti? Ani ro’e otcha – Keep going, keep going, do you see me? I can see you – תתקדם, תתקדם, אתה רואה אותי? אני רואה אותך Nu, eich ze mitkadem? – So, how is it coming along? – נו, איך זה מתקדם Kurs mitkadem – Advanced- קורס מתקדם Ramat matchilim – Beginner level – רמת מתחילים Rama beinonit – Intermediate level – רמה בינונית Ramat mitkadmim – Advanced level – רמת מתקדמים Hitkadem le-, Titkadem le- – Move to the next stage – התקדם ל-, תתקדם לי Bo’u nitkadem – Let’s continue going forward / Let’s advance to the

Everyone’s talking about חיסונים, vaccinations, and so will we! Guy uses this trending topic as another opportunity to review the Hebrew verb format combo we all should know by heart: piel-pual-hitpael. To get your weekly dose, just press play! Listen to the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Chisun – Vaccine – חיסון Shtei menot chisun – Two vaccine doses – שתי מנות חיסון Mana – Portion, dose – מנה “Ha-choref chashuv Lechasen et ha-yeladim” – This winter it’s important to vaccinate the kids – החורף חשוב לחסן את הילדים Mechasnim et ha-yeladim – Vaccinating the children – מחסנים את הילדים “Amadti be-khol ke’ev mimech” – I’ve withstood all the heartache you’ve caused me – עמדתי בכל כאב ממך “Aval adayin lo mechusan” – But I’m still not immune – אבל עדיין לא מחוסן Saudia hodi’ah hayom – Saudi Arabia announced today – סעודיה הודיעה היום She-te’afsher haga’a le-mecca be-onat ha-hajj – That it will allow the arrival of pilgrims to mecca during the hajj season – ‘שתאפשר הגעה למכה בעונת החג Rak

There are so many ways to say, “You’ve gotta be kidding me,” in Hebrew. In this episode, we’ll learn a few of them and learn how we write LOL in Hebrew. Listen to the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Lits’hok – To laugh – לצחוק Tsochek mi she-tsochek aharon – He who laughs last, laughs best – צוחק מי שצוחק אחרון Al titschak/titschaki alai – Don’t laugh at me – אל תצחק/תצחקי עליי Litshok al mishehu – To laugh at someone – לצחוק על מישהו Ata tsohek alai? – Are you kidding me? – ?אתה צוחק עליי Listhok im mishehu – To laugh with someone – לצחוק עם מישהו Anachnu tsochakim itcha, lo aleicha – We’re laughing with you, not at you! – אנחנו צוחקים איתך, לא עליך Dai, nu, tsochakim itcha – Come on, I am joking with you – די, נו, צוחקים איתך Ata tits’chak / At titschaki – You’re going to laugh – אתה תצחק, את תצחקי “Kama rachok hayitem muchanim lalechet kedei lehatschik?” – How far would you go in order to make people laugh? – ?כמה רחוק הייתם מוכנים ללכת כדי להצחיק Mi matschik otach kamoni? – Who

The Hebrew word צחוק means laughter. We combine צחוק with different verbs and prepositions to express how hard we laughed at something or just how funny something is. But as is often the case with Hebrew slang, when used in the right context, and with the appropriate intonation and word-pairing, the word צחוק can be no laughing matter. Hear the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Ts’chok – Laughter – צחוק Eize ts’chok – That’s hilarious – איזה צחוק Ts’chok-ts’chok – Joking aside – צחוק-צחוק Ts’chok ha-goral – The irony of life – צחוק הגורל Tireh ma ze ts’chok ha-goral, hu haya menahel bank, ve-achshav hu ba-kele – Look at this cosmic irony, he was once a bank manager and now he’s in jail – תראה מה זה צחוק הגורל, הוא היה מנהל בנק, ועכשיו הוא בכלא La’asot ts’chok me-avoda – To turn something into a laughing matter – לעשות צחוק מעבודה Ata ose ts’chok me-avoda – Are you kidding me? You’re not doing what you’re supposed to be doing) – אתה עושה צחוק מעבודה Ma ze, hu ose ts’chok? – What’s that

The Hebrew word שרוף means burnt, and its root takes us on an exciting semantic road trip. Guy covers everything from a burning sensation to diehard football fans, seared vegetables to wasting time and money. Listen to the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Ze soref li ba-einayim – My eyes are burning – זה שורף לי בעיניים Soref le-someone ba+body part – My X is burning – שורף למישהו משהו Koev li ha-rosh – I have a headache – כואב לי הראש Ze yisrof tipa – It will burn a bit – זה ישרוף טיפה Oi, ha-tost saruf – Oh, the toast is burnt – אוי, הטוסט שרוף Ani saruf aleha – I am crazy for her – אני שרוף עליה  Maarits saruf – Diehard fan – מעריץ שרוף Ohed saruf – Big fan (football) – אוהד שרוף “Bibistim srufim” – Diehard Bibi supporters – ביביסטים שרופים Ata saruf etsli, at srufa etsli, atem srufim etsli – I’m finished with you – אתה שרוף אצלי, את שרופה אצלי, אתם שרופים אצלי Kabab al yerakot srufim – Kebab on a bed of seared vegetables – קבב על ירקות שרופים Liklot – To roast – לקלות Lisrof zman

The Hebrew word קטן looks small but its root holds a large number of slang expressions and verbs. Here’s an example: what does קטן עליי, literally “small on me,” mean in slang? Listen to the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Katan – Small – קטן Ze katan aleinu – Yes, we can do it – זה קטן עלינו Katan alai – Easy as pie – קטן עליי Katan aleycha, katan alayich – You can do it! – קטן עליך, קטן עלייך Ba-ktana – A bit, small size of something – בקטנה “Cottage baktana” – Mini-cottage-cheese – קוטג’ בקטנה Shtuyot, ba-ktana – It’s not a big deal – בקטנה Artsenu ha-ktantonet – Our tiny country – ארצנו הקטנטונת Ktantan, ktantonet, ktantanim – Small and cute – קטנטן, קטנטונת, קטנטנים Ktantanim – Toddlers – קטנטנים Lehaktin – To reduce, minimize, decrease – להקטין Taktin/taktini shniya – Minimize it for a sec. – תקטין, תקטיני שנייה Lehaktin rosh (to be rosh katan) – Do the minimum – להקטין ראש Nu, dai lehaktin rosh – Come on, stop doing the minimum – נו, די להקטין ראש Nitu’ach le-haktanat chaze –

Sometimes we just gotta be honest with ourselves and say, “אני לא סובל אותו” (I can’t stand him). Guy explains the Hebrew root סבל, which means suffering or misery, and how it is linked to muscular endurance, horrible traffic jams and passive verbs. Listen to the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Sevel – Suffering, misery – סבל “Ata garamta li sevel ve-yisurim” – You caused me misery and agony – אתה גרמת לי סבל ויסורים Eize sevel – Such misery – איזה סבל Lisbol – To suffer – לסבול Lama lisbol? – Why suffer? – ?למה לסבול Ani lo sovel oto – I can’t stand him – אני לא סובל אותו Lisbol mishehu – To put up with someone – לסבול מישהו Ani lo sovel she-medabrim be-tse’akot ba-nayad – I can’t stand it when people shout on the phone – אני לא סובל שמדברים בצעקות בנייד Sovel mi-mashehu – Suffers from something – סובל ממשהו Hu sovel mi-sukeret – Suffers from diabetes – הוא סובל מסוכרת Ata sovel mi-ze? At sovelet mi-ze? – Do you suffer from it? – ?אתה סובל מזה? את סובלת מזה Ani sovel be-sheket – I

Is it okay to save an open parking spot for someone, shooing away other drivers? Well, that’s what many Tel-Avivim do. It’s called לשמור חניה, and it happens all the time. On this episode, Guy continues with the root שמר, explaining how to say ‘watch your mouth?’ in Hebrew and why you should never really say it. Listen to the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Elohim Yishmor – Good lord – אלוהים ישמור Oy, elohim yishmor – Good lord – אוי, אלוהים ישמור Shmor/shimri/shimru merchak – Keep distance – שמור, שמרי, שמרו מרחק Tishmeri/shmeri merchak – Keep distance (fem. coll.) – תשמרי/שמרי מרחק Ani shomer merchak mimenu/mimena – I keep my distance from him/her – אני שומר מרחק ממנו/ממנה Tishmor al ha-olam, yeled – Take care of the world, kiddo – תשמור על העולם, ילד Lishmor al yeladim – Take care of children – לשמור על ילדים Mi yachol lishmor li al ha-chatul – Who can look after my cat – מי יכול לשמור לי על החתול Na lishmor al ha-nikayon/sheket – Please keep the place clean/please keep quiet –

The Hebrew words שומר, משמרת, שמירה, משמר, all come from the same shoresh, שמר. On this episode, Guy continues where he left off in the previous episode with the shoresh שמר and, along the way, explains how to avoid embarrassing moments when you’re about to shake hands in Israel. Listen to the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Strudel – @ sign – שטרודל  Shomrim – Guards – שומרים Shmira – Guarding, keeping – שמירה Shmirat shabbat – Keeping the Sabbath – שמירת שבת Shmirat negi’ah – Not touching a member of the opposite sex –  שמירת נגיעה Shomer negi’ah – A person who does not touch a member of the opposite sex – שומר נגיעה Shmira al kesher – Keeping in touch – שמירה על קשר Lishmor al kesher – Keep in touch – לשמור על קשר Kelev shmira – Guard dog – כלב שמירה Mishmeret laila – Night shift – משמרת לילה Be-mishmarot – In shifts – במשמרות Mishmeret bet / mishmeret shniya – Second shift – משמרת ב’, משמרת שנייה Hi ovedet (be-)mishmarot – She works in shifts – היא עובדת משמרות Ha-avoda be-mishm

The Hebrew word שימור (shimur) is an interesting one. We use שימור to say canned goods, the preservation of historic buildings, and even customer retention. Guy explains. Bonus: A rare Yemenite song for Hanukkah. Listen to the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Galut – Exile, diaspora – גלות Shimur ha-tarbut ha-teimanit – Conservation of the Yemenite culture – שימור התרבות התימנית Meshamer – Conserving – משמר Meshamer et avodat ha-tsorfut ha-atika shel yehudei teiman – He conserves the ancient goldsmith craft of the Yemenite Jews – משמר את עבודת הצורפות העתיקה של יהודי תימן Leshamer et ha-tarbut ha-teimanit – To conserve the Yemenite culture – לשמר את התרבות התימנית Shimur mivnim – The conservation of historic buildings – שימור מבנים Mivne le-shimur – A building for conservation – מבנה לשימור Kufsaot shimurim (‘Shimurim’) – Canned food – קופסאות שימורים “Shimurei nun, re’uyim le-emun” – “The Noon preserved foods deserve your trust” – שימורי נון, ראויים לאמון Shimurei tiras – Canned cor

In Hebrew, שירה means singing. It can also be used to mean poetry. It depends on the context. On this episode, Guy reviews the words that stem from the root ש/י/ר and several well-known phrases that make use of them. Check Out the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Nurit – Buttercup – נורית Agav – Speaking of, apropos – אגב Shira – Singing, Poetry – שירה Shira be-tsibur – Singalong – שירה בציבור Ha-cohenet ha-gdola – The high priestess – הכוהנת הגדולה Meshorer, meshoreret – Poet – משורר, משוררת Le-ma Hitkaven Ha-meshorer? – What did the poet mean? – ?למה התכוון המשורר Festival Ha-Zemer Ve-ha-pizmon Ha-israeli – The Israel song festival – פסטיבל הזמר והפזמון הישראלי Zemer – A song – זמר Pizmon – The chorus section of a song – פזמון “Ve-ha-zamar yezamer” – And the singer will sing – והזמר יזמר Zamar, zameret – Singer – זמר, זמרת Hu yezamer ba-chakira – He’s going to sing like a bird in the interrogation – הוא יזמר בחקירה Machazemer (pl. machazot zemer) – A musical (machaze+zemer) – מחזמר

What do courage, poor acting, and pet adoption have to do with one other? They have the same Hebrew root אמצ. On this episode, Guy explains the word אומץ, courage, and its root. Listen to the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Omets – Courage – אומץ Kibalti/tafasti/azarti omets – I mustered up my courage – קיבלתי אומץ Eize omets – How brave – איזה אומץ Ein li et ha-omets lehagid lach – I don’t have the courage to tell you – אין לי את האומץ להגיד לך Kama she-ani ohev otach – how much I love you – כמה שאני אוהב אותך Yesh lecha omets laasot mashehu – You’ve got the courage to do something – יש לך אומץ לעשות משהו Ein li omets – I have no stomach for something, I don’t dare to do it – אין לי אומץ Mivchan omets – A dare – מבחן אומץ Amits, amitsa – Brave – אמיץ, אמיצה Ma’amats acharon – Last effort – מאמץ אחרון Lehafsik le’amets et ha-kol – Stop straining your voice – להפסיק לאמץ את הקול Imuts klavim – Adoption of dogs – אימוץ כלבים Le’amets klavim – To adopt dogs – לאמץ כלבים “Ben adam, tit’

There are several confusing verbs in Hebrew. Some are even spelled the same. This is an episode that you will want to follow along with the show notes as you listen. We wouldn’t want to cause any more confusion! Check Out the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon New Words and Expressions: “Tamid ohev, tamid nifga” – He always loves, he always gets hurt – תמיד אוהב, תמיד נפגע Nifga, he gets hurt, nif’al, present, 3rd person, singular, masculine, shoresh: פגע Ma na’ase achshav, nipaga o nitgaber – What shall we do now, will we get hurt or overcome – מה נעשה עכשיו, ניפגע או נתגבר Nipaga, we will get hurt, ניפגע, nif’al, future, 1st person, plural, shoresh: פגע “Kol echad yelamed echad” – Each person will teach another – כל אחד ילמד אחד Yelamed, ילמד, he will teach, piel, future, 3rd person, singular, shoresh: למד “Mi she-yilmad eich lilmod, yisrod” – A person who will learn how to learn, will survive – מי שילמד איך ללמוד, ישרוד Yilmad, ילמד, he will learn, pa’al, future, 3rd person, singular, shoresh: למד Kol lekach ve

In Hebrew, we say, ?נפגעת ממני (Were you offended by me?) We can also say, ?פגעתי בך (Did I offend you?) And even though these two basically mean the same thing, the way we use them in spoken Hebrew determines who is to blame, the speaker or the spoken to. Guy explains. Check Out the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Hu nifga – He was hit, hurt – הוא נפגע Nifga, nifga’im – Casualty, casualties – נפגע, נפגעים Yesh nifgaim – There are casualties – יש נפגעים “Mi-tchilat ha-shana ha-nochechit, nifge’u ke-2000 rochvei ofanayim ve-korkinetim hashmaliyim” – Since the beginning of this year, were hit all throughout Israel, about two thousand riders of bicycles and electric scooters” – מתחילת השנה הנוכחית נפגעו כ-2000 רוכבי אופניים וקורקינטיים חשמליים “Me’a achuz me-hanifga’im, she-niftgeu kashe, im habalt rosh kasha, lo havshu kasda” – 100 per cent of the casualties who were badly hit, resulting in severe head injury, were not wearing a helmet” – מאה אחוז מהנפגעים שנפגעו קשה, עם חבלת ראש קשה,