Lesson 8

Contents:

         8.a Verbs
         8.b Numbers
         8.c Nouns & Adjectives
         8.d Sentences

8.a: Verbs

Let's learn 3 more verbs:

• the root גמר [g.m.r.] means 'finish'.
• the root רקד [r.k.d.] means 'dance'
• the root קפצ [k.f.tz.] means 'jump'.

Today we'll learn to put verbs in infinitive form. Unlike english, where you add 'to', as in 'to go', in hebrew you put the verb in special form: LiXXoX (the X stand for the 3 root letters). For example:

• לִרקוֹד [lirkod] - 'to dance'
• לִגמוֹר [ligmor] - 'to finish'
• לִקפוֹץ [likfotz] - 'to jump'

Exercise – write the following in hebrew:

to learn	לִלמוֹד	listen
to guard	לִשמוֹר	listen
to steal	לִגנוֹב	listen
to close	לִסגוֹר	listen
to laugh	לִצחוֹק	listen
to find	לִמצוֹא	listen
to ask	לִשאוֹל	listen
to care	לִדאוֹג	listen

Now translate, keeping in mind when ב,כ,פ are pronounced [v,h,f] (after a vowel) and when it's [b,k,p] (otherwise):

I cheated - to cheat	listen
he counted - to count	listen
we checked - to check	listen
she wrote - to write	listen
you (masc.) remember - to remember	listen
they (masc.) sell - to sell	listen

Finally, translate the following, keeping in mind what happens when the 3rd root letter is ע or ח:

you (masc.) run away - to run away	listen
you (fem.) hear - to hear	listen
he opens - to open	listen
she goes (by vehicle) - to go (by vehicle)	listen

And finally we learn three more verbs:

• the root שכח [sh.kh.kh.] means 'forget'.
• the root לקח [l.k.kh.] means 'take'
• the root שקל [sh.k.l.] means 'weigh, consider'. From this root one also has the word שֵקֵל – [shekel] – the israeli currency

Exercise time - translate:

Girls, you finished already to jump??	יֵלַדוֹת, אַתֵן סִיַמתֵן כבַר לֵקפוֹץ??	listen
She knows to dance very well.	הִיא יוֹדַעַת לִרקוֹד טוֹב מֵאוֹד.	listen
Where and when (did) you (masc.) learn to steal??	אֵיפה וֵמַתַי אַתֵם לַמַדתֵם לִגנוֹב??	listen
Yesterday I forgot to close the door.	אֵתמוֹל אַנִי שַכַחתִי לִסגוֹר אֵת הַדֵלֵת.	listen
She remembered to check the garden, very nice!	הִיא זַכרַה לִבדוֹק אֵת הַגַן, יַפֵה מֵאוֹד!	listen
I (fem.) am thinking to sell my car.	אַנִי חוֹשֵבֵת לִמכוֹר אֵת הַאוֹטוֹ שֵלִי.	listen

8.b Numbers

We learn now some more numbers:

• 0 - אֵפֵס - [efes]
• 1 - אַחַת - [akhat]

and, using the 'tens' pattern (from previous lesson):

• 50 - חַמִישִים - [khamishim]
• 60 - שִישִים - [sishim]

By the way, '1' is unique – it comes after noun! For example:

• שַלוֹש מֵדִינוֹת - [shalosh medinot] - 3 countries
• אֵפֵס גלִידוֹת - [efes glidot] - 0 ice-creams
• אַהַבַה אַחַת - [ahava akhat] - 1 love

Now, to say “he's 50 years old” you say הוּא בֵן חַמִישִים – [hu ben hamishim], but how do you say “she's 50 years old”? You can't say, literally “she is son 50”, you have to say “she is daughter 50”. And that's why you learn the word:

• בַת - [bat] - daughter

And last topic for this part: how to say “three times”? Same as in english, you just need the word:

• פַעַם - (f.) - [paam] - time (but only in the above sense, not as in “i have no time”)

Note: the plural of [paam] is פַעַמִים ([paamim]), even though the noun is fem.
For example:

• פַעַם אַחַת - [paam akhat]) - once, one time (note that '1' comes after the noun)
• הַרבֵה פַעַמִים - [harbe paamim]) - many times
• אַנִי אַמַרתִי לֵךַ חַמֵש פַעַמִים! - [ani amarti lekha khamesh paamim!]) - I told you five times!

To practice:

How many times I said – I'm not 60, i'm 59 (fem.)!	כַמַה פַעַמִים אַנִי אַמַרתִי - אַנִי לא בַת 60, אַנִי בַת 59!	listen
And every time you (masc.) forget it..	וֵכל פַעַם אַתַה שוֹכֵחַ אֵת זֵה..	listen
Every time that you (masc.) dance – you fall.	כל פַעַם שֵאַתַה רוֹקֵד - אַתַה נוֹפֵל.	listen
You don't know to dance!	אַתַה לא יוֹדֵעַ לִרקוֹד!	listen
Why you don't learn from your daughter?	לַמַה אַתַה לא לוֹמֵד מֵהַבַת שֵלךַ?	listen
This is not because I don't know to dance - this is because i'm fat, I weigh a lot..	זֵה לא כִי אַנִי לא יוֹדֵעַ לִרקוֹד - זֵה כִי אַנִי שַמֵן, אַנִי שוֹקֵל הַרבֵה..	listen

8.c Nouns & Adjectives

Remember how to say 'easy'? We'll now learn 3 more adjectives of the same XaX structure:

קַר	[kar]	cold
חַם	[kham]	hot, warm
רַך	[rakh]	soft

And 3 more nouns:

תַפוּז	(m.)	[tapuz]	orange (fruit, not the colour)
תַפוּחַ	(m.)	[tapuakh]*	apple
אַבַטִיחַ	(m.)	[avatiakh]*	watermelon

(*)Note again - the [a] sound comes before ח – it's not pronounced 'tapuha'!

Exercise – translate:

Soft apple.	תַפוּחַ רַך	listen
Cold oranges and watermelons.	תַפוּזִים וֵאַבַטִיחִים קַרִים	listen

All right, we learned shortened forms of בֵ,לֵ,שֵל (such as בוֹ, שֵלִי..), so let's learn the ones of אֵת - [et]. It's done the same way, adding [i]/[o]/[a]/[kha]/[akh], with slight change in vowel - [o] replacing the opening [e]:

אוֹתִי	[oti]	me
אוֹתוֹ	[oto]	him
אוֹתַה	[ota]	her
אוֹתךַ	[otkha]	you (masc.)
אוֹתַך	[otakh]	you (fem.)

Fantastic, let's learn 3 more nouns to finish this part:

עִיתוֹן	(m.)	[iton]	newspaper
חוּלצַה	(f.)	[khultza]	shirt, t-shirt
שִמלַה	(f.)	[simla]	(woman) dress

Exercise – write in hebrew, pronounce and compare to the recorded version:

Wow, I (masc.) like your (fem.) shirt!	ווַאוּ, אַנִי אוֹהֵב אֵת הַחוּלצַה שֵלַך!	listen
She's very light and soft, weighs zero gram!	הִיא מֵאוֹד קַלַה וֵרַכַה, שוֹקֵלֵת אֵפֵס גרַם.	listen
Mine is less soft and heavier.	שֵלִי פַחוֹת רַכַה וֵיוֹתֵר כבֵדַה	listen
Every morning I have a new newspaper before my door. I read him in fifty minutes.	כל בוֹקֵר יֵש לִי עִיתוֹן לַפנֵי הַדֵלֵת שֵלִי.	listen
It takes me fifty minutes to read him.	זֵה לוֹקֵחַ לִי חַמִישִים דַקוֹת לִקרוֹא אוֹתוֹ.	listen
I (fem.) like this dress, I wear her every week.	אַנִי אוֹהֵבֵת אֵת הַשִמלַה הַזאת, אַנִי לוֹבֵשֵת אוֹתַה כל שַבוּעַ	listen
I (masc.) like apples and watermelons, but I don't like oranges.	אַנִי אוֹהֵב תַפוּחִים וֵאַבַטִיחִים, אַבַל אַנִי לא אוֹהֵב תַפוּזִים	listen
Watermelon is green, but when I (fem.) open him – he's red.	אַבַטִיחַ יַרוֹק, אַבַל כשֵאַנִי פוֹתַחַת אוֹתוֹ - הוּא אַדוֹם.	listen
This is a very good shirt, my friends sold her to me in 50 shekel.	זאת חוּלצַה טוֹבַה מֵאוֹד, חַבֵרִים שֵלִי מַכרוּ לִי אוֹתַה בֵחַמִישִים שֵקֵל.	listen

8.d Sentences

Great, let's have four useful words – the last for the day:

רַק	[rak]	only, just
קצַת	[ktzat]	a little, some, few
עִם	[im]	with
כֵן	[ken]	yes

Final exercise of the week!! Translate the dialogues without writing, and listen:

- Hey Dana!

- Hey, Nina! Where are you going?

- I'm going to university.

listen

- Yes, I heard that you learn to dance there?

- Yes.

listen

- And why?

- You know.. I have few friends that know to dance on stage, but I have many friends that only know how to jump..

listen

- How many times?

- Three times in week.

listen

- When do you dance?

- In 5:00-7:00, before that I eat.

listen

- And what do you eat before?

- An apple or two, or two oranges.

listen

- Is it difficult, to learn to dance?

- Well.. It's not easy, but I like this.

listen

- What do you like to hear?

- I like classical music. I like arabic music, and I like hebrew modern music. I like electronic music. But I don't like pop, heavy rock or metal.

listen

- And when you dance – what do you wear?

- I wear a mini-dress and a light shirt.

listen

- With who do you go to there?

- With 2 (fem.) friends, Ana and Liora.

listen

- And are you already good in this?

- No.. I'm only learning..

listen

- How much are you learning already?

- Less than a month.. It takes months to dance well!

listen