‫‪Lesson‬‬

‫‪ַ 1‬אַחת‬
‫‪Communicative Biblical Hebrew‬‬

‫‪1.1‬‬
‫ַמה־ ֶזּה׃ ֶזה סוּס׃‬
‫ַמה־ ֶזּה׃ ֶזה ֲחמוֹר׃‬
‫ַא ֵיּה‬ ‫ָמה‬
‫ַמה־ ֶזּה׃ ֶזה ֶכֶּבשׂ׃‬
‫ַמה־זּ ֹאת׃ ז ֹאת ֵﬠז׃‬
‫‪1.2‬‬
‫ז ֹאת‬ ‫ֶזה‬ ‫ַא ֵיּה ַהֶכֶּבשׂ׃ טוֹב׃‬
‫ַא ֵיּה ָהִאישׁ׃ טוֹב׃‬
‫ַא ֵיּה ַהַפּר׃ טוֹב׃‬
‫ל ֹא‬ ‫טוֹב‪ָ /‬יֶפה‬ ‫ַא ֵיּה ַהֲחמוֹר׃ ל ֹא‪ ,‬ז ֹאת ֵﬠז׃‬
‫ַא ֵיּה ַהֲחמוֹר׃ טוֹב׃‬
‫ַא ֵיּה ַהסּוּס׃ טוֹב׃‬
‫ַא ֵיּה ָהִאָשּׁה׃ ָיֶפה׃‬
‫♀‬ ‫♂‬
‫ז ֹאת‬ ‫ֶזה‬ ‫ַא ֵיּה ַהָפּ ָרה׃ ָיֶפה׃‬
‫ִאָשּׁה‬ ‫ִאישׁ‬ ‫אד׃‬
‫ַא ֵיּה ַהֲחמוֹר׃ טוֹב ְמ ֹ‬
‫ָפּ ָרה‬ ‫ַפּר‬
‫ֵﬠז‬ ‫ס וּס‬
‫ֲחמוֹר‬
‫ֶכֶּבשׂ‬
‫ְגּדוָֹלה‬ ‫ָגּדוֹל‬
‫ְקַט ָנּה‬ ‫ָקטֹן‬

‫א‬

‫ז ֹאת ִאָשּׁה ְגדוָֹלה׃‬
‫ז ֹאת ִאָשּׁה ְקַט ָנּה׃‬
‫ֶזה ִאישׁ ָקטֹן׃ ֶזה ִאישׁ ָגּדוֹל׃‬
‫ָהִאָשּׁה ַהזּ ֹאת ְקַט ָנּה׃‬
‫ָהִאָשּׁה ַהזּ ֹאת ְגּדוָֹלה׃‬
‫‪1.3‬‬
‫ַפּר ָגּדוֹל ־ ַפּר ָקטֹן‬
‫סוּס ָקטֹן ־ סוּס ָגּדוֹל‬
‫ֲחמוֹר ָגּדוֹל ־ ֲחמוֹר ָקטֹן‬
‫ֶכֶּבשׂ ָקטֹן ־ ֶכֶּבשׂ ָגּדוֹל‬
‫ָפּ ָרה ְגדוָֹלה ־ ָפּ ָרה ְקַט ָנּה‬
‫ֵﬠז ְקַט ָנּה ־ ֵﬠז ְגּדוָֹלה‬
‫ִאָשּׁה ְקַט ָנּה ־ ִאָשּׁה ְגדוָֹלה‬
‫‪1.4‬‬
‫ַא ֵיּה ַהָפּ ָרה ַה ְגּדוָֹלה׃‬
‫ַא ֵיּה ָהִאָשּׁה ַהְקַּט ָנּה׃‬
‫ַא ֵיּה ָהִאישׁ ַה ָגּדוֹל׃‬
‫ַהסּוּס ַה ֶזּה ָקטֹן׃‬
‫ַהָפּ ָרה ַהזּ ֹאת ְגּדוָֹלה׃‬

‫ַא ֵיּה ַהַפּר ַה ָגּדוֹל׃ טוֹב׃‬

‫ַא ֵיּה ַהֲחמוֹר ַהָקּטֹן׃ ל ֹא‪ ,‬ז ֹאת‬
‫ֵﬠז ְקַּט ָנּה׃‬
‫ַא ֵיּה ַהֲחמוֹר ַהָקּטֹן׃ ָיֶפה׃‬
‫ַא ֶיּה ָהֵﬠז ַהְקַּט ָנּה׃ טוֹב׃‬
‫ָשׁלוֹם‬ ‫אד׃‬
‫ַא ֵיּה ַהֲחמוֹר ַה ָגּדוֹל׃ ָיֶפה ְמ ֹ‬
‫ָשׁלוֹם׃‬

‫ב‬
Grammar Summary
1.1 Interrogative pronouns.
In Biblical Hebrew, there is no question mark (?). You can identify questions by
their interrogative pronouns "what," "where," etc. All the sentences, including
the questions, will end with this symbol (‫ )׃‬called a sof pasuq.
where? ‫ַא ֵיּה‬ what? ‫ַמה‬/‫ָמה‬

‫ז ֹאת ִאָשּׁה׃‬ ‫ֶזה ִאישׁ׃ ַמה־זּ ֹאת‬ ‫ַמה־ ֶזּה‬

What (is) This (is) a woman What (is) this? This (is) a man What (is) this?
this?
This (is) a… ‫ז ֹאת ָפּ ָרה׃‬ ‫ֶזה ַפּר׃ ַמה־זּ ֹאת‬ ‫ַמה־ ֶזּה‬
This (is) a cow What (is) this? This (is) a bull What (is) this?

1.2 The Definite article

The definite article "the" is expressed in Hebrew at the beginning of a word
with the prefix ‫ ַה‬or ‫ָה‬. There is no indefinite article like "a" or "an"; instead, an
indefinite noun will have no article. Compare ‫( ִאישׁ‬a man) with ‫( ָהִאישׁ‬the man).
The definite article occurs on nouns, and also on any adjectives and
demonstratives that directly modify them. This helps us to pair an adjective or
demonstrative with the noun it modifies in the same phrase (see the examples
at the bottom of this page).

Definite article the -‫ָה‬/-‫ַה‬

the big bull ‫ַהַפּר ַה ָגּדוֹל‬
this bull ‫ַהַפּר ַה ֶזּה‬
1.3 Adjectives
An adjective describes a property or characteristic of a noun and follows the
noun it modifies. In Hebrew, the adjectives agree in gender (masculine or
feminine) and number (singular or plural) with the nouns they modify. When
they directly modify a noun in the same phrase, they also agree in definiteness
(as in 1.2).
‫ְגדוָֹלה‬ ‫ָפּ ָרה‬ ‫ָגּדוֹל‬ ‫ַפּר‬
Feminine singular Feminine singular Masculine singular Masculine singular

A big cow A big bull

This (is) a big This (is) a
man.
‫ֶזה ִאישׁ ָגּדוֹל׃‬ small woman.
‫ז ֹאת ִאָשּׁה ְקַט ָנּה׃‬
This woman
This man (is) big. ‫ָהִאישׁ ַה ֶזּה ָגּדוֹל׃‬ (is) small.
‫ָהִאָשּׁה ַהזּ ֹאת ְקַט ָנּה׃‬

‫ג‬