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Recent Articles
- Woven with Wonder: Syntax and Embodied Imagery in Job 10:11
- The Wink and the Wound: Syntax, Parallelism, and Irony in Proverbs 10:10
- The Grammar of Surprise: The Wayyiqtol Chain and Temporal Progression in Joshua 10:9
- The Birth of Power: The Grammar of Beginning and Becoming in Genesis 10:8
- Genealogical Syntax and the Grammar of Nations in Genesis 10:7
- Do Not Mourn as Others Do: Restraint and Reverence in the Aftermath of Fire
- The Blast and the Camp: Exploring Hebrew Commands and Movement in Numbers 10:5
- If You Refuse: The Threat of the Locusts in Translation
- Trumpet Blasts and Assembly Syntax in Numbers 10:3
- Right and Left: A Beginner’s Guide to Hebrew Word Order in Ecclesiastes 10:2
- A Call to Listen: A Beginner’s Guide to Hebrew Grammar in Jeremiah 10:1
- “Even If I Wash with Snow”: Job’s Cry of Purity and Futility in Hebrew
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Author Archives: Advanced Hebrew Grammar
Dageš Forte
In grammar Dageš forte, the sign of strengthening, is the more important. It may be compared to the sicilicus of the Latins (Lucul̂us for Lucullus) or to the stroke over m̄ and n̄. In the unpointed text it is omitted, like the vowels and other reading signs. Oort, Theol. Tijdschr. 1902, p. 376, maintains that ‘the Masoretes recognized no distinction between Dageš lene and forte. They used a Dageš where they considered that a letter had the sharp, not the soft or aspirated sound.’… Learn Hebrew
Dageš
Dageš, a point standing in the middle of a consonant, denotes,
(a) the strengthening of a consonant (Dageš forte), e.g. קִטֵּל qiṭṭēl ; or
(b) the harder pronunciation of the letters בְּגַדְכְּפַת (Dageš lene).
The root דגשׁ in Syriac means to pierce through, to bore through (with sharp iron); hence the name Dageš is commonly explained, solely with reference to its form, by puncture, point. But the names of all similar signs are derived rather from their grammatical significance. Accordingly דגשׁ may in the Masora have the sense: acuere (literam), i.e.… Learn Hebrew
Dageš Lene
1. Dageš lene, the sign of hardening, is in ordinary printed texts placed only within the בְּגַדְכְּפַת letters as a sign that they should be pronounced with their original hard sound (without aspiration), e.g. מֶלֶךְ mèlĕkh, but מַלְכּוֹ mal-kô; תָּפַר tāphár, but יִתְפֹּר yith-pōr; שָׁתָה šāthā, but יִשְׁתֶּה yiš-tè.
2. Dageš lene occurs almost exclusively at the beginning of words and syllables. In the middle of the word it can easily be distinguished from Dageš forte, since the latter always has a vowel before it, whereas Dageš lene never has; accordingly the Dageš in אַפִּי ʾappî, רַבִּים rabbîm must be forte, but in יִגְדַּל yigdal it is lene.… Learn Hebrew
Grammatical Structure
1. The formation of the parts of speech from the stems (derivation), and their inflexion, are effected in two ways:
(a) internally by changes in the stem itself, particularly in its vowels:
(b) externally by the addition of formative syllables before or after it. The expression of grammatical relations (e.g. the comparative degree and some case-relations in Hebrew) periphrastically by means of separate words belongs, not to etymology, but to syntax.
The external method (b) of formation, by affixing formative syllables, which occurs e.g.… Learn Hebrew
Semitic Languages
1. The Hebrew language is one branch of a great family of languages in Western Asia which was indigenous in Palestine, Phoenicia, Syria, Mesopotamia, Babylonia, Assyria, and Arabia, that is to say, in the countries extending from the Mediterranean to the other side of the Euphrates and Tigris, and from the mountains of Armenia to the southern coast of Arabia. In early times, however, it spread from Arabia over Abyssinia, and by means of Phoenician colonies over many islands and sea-boards of the Mediterranean, as for instance to the Carthaginian coast.… Learn Hebrew
Niphal (Niph˓al)
1. The essential characteristic of this conjugation consists in a prefix to the stem. This exists in two forms:
(a) the (probably original) prepositive nă, as in the Hebrew perfect and participle, although in the strong verb the ă is always attenuated to ĭ: נִקְטַל for original nă-qăṭăl, participle נִקְטָל, infinitive absolute sometimes נִקְטוֹל;
(b) the (later) proclitic in (as in all the forms of the corresponding Arabic conjugation vii. ˒inqătălă), found in the imperfect יִקָּטֵל for yinqāṭēl, in the imperative and infinitive construct, with a secondary ה added, הִקָּטֵל (for hinqāṭēl), and in the infinitive absolute הִקָּטֹל The inflexion of Niph˓al is perfectly analogous to that of Qal.… Learn Hebrew
Pronominal Suffixes
1. The independent principal forms of the personal pronoun (the separate pronoun), given in the preceding section, express only the nominative. The accusative and genitive are expressed by forms, usually shorter, joined to the end of verbs, nouns, and particles (pronominal suffixes or simply suffixes); e.g. הוּ (toneless) and וֹ (from āhû) eum and eius, קְטַלְתִּ֫יהוּ I have killed him (also קְטַלְתִּיו), קְטַלְתָּ֫הוּ or (with āhû contracted into ô) קְטַלְתּ֫וֹ thou hast killed him; אוֹר֫וֹ (also אוֹרֵ֫הוּ) lux eius.
The same method is employed in all the other Semitic languages, as well as in the Egyptian, Persian, Finnish, Tartar, and others; in Greek, Latin, and German we find only slight traces of the kind, e.g.… Learn Hebrew
Adverbs תואר הפועל
The Hebrew term for adverb is תואר הפועל.
1. Primitive Adverbs
Primitive adverbs are those of negation, such as לֹא “not” = οὐ, οὐκ; אַל = μη; אֵין “there is not”; and a few others of place and time, such as שָׁם “there,” “then.”
These adverbs may at least for grammatical purposes be regarded as primitive, even if it is possible to trace them to other roots, particularly pronominal roots.
2. Other Parts of Speech Used Adverbially
(a) Substantives with Prepositions
Examples include: בִּמְאֹד מְאֹד “with might,” i.e.,… Learn Hebrew
Verbal Patterns In Hebrew
The Structure of Hebrew Verbs: An In-Depth Exploration
Hebrew is a language rich in structure and meaning, and one of its most fascinating aspects is the way verbs are formed. Every Hebrew verb (פועל) is constructed by inserting a three- or four-consonant root (שורש) into specific verbal patterns known as binyanim (בינינים), a term meaning “buildings” or “constructions.” These binyanim serve as frameworks that shape the verb’s meaning, voice, and grammatical function.
Most Hebrew roots can be cast into more than one binyan, creating multiple verbs from the same root.… Learn Hebrew
Shalom Aleikhem
Shalom Aleikhem (שָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם)! Shalom aleikhem is a traditional greeting in Hebrew-language. It means “Peace be upon you.” The appropriate response should be “Aleikhem shalom” (עֲלֵיכֶם שָׁלוֹם) or “Upon you be peace.”
The Beautiful Meaning Behind “Shalom Aleikhem”
If you’ve ever greeted someone in Hebrew, chances are you’ve heard or used the phrase Shalom Aleikhem (שָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם). More than just a simple “hello,” this traditional greeting carries deep cultural and spiritual significance, resonating with themes of peace, connection, and community.
The Meaning of “Shalom Aleikhem”
At its core, Shalom Aleikhem translates to “Peace be upon you.”… Learn Hebrew