Language/Hebrew/Grammar/How-to-Use-Be

Hebrew Grammar - How to Use "Be"

Hi Hebrew learners! 😊
In this lesson, we are going to learn how to use the Hebrew verb "to be". This is a very important verb to know because it is essential to form sentences in Hebrew. We will see how it behaves in different tenses and with different subjects. We will also see some interesting cultural information related to its use. So, let's get started!

With the completion of this lesson, consider investigating these related pages: Review of Nouns and Pronouns & Conjunctions.

Present Tense

In Hebrew, the present tense of the verb "to be" is formed with the following pronouns:

Hebrew	Pronunciation	English
אֲנִי	ani	I am
אַתָּה	atah	You are (masculine singular)
אַתְּ	at	You are (feminine singular)
הוּא	hu	He is
הִיא	hi	She is
אֲנַחְנוּ	anahnu	We are
אַתֶּם	atem	You are (masculine plural)
אַתְּן	aten	You are (feminine plural)
הֵם/הֵן	hem/hen	They are (masculine/feminine)

Here are some examples:

• אֲנִי שְׁמִי אַסִּתָּא. (Ani shmi Asita.) - I am Asita.

• הוּא רוֹצֶה לְצָאת הַיּוֹם. (Hu rotse letsat hayom.) - He wants to go out today.

• הֵם עָזְבוּ אֶת הַדִּירָה. (Hem azvu et hadira.) - They left the apartment.

Past Tense

In Hebrew, the past tense of the verb "to be" is formed differently for singular and plural subjects. Let's see how it works:

For singular subjects:

Hebrew	Pronunciation	English
הָיִיתִי	hayiti	I was
הָיִיתָ	hayita	You were (masculine singular)
הָיִית	hayit	You were (feminine singular)
הָיָה	haya	He was / She was

For plural subjects:

Hebrew	Pronunciation	English
הָיִינוּ	hayinu	We were
הָיִיתֶם	hayitem	You were (masculine plural)
הָיִיתֶן	hayiten	You were (feminine plural)
הָיוּ	hayu	They were

Here are some examples:

• הָיִיתִי בְּקִיץ בַּים. (Hayiti be-kayitz ba-yam.) - I was at the beach in summer.

• הָיִיתָ עִם גִּלְי. (Hayita im Gili.) - You were with Gili.

• הָיוּ הַמַּלְצָרִים מוֹשְׁכִים אַרוּגִים. (Hayu hamaltsarim moshchim arugim.) - The soldiers were pulling the blankets.

Future Tense

In Hebrew, the future tense of the verb "to be" is formed by adding the word " תִּהְיֶה" (tihiye) to the pronouns. Let's see:

Hebrew	Pronunciation	English
אֲנִי אֶהְיֶה	ani ehiye	I will be
אַתָּה תִּהְיֶה	atah tihiye	You will be (masculine singular)
אַתְּ תִּהְיִי	at tihiyi	You will be (feminine singular)
הוּא יִהְיֶה	hu yihiye	He will be / She will be
אֲנַחְנוּ נִהְיֶה	anahnu nihye	We will be
אַתֶּם תִּהְיוּ	atem tihyu	You will be (masculine plural)
אַתְּן תִּהְיֶין	aten tihiyen	You will be (feminine plural)
הֵם/הֵן יִהְיוּ	hem/hen yihiyu	They will be

Here are some examples:

• הוּא יִהְיֶה רוֹפֵא. (Hu yihiye rofe.) - He will be a doctor.

• אֲנִי אֶהְיֶה בְּאֵר שֶׁבַע. (Ani ehiye be-Beer Sheva.) - I will be in Beer Sheva.

• אַתֶּן תִּהְיֶין כְּמוֹ הַכּוֹכָבִים. (Aten tihiyen kemo hakochavim.) - You will be like the stars.

Cultural Information

In Hebrew, the verb "to be" is often used to create expressions that don't exist in English. For example:

• לְהִתְחַלֵּף מֵעֵיר לָעִיר (le-hitkha-lef me-ir la-ir) literally means "to exchange from city to city." It's used to describe a person who moves from city to city frequently.

• לְהִתְבַּטֵּל (le-hitbatel) means "to cancel oneself." It's used to describe a person who avoids socializing or taking action.

• רָע לְיִהוּת דָּבוֹר בַּתּוֹךְ הַדְּבָשִׁים (ra le-yihot davor batokh hadvashim) literally means "it's bad to be a fly in the honey." It's used to describe a situation that can be tempting but also dangerous.

Dialogue

Here's a dialogue where you can see the verb "to be" in context:

• Person 1: מַה הָיָה בַּעַרְב הַזֶּה? (Ma haya ba-erev haze?) - What was on this evening?
• Person 2: הָיִינוּ בָּרוּחַ עַם מְצָיֵן. (Hayinu ba-ruach am matzayen.) - We were at the Matzayen Festival.

• Person 1: מַה יִהְיֶה בְּסִיבָּה הַזֹּאת? (Ma yihiye besiba haze?) - What will be the reason for this?
• Person 2: אֲנִי אֶהְיֶה בְּחוּפָשׁ בַּשָּׁבוּעַ הַבָּא. (Ani ehiye be-chufash ba-shavua ha-ba.) - I will be on vacation next week.

Conclusion

In this lesson, we have learned how to use the Hebrew verb "to be" in different tenses and with different subjects. We have also seen some interesting cultural information related to its use. Don't hesitate to practice as much as you can, and if you have any questions, Hebrew learners, do not hesitate to ask! To improve your [ [Language/Hebrew|Hebrew]] [ [Language/Hebrew/Grammar|Grammar]], you can also use the Polyglot Club website. Find native speakers and ask them any questions!

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➡ If you have any questions, please ask them in the comments section below.
➡ Feel free to edit this wiki page if you think it can be improved. 😎

Congratulations on finishing this lesson! Explore these related pages to keep learning: Vowels & Adjectives.

Other Lessons

• Verb to Have
• Future Tense
• Nouns
• Questions
• Personal pronouns and the present tense
• Plurals
• Give your Opinion
• How to Use Have
• Conditional Mood
• Pronouns

Sources

• A Manual Hebrew Grammar for the Use of Beginners, by James ...
• A Manual Hebrew Grammar for the Use of Beginners (Hardcover ...
• (MORMONS) Joshua Seixas Manual Hebrew Grammar for the Use of