Learn to Read Hebrew in Tanakh (Jewish Bible)

This is an intro that will give you a head's up on the next unit. Some letters that you will learn about in this unit act as what we call "sticky letters." In Biblical Hebrew, you can have one letter that means a word, usually a preposition. So while you learn about the letter, you also learn about what it means. You can take these letters and literally stick them on words. So instead of having a separate word like "the" or "and", Biblical Hebrew has just one letter. When you get a hold of the concept of the sticky letter, it will really help you begin to read the scriptures in Biblical Hebrew.

The next letter is very important and versatile. We will spend three videos on the letter Hey. This first video shows you how the letter Hey is like our letter H. There aren't many Hebrew words that begin with a Hey, but there is one special one that you know: Hallelu-yah that is used in Biblical Hebrew as well as Modern Hebrew, and practically every language.

Listen for the Hey sound at the beginning of the verses.

Just like the H in English, the Hey ה has an "ah" sound at the end of the word. In this video, we'll review some words that you have already met that have a Hey ה at the end.

Meet the first letter of the Biblical Hebrew alphabet that is a sticky letter: the Hey ה. When Hey ה acts like a sticky letter, it means "the." Instead of using a separate word "the", you stick a Hey ה at the beginning of a word. In this video we'll use words that you have learned in earlier lessons and stick a Hey ה on them.

You learned about the letter Vav ו in our first course, Meet the Hebrew Alphabet. You might remember that Vav ו was the only letter that didn't have an English word, so you had to learn a Hebrew word that began with Vav ו. And that word was...Vav! And just to remind you, the Hebrew word "vav" means hook. In this video, you will learn how to recognize the letter Vav ו. There aren't many words in Biblical Hebrew that begin with Vav 1 so this is a short video. But don't worry, there are four videos on the letter Vav ו.

Vav is another sticky letter that goes at the beginning of the word. When the scribes wrote the ancient scriptures in Biblical Hebrew, it was not tradition to have spaces between the words. As you can imagine, that would be nearly impossible to read. So the Vav came to the rescue. The Vav lets you know when a sentence or a story is going to begin. It's also a sticky letter that means "and."

This video will really help you understand one of the basic concepts on how sentences are formed in Biblical Hebrew.

These videos are longer, but they serve as a review for you. You will get to practice all the words that you have learned so far in the course with the letter Vav.

In the Vav section of Psalm 119, the writer has used the Vav as a sentence marker--just as you have learned in the last video. In each line, the Vav is translated in most bibles as "and," but now that you are learning Biblical Hebrew, you know that the "and" is really a sentence marker as illustrated in this section of Psalm 119.

As you try to learn Biblical Hebrew, you will learn that the Vav is one of the most versatile letters in the Hebrew alphabet. Throughout your studies in Biblical Hebrew, you will learn more and more about the Vav. In this video, you will see how It can sound like a "u" or an "o" in the middle of a word. Sometimes the Vav grabs the Alef to make one of these vowel sounds as we'll see.

The best way to learn this concept is with common words that you will come across as you learn to read Biblical Hebrew. So you will be able to practice with some new vocabulary.

You will really love this letter Zayin ז. It is just like our Z.

Close your eyes and listen for the Zayin ז at the beginning of each verse. Then watch the video and see if you can follow where the new verse starts. It is good to watch the video three times.

The letter Xhet is what gives Biblical Hebrew its unique sound. Even wonder why you don't know how to pronounce Chanukkah, Chutzpah, or Challah? Unfortunately, the Ch is inaccurate. These words do not have the sound found in church. You may know the great composer, Bach. If you say his name the German way, then you know how to pronounce the Xhet. It's like an H sound deep in your throat. Contrary to popular belief, there is no need to sound like you are clearing your throat. Remember, pronunciation is caught and not taught. Keep on listening to Hebrew, and you'll get the Xhet sound when you least expect it.

Identify the Xhet as the yad (pointer) moves from verse to verse. This exercise will really help you with the sound of the Xhet ח. Don't worry if you can't reproduce the sound. Right now, it is important that you can identify the sound with the letter.

In Part 2 of Xhet ח, you will learn more words with letters that you know. You will also learn more sentences in Biblical Hebrew.

Can you believe that you got through Unit 2? You are closer to your goal to read Biblical Hebrew. Well done! Remember that we will be reviewing what you learned throughout the rest of the lessons. Let's recap Unit two with a reading exercise. You can also practice it in the pdf file. Remember, the password is evreet.

Mazel Tov! You are ready to start Unit 3. While learning four letters, you will also learn about where adjectives go in Biblical Hebrew. Does that sound complicated? Well it isn't if you know Mazel Tov. Although Mazel Tov isn't Biblical Hebrew, it will help you learn the concept of how adjectives work in Biblical Hebrew.

Take your time on this unit: it has some twists and turns. There are more sticky letters. And remember those letters from Meet the Hebrew Alphabet that change shape when they come at the end of a word? Well, they are making another appearance in this unit. After this unit, it's downhill skiing.

If you use the pdf files as you follow along on the video, it will help. Remember, the password? evreet

You will be happy to know that Tet ט is one of those straight-forward letters. It's just like our letter T. When foreign words come into the Hebrew (Evreet) language--like telephone, tea, and Tokyo, Hebrew uses the Tet ט. The letter ט is more common in Modern Hebrew than in Biblical Hebrew.

But I must confess, it's not the only letter in the Hebrew (Evreet) alef-bet that sounds like a T. There is one other letter but that isn't until the last lesson.

In the video for Psalm 119, listen for the word טוב

This is more of a review video to help you practice your Biblical Hebrew using the new word you have learned: טוב. Here are some sentences to help you practice the new words in this lesson and words from previous lessons.

The letter Yod is the smallest letter of the Biblical Hebrew (Evreet) alef-bet. It looks like an apostrophe because it hangs in the air at the top. It's a rather cool letter. It sounds like a Y at the beginning of words. A lot of names you know or you might even have begin with the Yod.The most important name starts with the Yod. Traditionally, scholars show respect for the name of God and pronounce it as Adonai which means Master. The video will show you.

Learn the sound of the Yod י by listening and then watching this video a few times. It will help you with learning and studying Biblical Hebrew.

There is no letter "J" in Biblical Hebrew. So there are many common names that are pronounced a bit differently in Biblical Hebrew. Learn some cool words with the letter Yod that will help you read more Biblical Hebrew.

Now when that Yod comes in the middle or the end of the word, guess what letter it sounds like? The "i". Sometimes it sounds more like an "e," but you get the picture.

The Caf is a pretty cool letter because it looks like a backwards C and it sounds like a K. Well, it sounds like a K when it's at the beginning of a word or syllable.

There's a little surprise for you on this one.

I was really happy that you were familiar with the name Zachariah--because that name will help you get your head around the Caf in the middle of a word. It has that Xh sound. You'll see when you watch the video. But I'm not finished yet. As you may recall in our previous course, the Caf grows a tail when it is at the end of a word. In that case it always has the Xh sound.

Caf is a sticky letter which means as, or like, or according to. As with a lot of things in Biblical Hebrew, the more you read, the more you get used to it.

The Lamed is the tallest letter of the Hebrew (Evreet) alef-bet. It towers over the others and goes lower too. It's one of our straight-forward letters: it always sounds like an L. It doesn't change shape or sound. You can breath easy on this video. Wait--the Lamed is also a sticky letter and it means to/for: toDavid or forDavid. But it always sounds like an L!

You will have even more fun with this one.

Now that you know the Lamed, you can learn one of the most important words: Elohim. The short form of Elohim is El.

There's a lot of cool words that you can learn with the Lamed. Enjoy!

You're just completed a challenging unit. Take your time to review what you have learned.

Mazel Tov! You have completed the more challenging part of the course. Now, it will get easier as you go along. You do have three letters that change shape at the end of words, but you already knew about that from the last course--and they don't change their sound, so it's not too difficult. At the end of this unit, you will be able to read a little story, so hang in there! You will find the pdf files will help you. Password: evreet

The Mem is just like our M. As you will recall, it is part of the Unique family because it has a distinctive shape.

See how Psalm 119 was originally formatted in ancient scriptures.

Learn about how Mem changes into a box when it is at the end of words.

Here's another sticky letter-the Mem. It means "from." It will allow you to design a lot of cool sentences. When you use a sticky letter, you don't need "the." So you have frombrother.

The letter Nun is not a Catholic nun--think of high noon or afternoon. So you can guess what letter it sounds like, right? The N.

A new exercise: Read the English as you listen to the Hebrew.

You will be glad to know that the Samexh is a straight-forward letter that sounds like our S. You don't see it too often. In this video, you will learn about the horse from Dr. Seuss.

In this activity, listen to the Samexh section of Psalm 119 and follow along the best you can. There is one word that you know. Many times, the second part of the couplet begins with the letter vav. These are in red to help you recognize them. In the second part of the video, you can see what each word means in Hebrew. Pause the video for each verse. Take you time.

This is a video like none other. We go back in time---back to the future. Are you ready?

You've been waiting for this letter, Aiyn! It is the first letter for the word Evreet. Aiyn is a peculiar kind of letter. It takes on different vowel sounds, like with Evreet. Take your time with this one.

The goal of this activity is to see what some Hebrew words mean in English.

This video shows you some cool words that use the Aiyn.

You have learned so many letters and words and sentences that you are now ready to read a very short story.

Learn about the letter Pey that begins the word pizza! Pey is just like the Caf: it has different shapes and sounds.

Get the feel of Hebrew sentences.

Learn how the Pey changes into a Fey.

Learn words that end with the Pey sofit (end Pey). It's going to have the Fey sound. You'll find out what the word for nose and anger have in common.

You have learned a lot on this unit; so take your time and review what you have learned. It may just stick like the sticky letters!

Learn about the letter Tsadi that starts the word Tsunami. This is a funny sort of letter for English-speaking people. But it's really not that hard if you have cats ;)

The Tsadi is probably a sound that you are not used to having at the beginning of a word. Listening to the Tsadi section of Psalm 119 will help you to "hear" that TS at the beginning of words.

Learn words that have the Tsadi end form or "Tsadi sofit". Yes, the Tsadi grows a tail when it is at the end of a word. Find out how the word rats will help you learn a new verb (finally).

This is the easiest letter to learn. The Koof (rhymes with goof which means "body" in Hebrew BTW) has the K sound. It's a big letter and has a tail that goes below the rest of the letters. One of the most important words that begin with the Koof is cafe (coffee in Hebrew).

The Koof is one of the easier letters to learn. Too bad it wasn't at the beginning of the alphabet!

By this time, you probably know this letter, Resh. It is a straight-forward letter. Just remember that it is not pronounced quite like the R in English. If you know French, use the French R. Again, remember that pronunciation is not taught but caught. Keep on listening to Hebrew and you'll eventually get it. Don't worry if you don't: you will still be understood.

The Resh sound is different than it is in English. Listen to the Resh sound at the beginning of each verse. The better you can "hear" it, the better you will be able to make the sound yourself at a later time.

The letter Sheen has two sounds: it can sound like the "sh" in sheep. But it can also sound like an "s" in sale where it is called the Seen. This video deals with the Sheen and the words beginning with the "sh" sound.

This letter can be used for words like Sarah and Israel. When it has the "s" sound, we call it a Seen.

By this time, you are probably familiar with the Tav. But there are some special words to learn.

The Tav is a simple letter to learn, so we've added a bonus: we show you how to make feminine words.

This is a recap/review of all the words you learned in Unit Five.

The best way to finish this course is with a story. Listen and read a story in Hebrew with all the words you have learned. (Don't worry; the English translation is there!)