I promised you some helpful verbs last time, so here you go:
To See leerot לראות
To Hear lishmoa לשמוע
To Feel l’hargish להרגיש (to Touch is l’gaat לגעת)
To Breathe linshom לנשום
To Taste lit’om לטעום
To Think lakhshov לחשוב
To buy leeknotלקנות
Here’s how you can use those verbs:
I want to buy a bus ticket = Ani rotzeh (males) / rotza (females) leeknot cartees otoboos.
אני רוצה לקנות כרטיס אוטובוס
I want to buy an apartment = Ani rotzeh (males) / rotza (females) leeknot deera
אני רוצה לקנות דירה
I want to rent an apartment = Ani rotzeh (males) / rotza (females) leeskor deera
אני רוצה לשכור דירה
I want to travel in a taxi. Ani rotzeh (males) / rotza (females) linsoa b’moneet.
I want to reach Yafo Street. Ani rotzeh (males) / rotza (females) Rekhov Yafo.
Learn Hebrew Verbs http://www.hebrew-verbs.co.il
Learn Hebrew verbs and nouns (with cultural tips, too!) Dictionary.co.il
Check out http://www.j.co.il/, a free, on-line, educational resource containing 300 Hebrew verbs conjugated in all tenses (past, present, future, imperative). The site menu provides selection by one tense or all tenses; gender or both genders; singular and/or plural. For your convenience, you can choose a Hebrew or English menu to navigate the site.
Site with games to develop Hebrew vocabulary skills: memory games with pictures and the words written in Hebrew and in English. If you are working on Hebrew vocabulary, the computer says the name out loud in Hebrew, (and vice versa). There are 15 different categories of words (animals, foods, clothing, etc.) and different levels of difficulty of the games. The site is www.j.co.il and click on language match games. While you are on this site, you will find other interesting games for kids on Jewish topics, mostly in English, but some in Hebrew as well (word search, hangman).
As you become acclimated to life in Israel, you might experience a “Honeymoon Effect” in which you simply love everything around you 24/7, including the kerflooey experiences.
Kerflooey happens. In every country. Israeli has a unique flavor of kerflooey. Do nice things for yourself to recover from the effects.
Then again, you might simply feel euphoric from time to time.
Either way, loving the Holy Land is not unlike loving a person.
Here’s a terrific way to consider the phenom you’re experiencing:
“The job is not to fall in love, it’s to stand in love.” – Gedale Fenster
Ready to rock, now? LIVE in Israel with a full heart.
Get out, a bit. Here’s some helpful language to help you do that:
Travel in a vehicle = linsoa לנסוע
To hike, that is, to travel on foot, = l’tayel לטייל
DO NOT tell a bus or taxi driver that you want to lalekhet, ללכת , to walk anywhere. Many English-speaking immigrants mistake the word to mean “to go.” Sorry. That’s not a reality. For vehicular travel, use the word linsoa לנסוע
One of the fun things in Israel is when a soldier reaches over to help you with your bags as you board a bus or taxi. If it’s a female soldier, say “thanks” with “Todah chayelet.”
If a male soldier helped you out, say ““Todah chayal.”
By the way, if you’re considering the purchase of a car and functioning in Israeli traffic (be super-careful out there – even when you walk across the street! Too many drivers are not careful!), the following word list might prove helpful to you:
AUTOMOTIVE
Windshield Wiper = MAGEV or VICHER
Car pedals to GO, STOP, or (in some cars) to change gears (HILUCHIM) are. In Hebrew DAVSHA, D’VASHATO, DAVSHOT HA’M’CHONIT
Driver – a female driver is a Naheget נהגת and a male driver is a נהג nahag
In automotive English, the CLUTCH is the device that engages and disengages the car motor from the gears. Israelis call it the KLOTCH. But that’s slang Hebrew. The “real” word is MATZMEID
Clove Hitch – ENED MOT
TAILPIPE or EXHAUST PIPE in “street Hebrew” is EGZOZ. In “real” Hebrew, it’s TZINOR PLITA.
Car jack – you know, for when you need to change a tire. The Hebrew word is MAG-BEI-AH
Pick-up truck in “slang Hebrew” TENDER In “correct” Hebrew MIT-ANIT
carburetor – M’A’YED
distributor – MAFLEG
spark plug – MATZAT
piston (cylinder) – BUCHNA
Bumps across a road that make a speedy car vibrate uncomfortably: Jiggle bars or TALT’LINIM
Speed trap is MICHMONET
GENERATOR, as in the machine used to change mechanical energy into electrical energy. Some Israelis pronounce it as GENERATOR, with a hard G (as in get) and a short A as in “ah.” The slang PAK-PAK is sometimes used, imitating the sound that a gasoline-generator makes at start-up. The proper word is M’CHOLEL
GREASE is DOHAN. Using it prevents corrosion, SHI-TUCH
kivun front wheel alignment
WHEW that’s a lot for today. NO I do not expect you to memorize all those words at once.
What I do expect is that you’ll encounter them many times over as you pursue your Israeli life. Repetition is a teacher.
The more you experience the vocabulary, the spelling and the sound of the words you need to know, the more likely you’ll recall them at will. Think about it. How did you learn the songs you heard on radio, on albums or other recordings? Your repeated exposure to the lyrics made memories (and increased your happiness)!
You know what else works? Writing things down. Keep a notebook handy in your purse or briefcase, even your tik gav (backpack). Each time you experience a word you want to remember, jot it down in the notebook. You can even title specific pages of a new notebook, and set up categories: Family, Food, Travel, etc, and fill in the blanks as you learn new words. Review the notebook when you want to, and find out what a superb teacher you are!
What else do you want to find out about Israeli life? What information do you want for a klita n’ima (a pleasant settling in/absorption)?
L’hitraot, See you soon! להיתראות
Yocheved
