Streetwise Hebrew

Asking for the bill is one of the most important things to learn in any language. But “heshbon” is about much more than just settling the account.

The Hebrew word סיפור (sipur) means a story. Though in certain situations סיפור could also mean a matter, a thing, or a mess.

The root ס.פ.ר acts a bit funny in some of its verb formats. No need to worry because on this episode Guy explains it all.

Listen to the All-Hebrew Version of this Episode

https://tlv1.fm/happy6

New Words and Expressions:

Ze haya sipur shel horef - It was a winter (love) story - זה היה סיפור של חורף

Sipur ahava - Love story - סיפור אהבה

Haya li sipur ito/ita - I had a (love) story with him/her - היה לי סיפור איתו/איתה

Eize sipur achshav - What a mess - איזה סיפור עכשיו

Festival mesaprei sipurim - Storytelling festival - פסטיבל מספרי סיפורים

Lesaper sipur - To tell a story - לספר סיפור

Saper ma nishma, saper eich haya - Tell me how you're doing, tell me how it went - ספר מה נשמע, ספר איך היה

Saper, sapri, sapru - Tell (Imp., m., f., pl.) - ספר, ספרי, ספרו

Al tesaper la - Don't (m.) tell her - אל תספר לה

Al tesapri lo - Don't (f.) tell him - אל תספרי לו

Al tesapru lahem - Don't tell them - אל תספרו להם

Ma ata mesaper / ma at mesaperet - What are you telling, what do you have to say, what's new? - מה אתה מספר/מה את מספרת

Ma hu m'saper? - What's new with him? - ?מה הוא מספר

Haya li sipur im X - I had a problem with X - היה לי סיפור עם מישהו/משהו

Haya li sipur im hevrat hashmal - I had an issue with the electricity company - היה לי סיפור עם חברת חשמל

Haya li eize sipur ba-avoda - I had some kind of an issue at work - היה לי איזה סיפור בעבודה

Sipurim, sipurim, sipurim - They always got stories… - סיפורים, סיפורים, סיפורים

Ha-sipur supar - The story was told - הסיפור סופר

Mesupar - Told - מסופר

Mesupar she… - It is told that - ...מסופר ש

Mesupar al rabbi X, she… - It is said that rabbi X... - ...מסופר על רבי איקס ש

Lo ye'uman ki yesupar - It's unbelievable - לא יאומן כי יסופר

Tisporet - Haircut - תספורת

Ani tsarich/tsricha lehistaper - I need to get a haircut - אני צריך/צריכה להסתפר

Histaparta? Histapart? - Did you get a haircut? - ?הסתפרת

Lispor - To count - לספור

Sfira - Counting - ספירה

Nispar - It was counted - נספר

Playlist and Clips:

Nataly Peretz - Ata Lo Amin

Miki Gavrielov & Smadar Vimzer (lyrics)

Festival mesaprei sipurim

Yossi Alfi

Arik Einstein - Kama Tov She-bata Ha-baita (lyrics)

Mesupar al...

Shmulik Kraus - Sapri Li (lyrics)

Hebrew provides plenty of ways to wish someone well, and they all depend on the severity of the illness. So what should we say to someone with a cold? How about the flu? Pneumonia?

This winter, Guy provides a linguistic toolkit for all you well-wishers to use in almost any circumstance.

Listen to the All-Hebrew Version of this Episode

https://tlv1.fm/happy6

Bassa ep. 108

Tihye Bari ep. 3

Polish Mother ep. 4

New Words and Expressions:

Hachlaka al ha-kerach - Ice skating - החלקה על הקרח

Paam rishona ba-chayim - For the first time in my life - פעם ראשונה בחיים

Tihye bari / tihyi bri'a - May you be healthy - תהיה בריא / תהיי בריאה

"Refu'a shlema" -Full recovery - רפואה שלמה

Hachlama mehira - Speedy recovery - החלמה מהירה

Lehachlim - To recover - להחלים

Nu, hichlamta? Hivreta? - So, did you recover? (m.) - נו, החלמת? הבראת?

Hichlamt, hivret - Did you recover? (f.) - החלמת? הבראת?

Ani machlim karega - I recover these days - אני מחלים כרגע

Hu machlim mi-shapa'at - He's recovering from the flu - הוא מחלים משפעת

Zo hachlama aruka - It's a long recovery - זו החלמה מהירה

Targish / Targishi / Targishu tov - Feel well (imp.) - תרגיש/תרגישי/תרגישו טוב

Wai, targish tov, yo'w - Oh no, be well, wow - וואי, תרגיש טוב, יואו

She-ya'avor maher - May it pass quickly - שיעבור מהר

She-ya'avor maher, ma ani agid lecha - May it pass quickly, what can I tell you - שיעבור מהר, מה אני אגיד לך

Shmor al atsmecha / Tishmeri al atsmech / Tishmeru al atsmechem - Take good care of yourself/yourselves - שמור על עצמך / תשמרי על עצמך / תשמרו על עצמכם

"Rak bri'ut" - Wishing you nothing but health - רק בריאות!

Ha-ikar ha-bri'ut - The most important thing is health - העיקר הבריאות

Playlist and Clips:

Yaakov Shwekey & Baruch Levin - Refu'ah

Hachlama Mehira

Arik Einstein & Shalom Hanoch - Shmor Al Atsmecha (lyrics)

Harel Skaat & Yehuda Poliker - Gibor (lyrics)

Get the special course and at a special price by visiting https://tlv1.fm/happy6

The podcast recently celebrated its 6th birthday. And as part of our celebrations, Guy asked Ruben Adery to put together a special introductory online course for Streetwise Hebrew listeners.

The course goes through the most mispronounced sounds in Hebrew. It combines explanatory videos with longer practice videos and provides downloadable word-lists that guide your pronunciation practice.

The online course would have been regularly priced at $147US but listeners can access it for $66 as part of our podcast's 6th birthday celebrations. Get it at https://tlv1.fm/happy6

The course helps your spoken Hebrew sound more like Israeli Hebrew. And we truly hope that the special offer will provide the course at a price that will allow more people to access it.

The Hebrew word פיצוץ (pitsuts) means explosion but is also used in the same fashion as the English phrase, "a blast," meaning incredible or highly entertaining. And did you know that our neighborhood corner store is called a פיצוצייה (pitsutsiya)?

Today, Guy covers the root פ.צ.צ, which is the foundation for many slang words and phrases to say things like, "I'm loaded with money" or "this cafe is packed."

Listen to the All-Hebrew Version of this Episode

New Words and Expressions:

Latet la-rosh lanu'ach me-ha-pitutsim - To let the head rest from the explosions - לתת לראש לנוח מהפיצוצים

Ptsatsa - Bomb - פצצה

Ptsatsa metakteket - A ticking time bomb - פצצה מתקתקת

Yerushalayim, ir shava pitsuts - Jerusalem, a city worth an explosion - ירושלים, עיר שווה פיצוץ

Eich haya ha-seret? Pitsuts - How was the movie? A blast - איך היה הסרט? פיצוץ

Mehir pitsuts - A helluva price - מחיר פיצוץ

Haya beneihem pitsuts - They had a fall out - היה ביניהם פיצוץ

Pitsutsiya - Corner shop - פיצוצייה

Lefotsets - To blow something up - לפוצץ

Ha-va'ad potsets et ha-pgisha - The union stopped the meeting abruptly - הוועד פוצץ את הפגישה

Hu potsets et ha-sipur - He revealed the story - הוא פוצץ את הסיפור

Halas benadam, potsatsta li ta'mo-ach - Stop it, man, you blew up my brain - ח'אלס בנאדם, פוצצת לי ת'מוח

Lefotsets et ha-iska - To call off a business agreement at the last moment - לפוצץ את העסקה

Lefotsets mishehu be-makot - To beat the hell out of someone - לפוצץ מישהו במכות

Mefutsats be-kesef - Loaded with money - מפוצץ בכסף

Mefutsats be-anashim - Packed with people - מפוצץ באנשים

Halachti la-cafe aval haya mefutsats be-anashim az chazarti habaita - I went to the cafe but it was packed, so I went back home - הלכתי לקפה אבל היה מפוצץ באנשים אז חזרתי הביתה

Ha-telefon sheli mefutsats be-hoda'ot - My cellphone is full of messages - הטלפון שלי מפוצץ בהודעות

Hu pit'om hitpotsets alai - He suddenly exploded on me - הוא פתאום התפוצץ עליי

Lehaftsits - To bombard - להפציץ

Bo'na ata maftsits - Dude, you're "bombarding" - בוא'נה אתה מפציץ

Playlist and Clips:

Arik Einstein - Pesek Zman (lyrics)

Ha-hatser ha-achorit - Ptsatsa Metakteket (lyrics)

Ha-dag nachash - Hinne Ani Ba (lyrics)

Pitsutsiya

Subliminal - Toro (lyrics)

"Inyan" - matter, business, thing - is a word that's had an amazing career in Hebrew. In this episode Guy explains some useful slang expressions using "inyan" and "inyanim," and then delves into the verbs derived from this four letter root.

Someone cut you in line - the chutzpah! What's the Israeli strategy to call them out?

"Keta" means "part," "section," "thing" or "gag," but it also appears in lots of really handy Hebrew slang expressions.

What does an Israeli judo champion mean when she says, האש כבתה לגמרי ("ha-esh kavta legamrei")? And how do you tell a technician that your laptop keeps dying on you?

In Hebrew, לכבות ("lechabot") means to extinguish and to turn off. So please turn off all cell phones and listen as Guy explains all things כ.ב.ה.

Listen to the All-Hebrew Version of this Episode

New Words and Expressions:

Lechabot et ha-esh - To extinguish the fire, to put out the flames - לכבות את האש

"Panas ha-rchov kiba atsmo lada'at" - "The street light turned itself off" - "פנס הרחוב כיבה עצמו לדעת"

Ibed atmo lad'aat - Committed suicide - איבד עצמו לדעת

Ani mevakesh lechabot telefonim - I ask you to turn off your cellphones - אני מבקש לכבות טלפונים

Leha'avir telefonim le-shaket - Switch to silent - להעביר טלפונים לשקט

Kibit ta'telefon? Kibita ta-telefon? - Did you turn off your cellphone? - ?כיבית ת'טלפון

Techabe ta-telefon - Turn off your cellphone - תכבה ת'טלפון

Mi kiba et ha-mazgan? - Who turned off the air conditioning? - ?מי כיבה את המזגן

Mi shachach lechabot et ha-mazgan? - Who forgot to turn off the air conditioning? - ?מי שכח לכבות את המזגן

Kibui orot - Lights out - כיבוי אורות

Mechabei esh - Fire department - מכבי אש

Kaba'ut ve-hatsala le-israel - Fire fighting and rescuing for Israel - כבאות והצלה לישראל

Titkasher/Titkashri le-mechabei-esh - Call the fire dept. - תתקשר/תתקשרי למכבי אש

Ha-esh kavta - The fire went out - האש כבתה

"Ha-esh kavta legamrei" - The fire within me, my drive, completely stopped burning - האש כבתה לגמרי

Kavu ha-orot - The lights went out - כבו האורות

Kabai, kaba'im - Fire fighter - כבאי, כבאים

Lohamei esh - Fire fighters - לוחמי אש

"Elef Kaba'im lo yatslichu lechabot oti" - 1,000 fire fighters, won't put out the fire I have (towards you) - אלף כבאים לא יצליחו לכבות אותי

Kaba'it - Fire truck - כבאית

"Sho'alim oti: eich nachon lehar'ot et ha-bayit, ha-im kshe-ha-orot kvuyim, o kshe-ha-orot dolkim?" - People ask me: what's the right way to show off the house, when the lights are out, or when they are on?" - שואלים אותי: איך נכון להראות את הבית, האם כשהאורות כבויים, או כשהאורות דולקים?

Kavui - Extinguished, no longer burning (also depressed) - כבוי

Mechube - It's off, extinguished - מכובה

Nichba - Keeps going out all the time - נכבה

Ha-machshev nichba li kol hazman - My computer dies on me all the time - המחשב נכבה לי כל הזמן

Ani madlik, ve-ze nichba - I turn it on and it goes out - אני מדליק, וזה נכבה

Mataf kibui esh - Fire extinguisher - מטף

Kibui Srefot - "Putting out fires" - כיבוי שריפות

Playlist and Clips:

Tamouz - Panas Ha-rchov (lyrics)

Ha-kol Over Habibi - Ha-hagiga Nigmeret (lyrics)

Mechabei esh

Ha-esh kavta legamrei

Yoni Rechter - Kavu Ha-orot (lyrics)

Doda - Elef Kaba'im (lyrics)

Orot dlukim o kvuyim?

Mataf

Ilanit - Kvar Aharei Hatsot (lyrics)

How do you say "buzz off" or "beat it" in Hebrew? And how might it relate to paying off your mortgage? Guy explains.

Listen to the All-Hebrew Version of this Episode

New Words and Expressions:

Lesalek - To remove, get rid of, expel - לסלק

Lesalek et kol ha-regashot ha-meyutarim - To remove all unnecessary feelings - לסלק את כל הרגשות המיותרים

Lesalek metachim - To get rid of tension - לסלק מתחים

Lesalek chatulim - To kick cats out - לסלק חתולים

Siluk - Removing, clearing - סילוק

Siluk re'alim me-ha-guf - Clearing toxins from the body - סילוק רעלים מהגוף

Siluk ayin ha-ra - Removing the evil eye - סילוק עין הרע

Siluk yonim - Removing pigeons - סילוק יונים

Siluk ptsatsot - Removing bombs - סילוק פצצות

Siluk mashkanta - Mortgage clearing - סילוק משכנתא

Hadas mesuleket ad le-hoda'a hadasha - Hadas is dismissed from school until further notice - הדס מסולקת עד להודעה חדשה

Mi she-silku oto - The one who was kicked out - מי שסילקו אותו

Mesulak - Expelled - מסולק

Hem mesalkim oto, hu mesulak - They kick him out, he is expelled - הם מסלקים אותו, הוא מסולק

Ha-chov sulak - The debt was cleared - החוב סולק

Lehistalek - To leave, to go away - להסתלק

Tistalek mi-po, 'Stalek mi-po - Buzz off, beat it - תסתלק מפה, 'סתלק מפה

'Stalek mi-po o she-ani mitkasher la-mishtara - Beat it or I'll call the police - סתלק מפה או שאני מתקשר למשטרה

Slik, slikim - Hidden storage place for weapons that were used illegally under British rule - סליק, סליקים

Lehaslik - To stash - להסליק

Haslaka - Stashing - הסלקה

Hu hislik et ha-samim be-hafisat shokolad - He stashed the drugs in a chocolate bar - הוא הסליק את הסמים בחפיסת שוקולד

Histalek min ha-olam - Died - הסתלק מן העולם

Selek - Beetroot - סלק

Playlist and Clips:

Eich lesalek metachim

Siluk re'alim

Mesuleket ad le-hoda'a hadasha

Gali Atari - Od Yom (lyrics)

Slik