The suffix ־ִי turns a noun or other base into a relational adjective: כלכלה “economy” becomes כלכלי “economic,” and חברה “society” becomes חברתי “social.” The idea is simple—“connected with X”—but the stem underneath may change, and the written plural contains a yod sequence that learners routinely shorten by mistake.
הפגישה השבועית עברה ליום חמישי בגלל החג.
hapgishá hashvu'ít avrá leyóm khamishí biglál hakhág
The weekly meeting was moved to Thursday because of the holiday.
זה עניין אישי, אני מעדיף לא לדבר עליו בעבודה.
ze inyán ishí, aní ma'adíf lo ledabér aláv ba'avodá
It's a personal matter; I'd rather not discuss it at work. (m. speaker)
A broad working set
־ִי does not always mean English -al or -ic. Depending on the base, English may use local, personal, annual, or an “every…” expression. Learn the Hebrew relationship first and choose the English translation from context.
| Base | Derived adjective | Typical meaning |
|---|---|---|
| יִשְׂרָאֵל yisra'él | יִשְׂרְאֵלִי yisre'elí | Israeli |
| מָקוֹם makóm | מְקוֹמִי mekomí | local |
| אִישׁ ish | אִישִׁי ishí | personal |
| כַּלְכָּלָה kalkalá | כַּלְכָּלִי kalkalí | economic, financial |
| חֶבְרָה khevrá | חֶבְרָתִי khevratí | social |
| טֶבַע téva | טִבְעִי tiv'í | natural |
| אֱמֶת emét | אֲמִיתִּי amití | real, genuine |
| יוֹם yom | יוֹמִי yomí | daily |
| שָׁבוּעַ shavúa | שְׁבוּעִי shvu'í | weekly |
| שָׁנָה shaná | שְׁנָתִי shnatí | annual |
This suffix is highly productive, especially in technical, public, and academic vocabulary: משפטי “legal,” ציבורי “public,” סביבתי “environmental,” דיגיטלי “digital.” Productivity helps you decode unfamiliar words, but it does not guarantee that every imaginable base-plus-suffix combination is established.
הדוח השנתי יפורסם באתר בתחילת ינואר.
hadúakh hashnatí yefursám ba'atár bitkhilát yanu'ár
The annual report will be published on the website at the beginning of January. (formal/professional)
הטעם טבעי לגמרי; אין במוצר צבעי מאכל.
hatá'am tiv'í legamréi; ein bamutsár tsiv'éi ma'akhál
The flavor is completely natural; the product contains no food coloring.
The four forms and the two-yod masculine plural
Once formed, the adjective takes the regular gender-and-number slots, but with its own endings. Here is מקומי in full:
| Gender and number | Pointed | Written | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| masculine singular | מְקוֹמִי | מקומי | mekomí |
| feminine singular | מְקוֹמִית | מקומית | mekomít |
| masculine plural | מְקוֹמִיִּים | מקומיים | mekomiyím |
| feminine plural | מְקוֹמִיּוֹת | מקומיות | mekomiyót |
Both plurals contain a real /y/ between the suffix vowel and the plural vowel: mekom-i-yim, mekom-i-yot. Their ktiv-male spellings must nevertheless be learned as two different endings. The masculine plural has the conspicuous two-yod sequence ־יים—מקומיים, טבעיים, חברתיים—whereas the feminine plural is ־יות: מקומיות, טבעיות, חברתיות.
אנחנו מעדיפים לקנות מוצרים מקומיים כשאפשר.
anákhnu ma'adifím liknót mutsarím mekomiyím kshe'efshár
We prefer to buy local products when possible.
הסיבות העיקריות הן כלכליות, לא פוליטיות.
hasibót ha'ikariyót hen kalkaliyót, lo politiyót
The main reasons are economic, not political.
When the base changes
The suffix attaches to a stem, not always to the dictionary form. A final ־ָה disappears. Sometimes that simply exposes the preceding stem, as in כלכלה kalkalá, which produces כלכלי kalkalí. In a large class, the older feminine ת reappears—the same ת visible in a construct form.
| Base noun | Useful stem clue | ־ִי adjective |
|---|---|---|
| כַּלְכָּלָה kalkalá | drop ־ָה | כַּלְכָּלִי kalkalí |
| מִשְׁפָּחָה mishpakhá | construct מִשְׁפַּחַת־ reveals ת | מִשְׁפַּחְתִּי mishpakhtí |
| שָׁנָה shaná | construct שְׁנַת־ reveals ת | שְׁנָתִי shnatí |
| חֶבְרָה khevrá | construct חֶבְרַת־ reveals ת | חֶבְרָתִי khevratí |
| תַּרְבּוּת tarbút | the ת is already present | תַּרְבּוּתִי tarbutí |
| אֱמֶת emét | stored vowel change | אֲמִיתִּי amití |
The construct clue is powerful, but it is not an automatic algorithm for every noun. אמת emét produces אמיתי amití with different vowels, and ראשון rishón produces ראשוני rishoní with the shifted meaning “initial/primary.” There is honest lexical learning here.
האירוע המשפחתי נדחה כי שני האחים בחו״ל.
ha'eirúa hamishpakhtí nidkhá ki shnei ha'akhím bekhul
The family event was postponed because both brothers are abroad.
זה הבדל תרבותי אמיתי, לא רק עניין של טעם.
ze hevdél tarbutí amití, lo rak inyán shel tá'am
It's a genuine cultural difference, not merely a matter of taste.
־ִי completes prefix compounds
Many bound-prefix compounds end in a ־ִי adjective. The prefix narrows the relation and the suffix makes the whole expression adjectival: בין־ + לאום + ־י gives בין־לאומי “international”; דו־ + לשון + ־י gives דו־לשוני “bilingual”; תת־ + קרקע + ־י gives תת־קרקעי “underground.”
The adjective ending remains the part that inflects: כנס בין־לאומי, חברה בין־לאומית, כנסים בין־לאומיים. The maqaf belongs between the bound prefix and its base; spelling variants occur in current writing, but the morphology remains the same. The prefix inventory and its spelling are covered on prefixes.
הם מחפשים בית ספר דו־לשוני לילדים.
hem mekhapésim bet séfer du-leshoní layeladím
They're looking for a bilingual school for the children.
החניונים התת־קרקעיים נסגרים בחצות.
hakhenyoním hatat-karka'iyím nisgarím bakhatsót
The underground car parks close at midnight.
Common Mistakes
1. Writing the masculine plural with one yod. The masculine adjectival ending is ־יים in ktiv male; the feminine plural remains ־יות.
❌ אלה עסקים מקומים קטנים
Incorrect as the plural of מקומי—write מקומיים with two yods.
✅ אלה עסקים מקומיים קטנים שמעסיקים תושבים מהאזור.
éle asakím mekomiyím ktaním shema'asikím toshavím meha'ezór
These are small local businesses that employ residents from the area.
2. Dropping the restored ת. משפחה does not produce משפחי; its construct stem reveals משפחתי.
❌ קבענו מפגש משפחי לסוף השבוע
Incorrect—‘family gathering’ requires משפחתי, with the restored ת.
✅ קבענו מפגש משפחתי לסוף השבוע אצל ההורים.
kavánu mifgásh mishpakhtí lesóf hashavúa étsel hahorím
We arranged a family get-together at our parents' place for the weekend.
3. Confusing “second” with “annual.” שנייה and שנתית are different derivations.
❌ תוכנית שנייה
an annual plan
Incorrect for that meaning—תוכנית שנייה is ‘a second plan’; ‘an annual plan’ is תוכנית שנתית.
✅ התוכנית השנתית כוללת ארבעה מפגשי הדרכה.
hatokhnít hashnatít kolélet arba'á mifgshéi hadrakhá
The annual program includes four training sessions.
4. Leaving a prefix compound nominal. The adjective needs the ־ִי ending.
❌ החברה פתחה סניף בין־לאום חדש
Incorrect—‘international’ is the adjective בין־לאומי, not the noun compound בין־לאום.
✅ החברה פתחה מרכז בין־לאומי חדש להכשרת עובדים.
hakhevrá patkhá merkáz bein-le'umí khadásh lehakhsharát ovdím
The company opened a new international employee-training center.
Key Takeaways
- ־ִי forms productive relational adjectives: מקום makóm gives מקומי mekomí; כלכלה kalkalá gives כלכלי kalkalí; תרבות tarbút gives תרבותי tarbutí.
- Its four endings are ־ִי, ־ִית, ־ִיִּים, and ־ִיּוֹת; ktiv male writes the masculine plural with two yods (מקומיים) but the feminine with one (מקומיות).
- A final ־ָה drops, and an underlying ת often returns: משפחה mishpakhá gives משפחתי mishpakhtí; שנה shaná gives שנתי shnatí; חברה khevrá gives חברתי khevratí.
- Some stems still require lexical learning: אמת emét gives אמיתי amití, while ראשון rishón gives ראשוני rishoní.
- The suffix can close an entire compound: בין־לאומי, דו־לשוני, תת־קרקעי.
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Start learning Hebrew →Related Topics
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