אפילו אם הבד עדין, קראי קודם את התווית.

אפילו אם means even if.

In many everyday sentences, אפילו אם and גם אם can both be used to mean even if, and the difference is often small.

• אפילו אם הבד עדין... = Even if the fabric is delicate...
• גם אם הבד עדין... can also mean the same thing.

A learner should mainly recognize אפילו אם as a fixed expression introducing a condition that does not change the main instruction.

In present-tense Hebrew, the verb to be is usually omitted.

So:

• הבד עדין literally looks like the fabric delicate
• but it means the fabric is delicate

This is completely normal Hebrew grammar.

Compare:

• הילד עייף = the boy is tired
• המים קרים = the water is cold
• הבד עדין = the fabric is delicate

If you are an English speaker, this is one of the most important differences to get used to.

הבד means the fabric.

Hebrew often uses the definite article where English might use the, a, or a more general noun depending on context. Here, הבד refers to the fabric of the item you are dealing with, so the fabric sounds natural.

• בד = fabric / a fabric
• הבד = the fabric

In instructions like this, Hebrew often treats the item as specific and already understood from context.

Yes, עדין can be confusing because it looks like עדיין (still / yet), but here it is a completely different word.

In this sentence:

• עדין = delicate, gentle, fine

So:

• הבד עדין = the fabric is delicate

The word for still / yet is usually spelled עדיין.

So compare:

• הבד עדין = the fabric is delicate
• הבד עדיין רטוב = the fabric is still wet

Very different meanings.

Because בד is a masculine singular noun, and adjectives in Hebrew usually agree with the noun in gender and number.

So:

• בד = masculine singular
• עדין = masculine singular adjective

Other forms would be:

• עדינה = feminine singular
• עדינים = masculine plural
• עדינות = feminine plural

For example:

• חולצה עדינה = a delicate shirt
• בדים עדינים = delicate fabrics

קראי is the imperative form addressed to one female.

The base verb is לקרוא = to read.

Imperative forms:

• קרא! = read! (to one male)
• קראי! = read! (to one female)
• קראו! = read! (to more than one person, common modern plural form)

So this sentence is speaking directly to a woman or girl:

• קראי קודם את התווית. = Read the label first.

It is pronounced roughly kree-EE or kri-'i.

That final part can feel unusual to English speakers because of the letters involved:

• ק = k
• ר = r
• א here helps separate vowels
• י gives the final -i

So it is not a smooth one-syllable word like English cry. It has two vowel parts: kri-i.

Here קודם means first, before that, or beforehand.

So:

• קראי קודם את התווית = Read the label first

It tells you to do this action before anything else, such as washing, ironing, or drying.

Be aware that קודם can also mean earlier / previous in other contexts, but here it is an adverb meaning first.

This את is the direct object marker. It has no equivalent word in English.

Hebrew uses את before a definite direct object, usually one with ה־ (the), a name, or something otherwise definite.

So:

• את התווית = the direct object the label

Compare:

• קראי תווית = read a label
• קראי את התווית = read the label

Important: this את is not the word meaning you (feminine singular). It is a different word with a different job.

תווית means label or tag.

With the article:

• התווית = the label

It is pronounced roughly ha-ta-VEET or ha-ta-VIT, depending on accent and style, but the main stress is on the last syllable.

In the sentence:

• את התווית = the label as the object of read

This is the kind of label on clothing that gives washing or care instructions.

This is a very normal structure in Hebrew.

The sentence is:

• אפילו אם הבד עדין, קראי קודם את התווית.

Literally:

• Even if the fabric is delicate, read the label first.

Hebrew often puts the condition first and then the main clause, just like English can.

You could think of it as:

1. condition: אפילו אם הבד עדין
2. main instruction: קראי קודם את התווית

The comma helps separate these two parts.

Yes, but you would need to change the imperative form.

To a man:

• אפילו אם הבד עדין, קרא קודם את התווית.

To a woman:

• אפילו אם הבד עדין, קראי קודם את התווית.

Everything else stays the same.

It sounds natural and practical, especially in instructions about clothing care.

Words like these are common in washing and garment-care contexts:

• בד = fabric
• עדין = delicate
• תווית = label
• קודם = first

So this is the kind of Hebrew a learner might actually encounter on care instructions, in advice, or in customer-service writing.

Yes. Hebrew often uses the imperative in instructions, but there are other common ways too.

For example:

• כדאי לקרוא קודם את התווית. = It’s כדאי to read the label first / You should read the label first.
• רצוי לקרוא קודם את התווית. = It is advisable to read the label first.

But the original sentence uses a direct command:

• קראי קודם את התווית. = Read the label first.

That makes it short, clear, and instruction-like.