הקמט נעלם מבלי שהבד התכווץ.

A reasonable pronunciation guide is:

ha-kemet ne'elam mibli sheha-bad hitkavets

A rough syllable breakdown:

ha-ke-met | ne-e-lam | mi-bli | she-ha-bad | hit-ka-vets

A few helpful notes:

• שהבד is made of ש־ + ה־ + בד
• In speech, that comes out as one unit: sheha-bad
• Hebrew spelling here has no vowels written, so learners usually have to know the pronunciation from context or a dictionary

Because ה־ is the Hebrew definite article, meaning the.

So:

• קמט = a wrinkle / wrinkle
• הקמט = the wrinkle
• בד = fabric / cloth
• הבד = the fabric

Unlike English, Hebrew attaches the directly to the noun as a prefix.

נעלם is the past tense, 3rd person masculine singular form of להיעלם, meaning to disappear.

So here it means:

• נעלם = disappeared / vanished

It matches הקמט, which is a masculine singular noun.

This verb belongs to the Nifal pattern, which often has meanings like passive, middle, or intransitive action. In this sentence, it describes something happening to the wrinkle: it disappeared.

מבלי means without.

So:

• מבלי שהבד התכווץ = without the fabric shrinking

A useful learner note: מבלי is a bit more formal or written in tone. In everyday speech, many speakers would more often say בלי.

So this sentence could also appear as:

הקמט נעלם בלי שהבד התכווץ

Same meaning, slightly less formal style.

Because after מבלי or בלי, Hebrew often introduces a full clause with ש־.

So:

• ש־ = that
• שהבד התכווץ = literally that the fabric shrank

Word-for-word, the structure is something like:

• without that the fabric shrank

But in natural English, you translate it as:

• without the fabric shrinking
• or without the fabric having shrunk

So the ש־ is there because Hebrew is using a full subordinate clause.

Because Hebrew does not use an English-style -ing form in this structure.

In English, you say:

• without shrinking
• without the fabric shrinking

In Hebrew, after מבלי ש־ / בלי ש־, you normally use a regular finite verb:

• מבלי שהבד התכווץ

So Hebrew expresses the idea with a normal clause, not a gerund.

That is why התכווץ is a standard past-tense verb form, not a special -ing form.

התכווץ is the past tense, 3rd person masculine singular form of להתכווץ, meaning to shrink, to contract, or sometimes to crumple up / draw in depending on context.

Here it means:

• the fabric shrank

It matches הבד, which is masculine singular.

This verb is in the Hitpael pattern, which often has reflexive, intransitive, or self-directed meanings. Here it is intransitive: the fabric shrank.

If you wanted to say that someone caused the fabric to shrink, Hebrew would typically use a different verb form.

Because each verb agrees with its own subject:

• הקמט נעלם
  הקמט is masculine singular, so נעלם is masculine singular

• הבד התכווץ
  הבד is masculine singular, so התכווץ is masculine singular

This is normal Hebrew agreement.

For comparison:

• הקמטים נעלמו = the wrinkles disappeared
• החולצה התכווצה = the shirt shrank

So the verb form changes depending on the gender and number of the subject.

Not always. בד can mean fabric, cloth, or material, depending on context.

In this sentence, fabric is a very natural translation because the sentence sounds like something about textiles, laundry, ironing, or garment care.

So:

• הבד = the fabric
• but in another context it could be the cloth or the material

Yes. In everyday spoken Hebrew, many people would say:

הקמט נעלם בלי שהבד התכווץ.

That is more conversational than מבלי.

So the difference is mostly style:

• מבלי = a bit more formal / written
• בלי = more common in everyday speech

Both are correct, and both mean the same thing here.