החייט תפר את המכפלת מבלי שהתפר נפרם.

The tailor sewed the hem without the seam coming undone.

Breakdown of החייט תפר את המכפלת מבלי שהתפר נפרם.

• את: direct object marker
• חייט: tailor
• תפר: seam
• מכפלת: hem

Questions & Answers about החייט תפר את המכפלת מבלי שהתפר נפרם.

Why does תפר appear twice, and does it mean the same thing both times?

No. These are two different words that happen to be written the same way without vowel marks.

• תפר after החייט is a verb: he sewed.
• התפר later in the sentence is a noun: the seam or the stitch.

So in unpointed Hebrew, the same consonants can represent different words. Context tells you which one it is.

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How do I know that תפר in החייט תפר means he sewed?

Because of the sentence structure.

• החייט = the tailor
• Then comes תפר, which fits naturally as a past-tense verb: sewed
• Then את המכפלת gives the direct object: the hem

So the pattern is:

subject + verb + direct object
החייט תפר את המכפלת = The tailor sewed the hem

Also, in dictionary form the verb is usually לתפור = to sew.

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What does את do here?