הספינה ליד החוף.

near

Breakdown of הספינה ליד החוף.

• חוף: beach
• ספינה: ship

Questions & Answers about הספינה ליד החוף.

Why is there no word for is in this sentence?

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

So הספינה ליד החוף literally looks like the ship near the shore, but it means The ship is near the shore.

This is very normal in Hebrew:

• הילד בבית = The boy is at home
• הספר על השולחן = The book is on the table

If you want past or future, Hebrew does use forms of to be:

• הספינה הייתה ליד החוף = The ship was near the shore
• הספינה תהיה ליד החוף = The ship will be near the shore

What does the ה at the beginning of הספינה and החוף mean?

The prefix ה־ is the Hebrew definite article, meaning the.

So:

• ספינה = a ship
• הספינה = the ship
• חוף = a shore / beach / coast
• החוף = the shore / the beach / the coast

In this sentence, both nouns are definite:

• הספינה = the ship
• החוף = the shore

What does ליד mean exactly?