המערכת לא יכולה לפעול בלי חשמל.

ה- is the Hebrew definite article, equivalent to the in English.

So:

• מערכת = system
• המערכת = the system

In this sentence, the speaker is talking about a specific system, so Hebrew uses ה-.

Pronunciation:

• המערכת = ha-ma'arekhet

In Hebrew, every noun has a grammatical gender, even inanimate things.

מערכת is a feminine singular noun, so words that agree with it also have to be feminine singular.

That is why Hebrew says:

• המערכת ... יכולה = the system ... can / is able to

Compare:

• המערכת יכולה = feminine singular
• המחשב יכול = masculine singular, because מחשב is masculine

So this is about grammar, not biological sex.

יכולה means can, is able to, or is capable of, agreeing with a feminine singular subject.

Its basic form is related to יכול = able / can.

In this sentence:

• לא יכולה לפעול = cannot operate / is not able to operate

Literally, it is closer to:

• the system is not able to operate

But in natural English, cannot operate is the best translation.

In Hebrew, לא is the standard word for not. It usually comes before the verb or verb-like element it negates.

So:

• לא יכולה = cannot / is not able to

Hebrew does not usually form can’t as one single word the way English does. Instead, it simply says not able.

So the structure is:

• המערכת = the system
• לא יכולה = cannot
• לפעול = operate

After יכול / יכולה, Hebrew normally uses an infinitive to say what someone or something can do.

Here:

• לפעול = to operate / to function

So:

• יכולה לפעול = can operate

This is similar to English:

• can operate
• is able to operate

The ל- at the beginning of לפעול is the normal marker for the infinitive, often like English to.

לפעול means to operate, to function, or to act.

In this sentence, it means that the system can function or operate.

It is similar to לעבוד, which often means to work. But there is a nuance:

• המערכת לא יכולה לפעול = the system cannot operate/function
• המערכת לא עובדת = the system is not working

Both can fit some contexts, but לפעול sounds especially good for a system, mechanism, or process functioning properly.

So לפעול is a very natural choice here.

בלי means without.

So:

• בלי חשמל = without electricity

It is a very common everyday word.

A more formal alternative is ללא, which also means without:

• המערכת לא יכולה לפעול ללא חשמל

That version is correct too, but בלי sounds more conversational and common in speech.

Here חשמל means electricity, which is being used as a general substance or resource, not a specific item.

So Hebrew says:

• בלי חשמל = without electricity

This is like English, where we usually do not say without the electricity unless we mean a specific power supply in a specific context.

If you said בלי החשמל, it would sound more like:

• without the electricity
• without that power supply

That is much more specific and less natural in this general sentence.

Yes. In many contexts, חשמל can mean electricity, electrical power, or just power in the practical sense.

So בלי חשמל could be understood as:

• without electricity
• without power

In this sentence, English might translate it either way depending on context:

• The system cannot operate without electricity.
• The system cannot operate without power.

Both are natural.

A common pronunciation is:

ha-ma'arekhet lo yekhola lif'ol bli chashmal

A few pronunciation notes:

• המערכת = ha-ma'arekhet
• לא = lo
• יכולה = yekhola or y'khola, depending on speaking style
• לפעול = lif'ol
• בלי = bli
• חשמל = chashmal

The main stresses are usually:

• ma'aREkhet
• yekhoLA
• lif'OL
• chashMAL

This word order is the most neutral and natural:

• המערכת לא יכולה לפעול בלי חשמל

Hebrew word order is somewhat flexible, but not every change sounds equally natural.

This sentence follows a very common pattern:

• subject + negation + modal + infinitive + complement

You might also hear a more formal version such as:

• המערכת אינה יכולה לפעול בלי חשמל

That means the same thing, but אינה is more formal than לא in this kind of sentence.

Hebrew usually expresses can / be able to with forms of יכול, and then negates them with לא.

So instead of one word like English can’t, Hebrew often builds the idea as:

• not able to

That is why:

• לא יכולה לפעול = cannot operate

This is one of the normal ways Hebrew expresses ability in the present tense.

No. This sentence is about ability, not permission or obligation.

• לא יכולה לפעול = cannot operate / is unable to operate

It does not mean:

• must not operate
• should not operate

If you wanted those meanings, Hebrew would use different wording, such as forms meaning must not, should not, or is forbidden to.

So this sentence clearly means the system lacks the ability to function without electricity.