הפרס על השולחן.

table

Breakdown of הפרס על השולחן.

• על: on
• פרס: prize; award

Questions & Answers about הפרס על השולחן.

Why is there no word for is in הפרס על השולחן?

In Hebrew, the verb to be is usually left out in the present tense when you are linking a subject to a description or location.

So Hebrew says, literally:

the prize on the table

but it means:

the prize is on the table

This is completely normal Hebrew.

If you wanted past or future, you would use forms of to be:

• הפרס היה על השולחן = The prize was on the table
• הפרס יהיה על השולחן = The prize will be on the table

What does the ה at the beginning of הפרס and השולחן mean?

The prefix ה־ means the.

So:

• פרס = prize
• הפרס = the prize
• שולחן = table
• השולחן = the table

Hebrew attaches the directly to the noun instead of writing it as a separate word.

Why does Hebrew use ה־ twice? Why not just mark the once?