הממשלה אישרה את התוכנית.

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

• ממשלה = government
• הממשלה = the government
• תוכנית = plan / program
• התוכנית = the plan / program

So the sentence has two definite nouns: the government and the plan.

את is the marker of a definite direct object.

It does not get translated into English as a separate word. Its job is grammatical: it tells you that the next definite noun is the thing receiving the action.

So in:

• הממשלה אישרה את התוכנית

את התוכנית means the plan is the direct object, the thing that was approved.

A very literal gloss would be:

• the-government approved [direct object marker] the-plan

In standard Hebrew, no—not when the direct object is definite.

Since התוכנית means the plan, it is definite, so את is required:

• הממשלה אישרה את התוכנית ✓

If the object were indefinite, את would usually not be used:

• הממשלה אישרה תוכנית = The government approved a plan

So a useful rule is:

• definite object → usually use את
• indefinite object → usually no את

Because the subject הממשלה is grammatically feminine singular, and in the past tense, Hebrew verbs agree with the subject in gender and number.

• אישר = he approved
• אישרה = she approved

Since ממשלה is a feminine singular noun, Hebrew uses the feminine singular past form:

• הממשלה אישרה

Even though government is not female in meaning, the noun is grammatically feminine.

Yes. This is a matter of grammatical gender, not biological sex.

In Hebrew, nouns are either masculine or feminine, and other words often have to agree with them. ממשלה is a feminine noun, so the verb appears in feminine singular form.

This is very common in many languages. English mostly does not do this, so it can feel unusual at first.

The dictionary form is the infinitive לאשר, meaning to approve / to confirm.

Some useful related forms:

• לאשר = to approve
• אישר = he approved
• אישרה = she/it approved
• מאשר = approving / approves (masculine singular present)
• מאשרת = approving / approves (feminine singular present)

The verb belongs to the pi'el pattern.

The root is א־ש־ר.

In this verb, that root carries the idea of approval or confirmation.

Hebrew words are often built from roots plus patterns, so recognizing the root can help you connect related words and forms.

There are two main clues:

1. The verb agrees with הממשלה

   • אישרה is feminine singular
   • הממשלה is feminine singular
   • So הממשלה is the subject

2. את marks the direct object

   • את התוכנית shows that התוכנית is the object

So:

• הממשלה = subject
• אישרה = verb
• את התוכנית = direct object

Yes. This sentence uses subject–verb–object order:

• הממשלה = subject
• אישרה = verb
• את התוכנית = object

This is very common in modern spoken Hebrew.

Hebrew can also use a verb-first order, especially in more formal, literary, or news-like styles:

• אישרה הממשלה את התוכנית

That means the same thing.

A common pronunciation guide is:

ha-mem-sha-LA ish-RA et ha-tokh-NIT

Notes:

• ח / כ without a dagesh is often pronounced like kh, similar to the sound in German Bach or Scottish loch
• Stress is usually on the last syllable here:
  • memshaLA
  • ishRA
  • tokhNIT

Both spellings are used.

• תוכנית = fuller modern spelling
• תכנית = shorter spelling, also accepted

They are the same word. In your sentence, התוכנית is the more common modern spelling in everyday writing.

It can mean both, depending on context.

Common meanings include:

• plan
• program
• scheme

So without context, הממשלה אישרה את התוכנית could refer to:

• a government plan
• a government program
• a policy scheme

The surrounding context tells you which English word fits best.