החנות ברחוב גדול.

The store is on a big street.

Breakdown of החנות ברחוב גדול.

• גדול: big
• חנות: store
• ב: on
• רחוב: street

Questions & Answers about החנות ברחוב גדול.

Why is there no word for is in this sentence?

In Hebrew, the verb to be is usually left out in the present tense. So a sentence like החנות ברחוב גדול can mean The store is on a big street even though there is no separate word for is.

If you wanted past or future, Hebrew would normally use forms of להיות (to be).

What does ברחוב break down into?

ברחוב is made of:

• ב־ = in / on / at
• רחוב = street

So ברחוב means something like in/on a street or in/on the street, depending on context.

Why does Hebrew use ב־ here if English says on a street?

Hebrew ב־ covers several location meanings that English splits into in, on, and at. With streets, Hebrew commonly uses ב־, while English usually says on.

So even though the Hebrew preposition is the same one often translated as in, the natural English translation here is on.

Why is גדול after רחוב instead of before it?

Because in Hebrew, adjectives usually come after the noun they describe.

So:

• רחוב גדול = a big street
• literally: street big

This is normal Hebrew word order.

Why is it גדול and not גדולה?

Because גדול describes רחוב, not החנות.

• רחוב is masculine singular
• גדול is the masculine singular form of big

But:

• חנות is feminine singular
• so if you wanted to say The store is big, you would say החנות גדולה

How do we know גדול describes רחוב and not החנות?

There are two main clues:

1. Position: in Hebrew, an adjective usually comes right after the noun it modifies, so רחוב גדול naturally means a big street.
2. Agreement: גדול is masculine singular, which matches רחוב. It does not match החנות, which is feminine.

So the grammar tells you that גדול belongs with רחוב.

Why doesn't רחוב have ה on it?

Because the phrase is indefinite: a big street, not the big street.

In Hebrew, adjectives match the noun not only in gender and number, but also in definiteness.

So:

• רחוב גדול = a big street
• הרחוב הגדול = the big street

If the sentence meant on the big street, you would write ברחוב הגדול.

Can ברחוב mean both on a street and on the street?

Yes. In normal unpointed Hebrew writing, ברחוב can represent both:

• בְּרחוב = on a street
• בָּרחוב = on the street

They are written the same way without vowel marks.

In this sentence, the next word גדול helps you understand it as a big street, because if it were the big street, you would expect הגדול.