Questions & Answers about הוא סוגר את הדלת בלילה.
A word-by-word breakdown is:
- הוא = he
- סוגר = closes / is closing
- את = a marker that shows the next word is a definite direct object
- הדלת = the door
- בלילה = at night / during the night
So the structure is basically:
he + closes + [direct object marker] + the door + at night
את is used before a definite direct object in Hebrew.
Here, הדלת means the door, not just a door, so Hebrew puts את before it.
Important points:
- את usually is not translated into English.
- It is a grammar marker, not a separate meaning word here.
Compare:
- הוא סוגר את הדלת = He closes the door
- הוא סוגר דלת = He closes a door / He is closing a door
So את appears because the object is specific and definite.
Because הדלת means the door, while דלת means a door or just door in a general sense.
The prefix ה־ is the Hebrew definite article, equivalent to English the.
So:
- דלת = door / a door
- הדלת = the door
Since the sentence is talking about a specific door, הדלת is used.
סוגר is present tense, masculine singular.
In Hebrew, the present tense often covers both:
- simple present: he closes
- present progressive: he is closing
Context tells you which one is meant.
In this sentence, because of בלילה (at night), the most natural reading is usually a habitual one:
- He closes the door at night
But in the right context, it could also describe something currently happening during the night.
In this sentence, הוא helps make the subject clear.
A very important thing for English speakers to know is that Hebrew present-tense verb forms like סוגר show gender and number, but not person clearly enough on their own.
So סוגר by itself could mean:
- I close / I am closing (if the speaker is male)
- you close / you are closing (to one male)
- he closes / he is closing
Because of that, Hebrew often uses pronouns like הוא in the present tense to avoid ambiguity.
So:
- הוא סוגר = clearly he closes / he is closing
Because the subject is הוא, which is masculine singular.
Hebrew present-tense verbs agree with the subject in gender and number.
Here are the matching forms of this verb in the present tense:
- הוא סוגר = he closes
- היא סוגרת = she closes
- הם סוגרים = they (masculine/mixed) close
- הן סוגרות = they (feminine) close
So סוגר is the correct form for he.
בלילה means at night, during the night, or sometimes in the night, depending on context.
It is built from:
- ב־ = in / at
- לילה = night
As a natural English translation, at night is usually the best choice.
Also, it does not usually mean tonight.
If you want tonight, Hebrew usually uses הלילה.
So:
- בלילה = at night / during the night
- הלילה = tonight / the night
A simple pronunciation guide is:
hu so-GER et ha-DE-let ba-LAI-la
A few notes:
- הוא = hu
- סוגר = so-GER
- את = et
- הדלת = ha-DE-let
- בלילה = ba-LAI-la
The stress is usually on the last or next-to-last syllable as shown above.
The root is ס־ג־ר.
This root has the basic idea of closing, shutting, or sealing.
Some useful related forms are:
- לסגור = to close
- סוגר = closing / closes
- סגור = closed
- סגירה = closing
Learning the root helps you recognize related words more easily.
Yes. This is a very normal and natural word order.
The sentence is:
subject + verb + object + time expression
So:
- הוא = subject
- סוגר = verb
- את הדלת = object
- בלילה = time phrase
Hebrew can move things around for emphasis, for example:
- בלילה הוא סוגר את הדלת = At night, he closes the door
- את הדלת הוא סוגר בלילה = a more marked version, often for emphasis or contrast
But the original sentence is the most neutral and straightforward order.
סוגר most directly means closes or shuts.
It does not automatically mean locks.
If you specifically want locks the door, Hebrew would more naturally use:
- הוא נועל את הדלת בלילה
So:
- סוגר את הדלת = closes/shuts the door
- נועל את הדלת = locks the door
That distinction is useful, because English speakers sometimes assume close and lock are interchangeable, but Hebrew usually keeps them separate.