Breakdown of אני לומד באוניברסיטה, והיא גם לומדת שם.
Questions & Answers about אני לומד באוניברסיטה, והיא גם לומדת שם.
Why is it לומד in the first clause but לומדת in the second?
Because Hebrew present-tense verb forms agree with gender and number.
- לומד = masculine singular
- לומדת = feminine singular
So אני לומד means I study / I am studying said by a male speaker, and היא לומדת means she studies / she is studying.
If the speaker were female, the first part would be אני לומדת.
Does אני change depending on whether the speaker is male or female?
No. אני always means I, for both males and females.
What changes is the verb:
- male speaker: אני לומד
- female speaker: אני לומדת
This is different from English, where I stays the same and the verb usually does not show gender.
Does אני לומד mean I study or I am studying?
It can mean both.
In modern Hebrew, the present tense usually does not make the same simple-vs.-continuous distinction that English does. So:
- אני לומד can mean I study
- אני לומד can also mean I am studying
The exact meaning depends on context.
Why is there no separate word for am in אני לומד?
Because Hebrew does not use a separate present-tense form of to be in sentences like this.
English says:
- I am studying
- she is studying
Hebrew simply uses the present-tense verb form itself:
- אני לומד
- היא לומדת
So there is no extra word corresponding to am or is here.
Why is היא included? Could Hebrew leave it out?
Yes, Hebrew can sometimes leave out subject pronouns when the meaning is clear from context. But here היא is very natural and helpful because the subject changes from I to she.
- אני לומד באוניברסיטה, והיא גם לומדת שם. = clear contrast: I ... and she ...
- אני לומד באוניברסיטה, וגם לומדת שם. = possible only in a very clear context, but usually less natural because the subject of לומדת is not stated
So in this sentence, using היא is the normal, clear choice.
What does the ו in והיא mean?
It means and.
In Hebrew, ו־ is usually attached directly to the next word as a prefix, so:
- ו
- היא = והיא
This is extremely common in Hebrew. The word for and is usually not written separately.
Why is באוניברסיטה written as one word?
Because the preposition ב־ meaning in / at attaches directly to the noun.
So:
- ב־ = in / at
- אוניברסיטה = university
- באוניברסיטה = in/at university or in/at the university, depending on context
Hebrew often attaches short prepositions directly to the following word, especially ב־, ל־, and כ־.
Where is the word the in באוניברסיטה?
Hebrew handles this differently from English.
The definite article is ה־, but when certain prepositions come before it, they combine in pronunciation. With unpointed modern spelling, this often is not visible clearly.
So באוניברסיטה can represent:
- ב + אוניברסיטה = in/at a university
- ב + ה + אוניברסיטה = in/at the university
In everyday Hebrew writing, context usually tells you which meaning is intended.
Why is גם placed before לומדת?
Because גם means also / too, and its position helps show what it is focusing on.
In והיא גם לומדת שם, the idea is roughly:
- and she also studies there
- or and she studies there too
Putting גם before לומדת is very natural here.
If you move גם, the emphasis can shift. For example:
- היא גם לומדת שם = she also studies there
- היא לומדת גם שם = she studies there too / there as well
Both can be correct, but they do not sound exactly the same in emphasis.
What does שם mean here?
Here שם means there.
So לומדת שם means studies there.
A very common point for learners is that שם can also be the written form of name. In normal unpointed Hebrew, the spelling is the same, but the meanings are different:
- שֵם = name
- שָם = there
Context tells you which one is meant. In this sentence, it clearly means there.
Do Hebrew present-tense verbs show person, like I study vs. she studies?
Not in the same way English does.
In the present tense, Hebrew verbs mainly show:
- gender
- number
They usually do not have separate forms for I, you, he, and she the way some other tenses do.
That means a form like לומד can mean:
- I study if the speaker is male
- he studies
And לומדת can mean:
- I study if the speaker is female
- she studies
So pronouns such as אני and היא are often used to make the subject clear.
Could the word order be changed?
Yes, Hebrew word order is somewhat flexible, but the original sentence is very natural.
Original:
- אני לומד באוניברסיטה, והיא גם לומדת שם.
You might also hear:
- אני לומד באוניברסיטה, וגם היא לומדת שם.
That version puts a little more emphasis on she too.
But not every change keeps the same emphasis. For example:
- היא לומדת גם שם suggests she studies there too / there as well
So the original wording is a good neutral, standard way to say it.
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