הן עובדות שם הרבה שעות, אבל היום הן בבית.

there

Breakdown of הן עובדות שם הרבה שעות, אבל היום הן בבית.

• אבל: but
• לעבוד: to work
• היום: today

Questions & Answers about הן עובדות שם הרבה שעות, אבל היום הן בבית.

What does הן mean, and why isn’t it הם?

הן means they for an all-female group.

Hebrew distinguishes gender in the plural:

• הם = they (masculine, or mixed group)
• הן = they (feminine)

So this sentence is talking about women or girls:

• הן עובדות... = They (feminine) work...

A useful note: in everyday spoken Hebrew, many speakers often use הם even for female groups, but הן is the standard feminine form and is completely correct.

Why does עובדות end with -ות?

Because it agrees with the feminine plural subject הן.

In the present tense, Hebrew verbs change for gender and number:

• עובד = working / works (masculine singular)
• עובדת = working / works (feminine singular)
• עובדים = working / work (masculine plural)
• עובדות = working / work (feminine plural)

So:

• הן עובדות = they (feminine) work / are working

Is עובדות a verb here, or can it also be a noun?

Here it is a verb: work / are working.