Questions & Answers about גם הוא רעב, אבל היא רק עייפה.
Why is there no word for is in this sentence?
In Hebrew, the verb to be is usually not written or spoken in the present tense.
So:
- הוא רעב = he is hungry
- היא עייפה = she is tired
Literally, Hebrew is saying something like:
- also he hungry, but she only tired
This is completely normal Hebrew.
In the past or future, Hebrew does use forms of to be.
What does גם mean, and why is it at the beginning?
גם means also or too.
In גם הוא רעב, it means he is hungry too / he is also hungry.
Putting גם first is very natural in Hebrew. It gives the sense of also he... or he too...
So:
- גם הוא רעב = He is hungry too
- literally: Also he hungry
You may also hear other word orders in Hebrew, but this one is very common and natural.
Why is it הוא in the first half and היא in the second half?