את עייפה, או שאת שמחה ללכת למסעדה?

Are you tired, or are you happy to go to a restaurant?

Breakdown of את עייפה, או שאת שמחה ללכת למסעדה?

• את: you
• ללכת: to go
• ל: to
• או: or
• ש: that
• עייף: tired
• שמח: happy
• מסעדה: restaurant

Questions & Answers about את עייפה, או שאת שמחה ללכת למסעדה?

I thought את was the direct object marker. Why does it mean you here?

Hebrew את has two different jobs:

• את = the direct object marker before a definite object
• אַתְּ / את = you when speaking to one female

In this sentence, את עייפה means you are tired, so את is the pronoun, not the object marker.

You can tell from the context:

• it comes at the start of the clause
• it is followed by an adjective, עייפה
• the sentence is addressing a woman

So here, את = you.

Why do עייפה and שמחה end with -ה?

Because the sentence is speaking to a female singular person.

In Hebrew, adjectives agree with the person they describe in gender and number.

So:

• אַתְּ עֲיֵפָה = you (feminine) are tired
• אַתְּ שְׂמֵחָה = you (feminine) are happy

If you were speaking to a man, you would say:

• אתה עייף
• אתה שמח

So the -ה ending here marks the adjective as feminine singular.

Why is there no word for are in the sentence?

In Hebrew, the verb to be is usually not stated in the present tense.

So where English says:

• You are tired

Hebrew simply says:

• את עייפה

And where English says:

• You are happy

Hebrew says:

• את שמחה

This is very normal. Hebrew often leaves out present-tense am / is / are.

Why does the second half say שאת?

שאת is basically:

• ש
  • את

Here:

• את = you (feminine singular)
• ש is a connecting word, often meaning that, but in many sentences it is better understood as a clause-linker rather than translated word-for-word

So:

• או שאת שמחה...
  means something like
• or that you’re happy...
  but in natural English we usually just say
• or are you happy...

In other words, ש helps introduce the second clause. It often does not need a separate English translation.

Why is the pronoun את repeated in the second clause?

Because Hebrew often repeats the subject when starting a new clause, especially after a word like או (or).

So:

• את עייפה, או שאת שמחה...

is clearer and more natural than leaving the subject unstated.

English can also repeat the subject:

• Are you tired, or are you happy to go to the restaurant?

That repeated you in English matches the repeated את in Hebrew fairly well.

What does ללכת mean, and why does it start with ל?

ללכת means to go.

The ל at the beginning often corresponds to English to before an infinitive:

• ללכת = to go
• לאכול = to eat
• לשתות = to drink

A learner may also notice that ללכת has two ל letters. That is just how this verb’s infinitive is formed. The first ל is the infinitive marker, and the second is part of the verb form itself.

So after שמחה, the phrase שמחה ללכת means:

• happy to go
• glad to go

Does שמחה ללכת mean literally happy, or can it mean something like glad or willing?

It can mean several close ideas depending on context:

• happy to go
• glad to go
• pleased to go
• sometimes even eager to go

So שמחה ללכת למסעדה does not only describe an emotion in a narrow sense. It can also suggest a positive attitude toward going.

In natural English, the best translation depends on tone and context.

Why is למסעדה written as one word?

Because Hebrew prepositions are often attached directly to the following noun.

Here, ל means to and it joins מסעדה (restaurant), so you get:

• למסעדה

This is completely normal in Hebrew writing.

Does למסעדה mean to a restaurant or to the restaurant?

In unpointed Hebrew writing, למסעדה can look the same in both cases.

It can represent:

• ל + מסעדה = to a restaurant
• ל + המסעדה = to the restaurant

When the definite article ה is added after certain prepositions like ל, it gets absorbed into the form. In fully pointed Hebrew, the pronunciation would show the difference, but in normal everyday writing, the two are often spelled the same.

So the exact meaning depends on context.

How would this sentence change if I were talking to a man instead of a woman?

You would change the pronoun and the adjective forms to masculine singular:

• אתה עייף, או שאתה שמח ללכת למסעדה?

Compare:

• feminine: את עייפה, או שאת שמחה ללכת למסעדה?
• masculine: אתה עייף, או שאתה שמח ללכת למסעדה?

If you were speaking to more than one person, the forms would change again.

Is this a natural Hebrew sentence, or is it too literal?

It is a natural Hebrew sentence.

Its structure is very normal:

• את עייפה = you’re tired
• או ש... = or...
• שמחה ללכת... = happy to go...

A native speaker might choose slightly different wording depending on tone or situation, but the sentence itself is perfectly standard and understandable.