Questions & Answers about הסלט טעים, והמרק גם טעים.
Why is there no separate word for is in this sentence?
In Hebrew, the verb to be is usually left out in the present tense.
So instead of saying something literally like the salad is tasty, Hebrew simply says:
הסלט טעים
literally: the salad tasty
This is completely normal Hebrew.
In the past or future, Hebrew does use forms of to be:
- הסלט היה טעים = the salad was tasty
- הסלט יהיה טעים = the salad will be tasty
What does the ה at the beginning of הסלט and המרק mean?
The prefix ה־ is the Hebrew definite article, meaning the.
So:
- סלט = salad
- הסלט = the salad
and:
- מרק = soup
- המרק = the soup
Unlike English, Hebrew attaches the directly to the noun as a prefix.
Why is ו attached to המרק instead of being written as a separate word?