לפני שאנחנו הולכים למסעדה, אנחנו בבית, ואחרי שאנחנו אוכלים, אנחנו הולכים לעיר.

Before we go to the restaurant, we are at home, and after we eat, we go to the city.

Breakdown of לפני שאנחנו הולכים למסעדה, אנחנו בבית, ואחרי שאנחנו אוכלים, אנחנו הולכים לעיר.

• ו: and
• עיר: city
• לאכול: to eat
• בית: home
• ללכת: to go
• ל: to
• אחרי: after
• אנחנו: we
• ב: at
• לפני: before
• ש: that
• מסעדה: restaurant

Questions & Answers about לפני שאנחנו הולכים למסעדה, אנחנו בבית, ואחרי שאנחנו אוכלים, אנחנו הולכים לעיר.

Why does the sentence use לפני שאנחנו and אחרי שאנחנו? What is the ש doing?

The ש is a very common linking word in Hebrew. Here it connects לפני or אחרי to a full clause.

So:

• לפני שאנחנו הולכים = before we go / before we are going
• אחרי שאנחנו אוכלים = after we eat / after we are eating

שאנחנו is just ש + אנחנו written together.

Why is there no word for are in אנחנו בבית?

In Hebrew, the verb to be is usually omitted in the present tense.

So:

• אנחנו בבית literally looks like we at home
• but it means we are at home

This is completely normal Hebrew. In past and future, Hebrew does use forms of to be, for example:

• היינו בבית = we were at home
• נהיה בבית = we will be at home

Why is אנחנו repeated so many times? Can Hebrew drop subject pronouns?

Hebrew can sometimes leave out subject pronouns, but in the present tense they are often kept because the verb form does not show person clearly.

For example, הולכים by itself only tells you masculine plural, not specifically we. It could also mean they in the right context. So adding אנחנו makes the meaning clear.

That is why אנחנו appears several times in this sentence.

What grammatical form are הולכים and אוכלים?

They are masculine plural present-tense forms.

More specifically:

• הולכים = from הלך = go / walk
• אוכלים = from אכל = eat

In modern Hebrew, these present forms can often mean several things in English depending on context:

• we go
• we are going
• we eat
• we are eating

Does הולכים mean go, are going, or walk?

It can mean any of those, depending on context.

הולכים comes from the verb הלך, which often means go, but can also mean walk. In many everyday sentences, English has to choose between go, are going, and walk, while Hebrew just uses the same present form.

Here, because of למסעדה and לעיר, the meaning is most naturally go / are going.

Why are the verbs masculine plural? What if the speakers are all women?

Hebrew present-tense verbs agree with gender and number.

Here:

• הולכים
• אוכלים

are masculine plural.

Hebrew uses masculine plural for:

• a group of men
• a mixed group
• a group whose gender is unknown or not important

If the speakers were all female, you would say:

• אנחנו הולכות
• אנחנו אוכלות

The pronoun אנחנו stays the same either way.

What is the difference between בבית, למסעדה, and לעיר?

These words show different prepositions attached directly to the noun.

• ב־ = in / at
• ל־ = to

So:

• בבית = at home / in the house
• למסעדה = to a restaurant / to the restaurant
• לעיר = to a city / to the city / into town

Hebrew often attaches short prepositions directly to the beginning of the word instead of writing them as separate words.

Where did the Hebrew word for the go in words like למסעדה and בבית?

Hebrew the is usually ה־, but when it comes after ב־, ל־, or כ־, it combines with them.

So instead of writing the preposition and ה־ as separate pieces, Hebrew merges them into one word.

That means unpointed spellings like these can be ambiguous:

• למסעדה can mean to a restaurant or to the restaurant
• בבית can mean in a house, in the house, or very often at home
• לעיר can mean to a city or to the city

Usually the context tells you which meaning is intended.

Does בבית mean at home or in the house?

It can mean both.

Very often, בבית is the normal way to say at home. But depending on context, it can also mean in the house.

In this sentence, אנחנו בבית is most naturally understood as we are at home.

Why does Hebrew use present-tense forms after before and after here? Could I also say אחרי שאכלנו or אחרי שנאכל?

Yes, you could, depending on what you want to express.

In this sentence, אחרי שאנחנו אוכלים sounds like a general sequence or routine: first we eat, then we go to the city.

Other options are:

• אחרי שאכלנו = after we ate / after we have eaten
• אחרי שנאכל = after we eat / after we will eat

So the choice depends on whether you are talking about:

• a routine or general pattern
• a past completed action
• a future planned action

The version in your sentence is understandable and works well for a repeated or planned sequence.

Could the word order be changed?

Yes. Hebrew word order is fairly flexible.

For example, these are also possible:

• אנחנו בבית לפני שאנחנו הולכים למסעדה
• אחרי שאנחנו אוכלים, אנחנו הולכים לעיר

The version in your sentence puts the time expressions first, which helps organize the sequence clearly: before X..., after Y....

Is לעיר always literally to the city, or can it mean something like into town?

It can often be understood more naturally as into town or to town, depending on context.

The basic meaning of עיר is city, but in everyday use הולכים לעיר may describe going to the urban center, downtown area, or town area, not necessarily emphasizing the word city in a strict literal way.

So the most natural English translation depends on the situation.