Questions & Answers about אני רוצה לקחת את התיק הקטן, אבל המפתח שלך שם.
Why is אני included? Could Hebrew just say רוצה לקחת?
Usually not here. In the present tense, Hebrew verb forms mainly show gender and number, but not clearly person. So רוצה by itself could mean I want, you want, he wants, or she wants, depending on context. Because of that, Hebrew often includes the subject pronoun in present-tense sentences: אני רוצה = I want.
Why is רוצה spelled the same for a male speaker and a female speaker?
In normal unpointed Hebrew spelling, both forms are written רוצה. The difference is in pronunciation:
- male speaker: rotze
- female speaker: rotza
So the writing stays the same, but the spoken form changes. This is very common in Hebrew without vowel marks.
Why do we say רוצה לקחת and not something like רוצה לוקח?
After רוצה (want), Hebrew normally uses an infinitive: to take, to eat, to go, etc.
So:
- רוצה לקחת = want to take
- רוצה לאכול = want to eat
- רוצה ללכת =