את כותבת מהר, אבל אני כותב לאט.

You write quickly, but I write slowly.

Breakdown of את כותבת מהר, אבל אני כותב לאט.

• אני: I
• את: you
• אבל: but
• לכתוב: to write

Questions & Answers about את כותבת מהר, אבל אני כותב לאט.

Why does את mean you here? I thought את could also be the direct object marker.

Yes — את can be two different words in Hebrew:

• אַתְ = you (feminine singular), pronounced at
• אֶת = the direct object marker, pronounced et

In unpointed everyday Hebrew, they are spelled the same: את.

Here it means you because it comes before a verb and clearly acts as the subject:

• את כותבת = you write / you are writing (said to one female)

If it were the object marker, it would normally come before a definite direct object, not before a subject-verb phrase.

What tense is כותבת / כותב? Does it mean write or am writing?

It is the present tense in Modern Hebrew.

So:

• את כותבת can mean you write or you are writing
• אני כותב can mean I write or I am writing

Hebrew usually does not make a strict distinction here between simple present and present progressive the way English often does. Context tells you which meaning is more natural.

Why are there two different forms, כותבת and כותב?