Breakdown of בסוף השבוע ביקרנו את סבא ואת סבתא.
Questions & Answers about בסוף השבוע ביקרנו את סבא ואת סבתא.
Literally, בסוף השבוע breaks down like this:
- ב־ = in / at / on
- סוף = end
- השבוע = the week
So word-for-word it is at the end of the week.
In normal usage, though, this phrase often corresponds to on the weekend or at the weekend, depending on context.
The prefix ב־ is a very common Hebrew preposition meaning in, at, or on.
Here it attaches directly to סוף:
- סוף = end
- בסוף = at the end / in the end
Hebrew often attaches short prepositions directly to the following word instead of writing them as separate words.
השבוע means the week.
Hebrew uses the definite article ה־ to mark definiteness, just like English uses the. So:
- שבוע = a week / week
- השבוע = the week
In the expression סוף השבוע, the idea is the end of the week. This is why השבוע has the article.
ביקרנו is the verb we visited.
It comes from the dictionary form לבקר = to visit.
The ending ־נו often marks we in the past tense, so:
- ביקרתי = I visited
- ביקרת = you visited
- ביקרנו = we visited
So ביקרנו already includes the subject we. Hebrew often does not need a separate word for we.
Because Hebrew verbs often include the subject inside the verb form itself.
In ביקרנו, the ending ־נו tells you the subject is we. So Hebrew does not need to add אנחנו unless the speaker wants extra emphasis or contrast.
Compare:
- ביקרנו = we visited
- אנחנו ביקרנו = we visited, with extra emphasis on we
את here is the direct object marker. It does not mean with in this sentence.
Hebrew uses את before a direct object that is definite or specific. Since grandpa and grandma here are specific people, Hebrew marks them with את:
- ביקרנו את סבא = we visited grandpa
- ביקרנו את סבתא = we visited grandma
This is a very common feature of Hebrew and has no direct equivalent in English.
Yes, Hebrew can sometimes use just one את before a pair of connected objects, but repeating it is also very natural.
So both of these are possible:
- ביקרנו את סבא וסבתא
- ביקרנו את סבא ואת סבתא
Repeating את can make the sentence feel a little more explicit or balanced, especially when the two objects are being listed separately.
Because Hebrew usually attaches and as the prefix ו־ to the following word.
So:
- ו־ = and
- את = direct object marker
- ואת = and + direct object marker
Hebrew often builds sentences with these short prefixes attached directly to words.
This is a good question, because learners often expect the grandpa and the grandma.
In family language, Hebrew often uses words like סבא, סבתא, אמא, and אבא without ה־, especially when referring to one’s own family members in a familiar way. They are still understood as specific.
So:
- סבא can mean grandpa
- סבתא can mean grandma
Even without ה־, they are definite in context, which is why את is still used.
Hebrew often leaves possession unspoken when it is obvious from context, especially with close family members.
So סבא and סבתא often naturally mean grandpa and grandma, with the sense of our or my understood from the situation.
If needed, Hebrew can make it explicit:
- סבא שלנו = our grandpa
- סבתא שלנו = our grandma
But in many everyday sentences, that would sound unnecessary.
Hebrew word order is fairly flexible.
In this sentence, בסוף השבוע comes first to set the time:
- בסוף השבוע ביקרנו את סבא ואת סבתא
But you could also say:
- ביקרנו את סבא ואת סבתא בסוף השבוע
Both are natural. Putting the time phrase first often gives it a little more prominence, like As for the weekend... or On the weekend...
No. In the past tense, first person plural in Hebrew does not distinguish masculine and feminine.
So ביקרנו simply means we visited, no matter whether the group is:
- all male
- all female
- mixed
This is different from some other Hebrew forms that do show gender.