האיש עומד מול הדלת.

The man is standing in front of the door.

Breakdown of האיש עומד מול הדלת.

• איש: man
• דלת: door
• לעמוד: to be parked
• מול: in front of

Questions & Answers about האיש עומד מול הדלת.

Why does האיש mean the man instead of just man?

In Hebrew, the definite article the is usually added as a prefix to the noun.

• איש = man
• האיש = the man

The prefix ה־ is the Hebrew equivalent of the.

Why is there also a ה־ in הדלת?

For the same reason: הדלת means the door.

• דלת = door
• הדלת = the door

A common thing for English speakers to notice is that Hebrew adds definiteness directly to each noun. So if both nouns are definite, both usually get ה־.

What does עומד mean exactly?

עומד means standing or stands.

It comes from the verb לעמוד, which means to stand.

In this sentence, עומד is the masculine singular present-tense form, matching האיש because the man is masculine singular.

Why is there no separate word for is?

Because Hebrew does not normally use a present-tense form of to be like English does.

English says:

• The man is standing

Hebrew says:

• האיש עומד

The word עומד already gives the present-time meaning here, so no extra word for is is needed.

Why is it עומד and not עומדת?

Because האיש is masculine singular.

Hebrew present-tense verb forms agree with gender and number:

• עומד = masculine singular
• עומדת = feminine singular
• עומדים = masculine plural / mixed plural
• עומדות = feminine plural

Since the man is masculine singular, עומד is the correct form.

What does מול mean?

מול means opposite, facing, or in front of, depending on context.

In this sentence, it means something like:

• facing the door
• opposite the door
• in front of the door

It is a preposition, so it introduces a location relationship.

Is מול הדלת a direct object? Why is there no את?

No. מול הדלת is not a direct object; it is a prepositional phrase.

The word את is used before definite direct objects, but here הדלת is part of the phrase מול הדלת = opposite the door / facing the door.

So:

• את would appear with a direct object
• מול הדלת is a location phrase, so no את is used

What is the basic word order in this sentence?

The sentence follows a very common Hebrew order:

• האיש = subject
• עומד = verb/predicate
• מול הדלת = prepositional phrase

So the structure is roughly:

Subject + verb + location phrase

That said, Hebrew word order can be more flexible than English, especially for emphasis.

Can עומד mean both stands and is standing?

Yes.

Hebrew present tense often covers what English expresses with either:

• the simple present: stands
• the present progressive: is standing

So האיש עומד מול הדלת can correspond naturally to:

• The man stands in front of the door
• The man is standing in front of the door

The exact English translation depends on context.

How would a learner pronounce this sentence?

A common pronunciation guide would be:

ha-ish o-med מול ha-de-let

More naturally written in transliteration:

ha-ish omed mul ha-delet

A few helpful points:

• האיש sounds roughly like ha-ISH
• עומד sounds roughly like o-MED
• מול sounds like mool
• הדלת sounds roughly like ha-DE-let

Stress is typically near the end in עומד and הדלת.

Is דלת feminine, and does that matter here?

Yes, דלת is a feminine noun.

In this particular sentence, that does not change the form of מול, because prepositions do not agree in gender.

However, it would matter if you added an adjective or used a verb form referring to the door. For example, an adjective describing the door would need a feminine form.

Could Hebrew also say this sentence in a different way?

Yes, depending on nuance.

For example, Hebrew might also use other location words such as:

• לפני הדלת = in front of the door
• ליד הדלת = next to the door

But מול הדלת specifically suggests being opposite or facing the door.

So האיש עומד מול הדלת gives a slightly more specific spatial relationship than just near the door.