Breakdown of אפשר להשתמש בכרטיס הזה גם באתר וגם בחנות.
Questions & Answers about אפשר להשתמש בכרטיס הזה גם באתר וגם בחנות.
Here אפשר means it is possible, and in natural English it often corresponds to you can.
So אפשר להשתמש... is a very common Hebrew way to say you can use... or it is possible to use....
It is an impersonal expression: Hebrew does not need to say who the subject is.
Because Hebrew often uses אפשר + infinitive to express a general possibility or permission.
So instead of saying something like you can use this card, Hebrew can simply say:
אפשר להשתמש בכרטיס הזה
Literally: It is possible to use this card
Natural English: You can use this card
This is very common and sounds completely normal.
After אפשר, Hebrew normally uses the infinitive form of the verb, which often begins with ל־.
So:
- אפשר להשתמש = it is possible to use
- not a conjugated form like משתמש = uses / is using
In other words, אפשר is followed by to use, not by uses.
Because the verb להשתמש usually takes the preposition ב־ with the thing being used.
So in Hebrew you say:
- להשתמש בכרטיס = to use a card / to use the card
- literally something like to make use of / by means of the card
This is just the normal pattern of the verb.
A native English speaker may expect a direct object, but Hebrew uses ב־ here.
Because כרטיס is not a direct object here.
With להשתמש, the thing being used comes after ב־, so Hebrew does not use the direct-object marker את.
Compare:
אני רואה את הכרטיס = I see the card
Here הכרטיס is a direct object, so את is needed.אני משתמש בכרטיס = I use the card
Here the verb takes ב־, so there is no את.
In Hebrew, demonstratives such as this usually come after the noun.
So:
- הכרטיס הזה = this card
- החנות הזאת = this store
That is the normal Hebrew word order.
Also, when the noun is definite, the demonstrative is used with a definite noun:
- כרטיס = a card
- הכרטיס הזה = this card
Because כרטיס is a masculine singular noun.
Hebrew demonstratives must agree with the noun in gender and number:
- הכרטיס הזה = this card masculine singular
- החנות הזאת = this store feminine singular
So הזה matches כרטיס.
This is a very common Hebrew pattern meaning both ... and ....
So:
- גם באתר וגם בחנות = both on the website and in the store
Word-for-word, it is more like also on the website and also in the store, but in natural English both ... and ... is usually the best translation.
Because the preposition ב־ often combines with the definite article ה־.
So:
- ב + ה + אתר becomes באתר
- ב + ה + חנות becomes בחנות
In fully pointed Hebrew, this change is clearer. In normal unpointed writing, the article is often not visible as a separate ה.
So these forms can mean:
- באתר = on the website or sometimes on a website, depending on context
- בחנות = in the store or sometimes in a store, depending on context
Here the meaning is definite because of the context.
Because Hebrew and English do not use prepositions in exactly the same way.
Hebrew often uses ב־ for places, including websites and online locations.
English usually says:
- on the website
- in the store
So the same Hebrew preposition ב־ can correspond to different English prepositions depending on the noun.
The sentence as written is very natural:
אפשר להשתמש בכרטיס הזה גם באתר וגם בחנות.
But Hebrew word order can be somewhat flexible.
For example, you could also say:
- בכרטיס הזה אפשר להשתמש גם באתר וגם בחנות.
This puts a little more focus on this card.
Still, the original version is straightforward and very natural.
A common pronunciation guide would be:
efshar lehishtamesh bakartis hazeh gam ba'atar vegam bachanut
A few notes:
- כ in כרטיס is like k
- ח in בחנות is the throaty ch sound, like in German Bach
- באתר here is pronounced ba'atar because it means on the website
- הזה is hazeh
It is neutral, everyday Hebrew.
It sounds natural in customer-service language, on a website, in a store notice, or in normal conversation.
It is neither especially formal nor especially slangy, which makes it a very useful pattern to learn.