Questions & Answers about אנחנו יושבים בכיתה ומחכים למורה.
Why is there no separate word for are in this sentence?
In Hebrew, the present tense usually does not use a separate verb meaning am / is / are.
So instead of saying something like we are sitting, Hebrew simply says אנחנו יושבים — literally we sitting.
That is completely normal Hebrew. The present-tense forms יושבים and מחכים already carry the meaning of an ongoing present action.
Why do יושבים and מחכים both end in -ים?
The ending -ים marks masculine plural in the present tense.
So:
- יושב = sitting (masculine singular)
- יושבת = sitting (feminine singular)
- יושבים = sitting (masculine plural)
- יושבות = sitting (feminine plural)
And similarly:
- מחכה = waiting (masculine singular)
- מחכה = waiting (feminine singular, same spelling without vowels)
- מחכים = waiting (masculine plural)
- מחכות = waiting (feminine plural)
Because the subject is אנחנו (we), the verbs must be plural. The sentence uses the masculine plural form.
If the group is all female, how would the sentence change?