הוא מחפש שקע למנורה החדשה.

He is looking for a socket for the new lamp.

Breakdown of הוא מחפש שקע למנורה החדשה.

• הוא: he
• חדש: new
• ל: for
• לחפש: to look for
• מנורה: lamp
• שקע: socket

Questions & Answers about הוא מחפש שקע למנורה החדשה.

How do you pronounce הוא מחפש שקע למנורה החדשה?

A natural pronunciation is:

Hu mekhapes sheka la-menora ha-khadasha.

A few notes:

• ח in מחפש and חדשה is the throaty sound in Scottish loch or German Bach.
• למנורה is read la-menora here, not le-menora, because it means for the new lamp.

What does each word mean?

Word by word:

• הוא = he
• מחפש = looks for / is looking for
• שקע = socket / outlet
• למנורה = for the lamp
• החדשה = the new

So למנורה החדשה together means for the new lamp.

Why can מחפש mean both looks for and is looking for?

In Hebrew, the present tense often covers both the English simple present and present progressive.

So מחפש can mean:

• looks for
• is looking for

The context tells you which one sounds best in English.

Why is the verb form מחפש?

Because it matches הוא (he), which is masculine singular.

Here are the matching present-tense forms of לחפש (to look for):

• מחפש = masculine singular
• מחפשת = feminine singular
• מחפשים = masculine plural
• מחפשות = feminine plural

So with הוא, you use מחפש.

Why is there no word for a before שקע?

Hebrew has no separate word for a / an.

So:

• שקע = a socket / an outlet
• השקע = the socket / the outlet

Because the sentence has שקע and not השקע, the noun is indefinite.

Why is there no את before שקע?

Because את is used only before a definite direct object.

Here, שקע is indefinite, so there is no את.

Compare:

• הוא מחפש שקע = He is looking for a socket/outlet
• הוא מחפש את השקע = He is looking for the socket/outlet

What exactly does שקע mean here?

Here שקע most naturally means an electrical socket / wall outlet.

That is useful because English speakers often confuse:

• שקע = socket / outlet
• תקע = plug

So this sentence is about the place you plug the lamp into, not the plug attached to the lamp.

Why is למנורה written as one word?

Because the preposition ל (to / for) attaches directly to the noun in Hebrew.

So:

• ל + מנורה → למנורה

This is very common with short prepositions such as:

• ב = in
• ל = to/for
• כ = as/like

Why doesn’t מנורה show a separate the, even though the phrase means for the new lamp?

Because when ל combines with ה (the), they merge.

So:

• ל + המנורה becomes למנורה in normal unpointed spelling

That means למנורה can sometimes be ambiguous in writing:

• למנורה = for a lamp
• למנורה = for the lamp

In this sentence, החדשה makes it clear that the phrase is definite, so the meaning is for the new lamp.

Why is החדשה after מנורה?

Because Hebrew adjectives usually come after the noun they describe.

So:

• מנורה חדשה = a new lamp
• המנורה החדשה = the new lamp

This is different from English, where adjectives usually come before the noun.

Why does the adjective also have ה in החדשה?

In Hebrew, if a noun is definite, its adjective must also be definite.

So Hebrew says literally:

• the lamp the-new

not just:

• the lamp new

That is why you get:

• המנורה החדשה = the new lamp

In your sentence, the noun appears after ל, so the definiteness on the noun is partly hidden inside למנורה, but the adjective still clearly shows it with החדשה.

Why is החדשה feminine?

Because מנורה is a feminine singular noun, and adjectives in Hebrew must agree with the noun in:

• gender
• number
• definiteness

So:

• מנורה חדשה = feminine singular
• ספר חדש = masculine singular

That is why you see חדשה, not חדש.

Could הוא be left out?

Often, yes.

Hebrew frequently drops subject pronouns when the meaning is clear from context. So in conversation, you might hear:

• מחפש שקע למנורה החדשה

and understand it as He’s looking for a socket for the new lamp, depending on context.

Adding הוא makes the subject explicit and can sound clearer or slightly more emphatic.