Questions & Answers about לא רק המורה, אלא גם התלמידים נתנו תגובה טובה להצעה.
What does לא רק ... אלא גם mean, and should I learn it as one pattern?
Yes. לא רק ... אלא גם is the standard Hebrew pattern for not only ... but also.
- לא רק = not only
- אלא גם = but also
So:
- לא רק המורה, אלא גם התלמידים
= not only the teacher, but also the students
It is best to learn it as a set expression, not as separate words translated one by one.
Why is it אלא גם here and not אבל גם?
After לא רק, Hebrew normally uses אלא גם in this structure.
So the natural pattern is:
- לא רק X, אלא גם Y
Using אבל גם here would sound less standard and less natural in formal Hebrew.
Think of אלא גם as the expected partner of לא רק.
Why is there a comma after המורה?
Because the sentence is divided into two matching parts:
- לא רק המורה
- אלא גם התלמידים
The comma helps separate those two parts, just like in English with not only ..., but also .... In modern Hebrew, this comma is very common and usually preferred.