הילדים יושבים סביב השולחן עד שאמא תביא את הארוחה.

The children are sitting around the table until Mom brings the meal.

Breakdown of הילדים יושבים סביב השולחן עד שאמא תביא את הארוחה.

• שולחן: table
• אמא: mother
• את: direct object marker
• לשבת: to sit

Questions & Answers about הילדים יושבים סביב השולחן עד שאמא תביא את הארוחה.

Why is הילדים translated as the children and not just children?

Because ה־ at the beginning is the Hebrew definite article, meaning the.

• ילדים = children / boys
• הילדים = the children

So הילדים specifically refers to a known group: the children.

Why is יושבים used here, and what form is it?

יושבים is the present tense, masculine plural form of the verb לשבת (to sit / to be sitting).

Here it agrees with הילדים, which is grammatically masculine plural.

So:

• יושב = sitting (masculine singular)
• יושבת = sitting (feminine singular)
• יושבים = sitting (masculine plural)
• יושבות = sitting (feminine plural)

Because children here is treated as masculine plural, יושבים is the correct form.

Where is the word are in הילדים יושבים?

In Hebrew, the verb to be is usually not expressed in the present tense.

So:

• הילדים יושבים literally looks like the children sitting
• but it means the children are sitting

This is completely normal in Hebrew. There is no separate present-tense word for are in this sentence.