Questions & Answers about אל תיגעו במשקפיים שלי עד שאנקה את המראה.
Why is the sentence אל תיגעו and not a regular imperative form?
In Hebrew, negative commands are usually formed with:
- אל
- a future-tense verb
So:
- תיגעו = you will touch / you touch in form
- אל תיגעו = don’t touch
This is the normal way to say a prohibition in Modern Hebrew.
Some matching examples:
- אל תלך = don’t go
- אל תדברי = don’t speak
- אל תאכלו = don’t eat
So אל תיגעו literally uses a future form, but functionally it means don’t touch.
What person and number is תיגעו?
תיגעו is second person plural:
- you all touch / will touch
- in this sentence: don’t touch
It can address:
- a group of men
- a mixed group
- sometimes a group in general when gender is unspecified
Related forms:
- אל תיגע = don’t touch (to one male)
- אל תיגעי = don’t touch (to one female)
- אל תיגעו = don’t touch (to more than one person)