במקום לחכות למונית, הלכתי ברגל כי המשרד היה קרוב.

במקום literally means in place of or instead of. In this sentence, במקום לחכות למונית means instead of waiting for a taxi.

A very common pattern is:

במקום + infinitive = instead of doing something

So:

• במקום לחכות = instead of waiting
• במקום ללכת = instead of going
• במקום לדבר = instead of speaking

Because לחכות is the infinitive form of the verb to wait.

In Hebrew, infinitives are very often formed with ל־, similar to English to in to wait, to go, to eat.

So:

• לחכות = to wait
• ללכת = to go / to walk
• לאכול = to eat

In this sentence, במקום לחכות literally means instead of to wait, but in natural English we say instead of waiting.

Because the verb לחכות requires the preposition ל־ before the thing or person you are waiting for.

So in Hebrew you do not say:

• לחכות מונית ❌

You say:

• לחכות למונית = to wait for a taxi

This is a very common thing learners notice: there are actually two different ל־ sounds here:

• לחכות: the ל־ of the infinitive, meaning to wait
• למונית: the preposition required by the verb, meaning for a taxi / the taxi

So the structure is basically:

to-wait for-a-taxi

In unpointed Hebrew writing, למונית can represent either:

• for a taxi
• for the taxi

The spelling looks the same.

Why? Because:

• ל־ + מונית = for a taxi
• ל־ + הַמונית = for the taxi

In normal modern Hebrew spelling without vowels, both appear as למונית.

In this sentence, the meaning is probably general: instead of waiting for a taxi, not one specific taxi. But only context tells you for sure.

Hebrew often leaves out subject pronouns when the verb already makes the subject clear.

הלכתי means I walked / I went, because the ־תי ending marks first person singular.

So:

• הלכתי = I walked / I went
• הלכת = you walked (depending on gender/context)
• הלך = he walked
• הלכה = she walked

Because the verb already tells you the subject, אני is usually unnecessary unless you want emphasis or contrast.

So הלכתי ברגל is a perfectly normal way to say I went on foot / I walked.

The Hebrew verb הלך covers both ideas, depending on context.

It can mean:

• to go
• to walk

In this sentence, since it is followed by ברגל (on foot), the meaning is clearly I walked or I went on foot.

Without ברגל, הלכתי could simply mean I went.

So:

• הלכתי למשרד = I went to the office
• הלכתי ברגל = I walked / I went on foot

ברגל literally means by foot or on foot.

It is made from:

• ב־ = in / by / with
• רגל = foot / leg

As an expression, ללכת ברגל means to go on foot or to walk.

This is the normal Hebrew idiom. English uses on foot, while Hebrew uses by/with foot, but the meaning is the same.

Examples:

• אני הולך ברגל לעבודה = I walk to work
• נסענו באוטובוס, לא הלכנו ברגל = We went by bus, not on foot

כי means because in this sentence.

So:

• הלכתי ברגל כי המשרד היה קרוב = I walked because the office was close

It introduces the reason.

Other Hebrew ways to say because include:

• מפני ש־
• בגלל ש־

But כי is very common, simple, and neutral.

Because המשרד (the office) is a masculine singular noun, and the adjective קרוב has to agree with it.

So:

• masculine singular: קרוב
• feminine singular: קרובה
• masculine plural: קרובים
• feminine plural: קרובות

Since משרד is masculine singular:

• המשרד היה קרוב = the office was close

If the noun were feminine, you would use קרובה:

• התחנה הייתה קרובה = the station was close

Because the sentence is in the past: the office was close.

היה is the past form of to be for masculine singular subjects. It agrees with המשרד.

So:

• המשרד קרוב = the office is close
• המשרד היה קרוב = the office was close

Hebrew often omits is/are in the present tense, but in the past and future it uses forms of to be.

קרוב can simply mean close / near on its own when the sentence does not say close to what.

Here, the sentence just means the office was close, with the destination understood from context.

But if you want to say what something is close to, Hebrew often uses קרוב ל־:

• המשרד קרוב לבית = the office is close to the house
• התחנה קרובה למשרד = the station is close to the office

So in this sentence, קרוב is complete by itself because the idea is simply the office was nearby.

That opening phrase sets up the contrast first: instead of waiting for a taxi...

Hebrew allows this kind of fronting very naturally, just like English:

• Instead of waiting for a taxi, I walked...

So the structure is:

1. alternative not chosen: במקום לחכות למונית
2. what the speaker actually did: הלכתי ברגל
3. reason: כי המשרד היה קרוב

This word order sounds natural and helps organize the sentence clearly.

Yes. The comma separates the introductory phrase from the main clause:

• במקום לחכות למונית, הלכתי ברגל...

It works much like English:

• Instead of waiting for a taxi, I walked...

The comma helps the reader process the sentence, especially because the sentence begins with a longer prepositional phrase.

Yes. Both are possible.

הלכתי ברגל can be translated as:

• I walked
• I went on foot

The best choice depends on style and context. In everyday English, I walked is usually the most natural translation, but I went on foot is closer to the literal Hebrew structure.