אני מחכה ליד תחנת המשטרה.

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Breakdown of אני מחכה ליד תחנת המשטרה.

• ליד: by
• לחכות: to wait
• תחנת משטרה: police station

Questions & Answers about אני מחכה ליד תחנת המשטרה.

How do you pronounce אני מחכה ליד תחנת המשטרה?

A common pronunciation is:

• for a male speaker: ani mekhaké leyad tachanát ha-mishtará
• for a female speaker: ani mekhaká leyad tachanát ha-mishtará

A rough breakdown:

• אני = ani
• מחכה = mekhaké or mekhaká
• ליד = leyad
• תחנת = tachanat
• המשטרה = ha-mishtara

The ח sound in מחכה is the throaty Hebrew kh/ch sound.

Why is there no separate word for am in this sentence?

Because Hebrew usually does not use a separate present-tense word for am / is / are the way English does.

In this sentence, מחכה already means waiting in the present, so אני מחכה means I am waiting.

So Hebrew says:

• אני מחכה = I am waiting

not something like אני am מחכה.

What exactly does מחכה mean here?

מחכה means waiting.

The dictionary form of the verb is לחכות, which means to wait.

So:

• אני מחכה = I am waiting
• הוא מחכה = he is waiting
• היא מחכה = she is waiting

In other contexts, לחכות can also mean to wait for someone or something, depending on what comes after it.

Does מחכה change depending on whether the speaker is male or female?

Yes. In the present tense, Hebrew verbs agree with gender and number.

With this verb:

• masculine singular: מחכה
• feminine singular: מחכה
• masculine plural: מחכים
• feminine plural: מחכות

In unpointed writing, the masculine singular and feminine singular both look like מחכה, but they are pronounced differently:

• male: mekhaké
• female: mekhaká

So this written sentence could be said by either a man or a woman. Context or pronunciation tells you which one.

Why do we need אני? Could you just say מחכה ליד תחנת המשטרה?

Yes, you could omit אני in some contexts, but אני is very common and often helpful.

The reason is that present-tense Hebrew verbs do not show person clearly. מחכה could mean:

• I am waiting
• he is waiting
• she is waiting

So adding אני makes it clear that the subject is I.

Without אני, מחכה ליד תחנת המשטרה would sound more like waiting near the police station, and the listener would need context to know who is waiting.

What does ליד mean exactly?

ליד means near, next to, by, or beside, depending on context.

Here it means:

• ליד תחנת המשטרה = near the police station

It does not usually mean inside or at the place itself. It suggests being close to it.

Why is it תחנת המשטרה and not תחנה המשטרה?

This is because Hebrew often uses a structure called the construct state.

When two nouns are linked as X of Y, the first noun often changes form.

Here:

• תחנה = station
• משטרה = police

But station of the police becomes:

• תחנת המשטרה

So תחנת is the construct form of תחנה.

This whole phrase means:

• the police station

Literally, it is something like station of the police.

Why does only המשטרה have ה־? Why not התחנת המשטרה?

In a construct phrase, the definite article ה־ normally appears on the second noun, not the first.

So:

• תחנת משטרה = a police station
• תחנת המשטרה = the police station

Even though only משטרה has ה־, the whole phrase becomes definite.

That is why תחנת המשטרה means the police station, not just station of the police in some vague sense.

Could I say בתחנת המשטרה instead of ליד תחנת המשטרה?

Yes, but it means something different.

• ליד תחנת המשטרה = near the police station
• בתחנת המשטרה = at / in the police station

So if you want to say you are standing outside or nearby, ליד is right. If you want to say you are actually at the station or inside it, ב־ is more appropriate.

Is this the normal word order in Hebrew?

Yes. אני מחכה ליד תחנת המשטרה is a very natural, neutral sentence.

It follows a common pattern:

• subject
  • verb
    • place phrase

So:

• אני = subject
• מחכה = verb
• ליד תחנת המשטרה = location

Hebrew word order can be flexible, but this version is the most straightforward and standard.

Is there another common way to say I am waiting in Hebrew?

Yes. Another common verb is ממתין for a male speaker or ממתינה for a female speaker.

So you could also say:

• אני ממתין ליד תחנת המשטרה
• אני ממתינה ליד תחנת המשטרה

This also means I am waiting near the police station.

The difference is mostly style:

• מחכה is very common and everyday
• ממתין / ממתינה can sound a little more formal

Both are correct.