Breakdown of יש לי פגישה חשובה בשעה שתיים.
Questions & Answers about יש לי פגישה חשובה בשעה שתיים.
Why does Hebrew use יש לי for I have?
Hebrew usually expresses to have with the pattern:
יש + ל־ + person
So יש לי literally means there is to me, but in natural English that becomes I have.
- יש לי פגישה = I have a meeting
- יש לו זמן = He has time
- יש להם כסף = They have money
This is one of the most important basic Hebrew patterns to learn.
What exactly does לי mean?
לי means to me or for me.
It is made from:
- ל־ = to / for
- י = me
So:
- לי = to me
- לך = to you
- לו = to him
- לה = to her
In this sentence, יש לי = there is to me = I have.
Why isn’t there a separate Hebrew verb meaning have here?
In everyday Hebrew, possession is usually not expressed with a verb equivalent to English have. Instead, Hebrew uses יש and אין:
- יש לי = I have
- אין לי = I don’t have
So for this kind of sentence, יש is the normal and natural way to say it.
What does פגישה mean, and is it masculine or feminine?
פגישה means meeting.
It is a feminine noun. That matters because adjectives must agree with it in gender and number.
So:
- פגישה חשובה = an important meeting
- not פגישה חשוב
The ־ה ending often signals a feminine noun, though not always.
Why is it חשובה and not חשוב?
Because פגישה is feminine, the adjective must also be feminine.
- masculine singular: חשוב = important
- feminine singular: חשובה = important
So:
- ספר חשוב = an important book
- פגישה חשובה = an important meeting
This is basic adjective agreement in Hebrew.
Why does חשובה come after פגישה?
In Hebrew, adjectives usually come after the noun they describe.
So:
- פגישה חשובה = literally meeting important
- ילד קטן = small boy
- מכונית חדשה = new car
This is different from English, where adjectives usually come before the noun.
What does בשעה mean here?
בשעה means at the hour or more naturally at when introducing a clock time.
It is made from:
- ב־ = in / at
- שעה = hour
So:
- בשעה שתיים = at two o’clock
In many contexts, Hebrew uses ב־ before a time expression.
Can I say בשתיים instead of בשעה שתיים?
Yes, very often you can.
- יש לי פגישה חשובה בשעה שתיים = correct, a bit more explicit
- יש לי פגישה חשובה בשתיים = also very common and natural in speech
Including שעה can sound a little clearer or slightly more formal, but both are good.
Why is it שתיים and not שניים?
Hebrew numbers have masculine and feminine forms.
For two:
- שניים = masculine
- שתיים = feminine
When telling time, Hebrew normally uses the feminine form for the hour, so:
- אחת
- שתיים
- שלוש etc.
That is why the sentence says בשעה שתיים.
Is שעה itself feminine?
Yes. שעה means hour, and it is a feminine noun.
That matches the use of the feminine number form:
- שעה אחת
- שעה שתיים in time expressions
- שלוש שעות = three hours
This is one reason the feminine form שתיים appears here.
Why is there no ה before פגישה or חשובה?
Because the sentence means an important meeting, not the important meeting.
Hebrew does not have a separate word for a/an. So an indefinite noun often appears with no article:
- פגישה חשובה = an important meeting
- הפגישה החשובה = the important meeting
If the noun is definite in Hebrew, the adjective also becomes definite:
- הפגישה החשובה
How would I say I don’t have an important meeting at two o’clock?
You replace יש with אין:
אין לי פגישה חשובה בשעה שתיים.
That literally means there isn’t to me an important meeting at two o’clock, which is how Hebrew says I don’t have an important meeting at two o’clock.
So:
- יש לי = I have
- אין לי = I don’t have
Can the word order change?
Yes, Hebrew word order is somewhat flexible, though the original sentence is very natural.
Normal version:
- יש לי פגישה חשובה בשעה שתיים.
You could also emphasize the time:
- בשעה שתיים יש לי פגישה חשובה. = At two o’clock, I have an important meeting.
Both are correct. The difference is mostly emphasis and style.
How is the full sentence pronounced?
A common pronunciation guide is:
yesh li p'gishá chashuvá be-sha'á shtáyim
A few notes:
- יש = yesh
- פגישה is often pronounced p'gishá
- חשובה begins with ch as in the Hebrew letter ח, a throat sound
- שתיים = shtáyim
The main stresses are typically on:
- p'gishÁ
- chashuvÁ
- shtÁyim
Is פגישה specifically a business meeting, or can it mean any meeting?
פגישה is a general word for meeting. It can refer to:
- a work meeting
- an appointment
- a personal meeting
- a date, in some contexts
So in this sentence, it simply means meeting, and the exact type depends on context.
Could חשובה also mean something like significant, not only important?
Yes. חשוב / חשובה often means important, but depending on context it can also feel like significant, serious, or of importance.
In this sentence, the most natural translation is still important:
- I have an important meeting at two o’clock.
But it is useful to know that the Hebrew adjective can have a slightly broader range than just one English word.
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