אני לא שונאת תה, אבל אני אוהבת קפה יותר.

I do not hate tea, but I like coffee more.

Breakdown of אני לא שונאת תה, אבל אני אוהבת קפה יותר.

• אני: I
• קפה: coffee
• אבל: but
• לא: not

Questions & Answers about אני לא שונאת תה, אבל אני אוהבת קפה יותר.

Why do שונאת and אוהבת end with -ת?

Because the speaker is feminine singular.

In Hebrew present tense, these verb forms agree with the subject’s gender and number:

• שונאת = feminine singular hates
• אוהבת = feminine singular likes/loves

If a man were speaking, you would usually get:

• אני לא שונא תה, אבל אני אוהב קפה יותר.

So אני itself does not show gender, but the present-tense verb form does.

Is this really present tense? Where is the word for do in I do not hate?

Yes, this is present tense.

Hebrew does not use an auxiliary like English do in negatives. So:

• אני לא שונאת = I do not hate
• literally: I not hating / I not hate

Also, Hebrew present tense does not use a separate word like am/is/are in sentences like this. The present-tense form itself carries the meaning.

So לא simply goes before the verb:

• לא שונאת = do not hate
• לא אוהבת = do not like

Do you have to say אני here, or could it be omitted?