Questions & Answers about בן דוד שלי גר בצפון העיר, אבל בת דודה שלי גרה בדרום העיר.
Why are there two different Hebrew expressions for cousin?
Hebrew usually distinguishes the cousin’s gender:
- בן דוד = a male cousin
- בת דודה = a female cousin
English uses cousin for both, so this is one of the first things English speakers notice.
Do בן דוד and בת דודה literally mean son of an uncle and daughter of an aunt?
They do look literal:
- בן = son
- בת = daughter
- דוד = uncle
- דודה = aunt
But in modern Hebrew, בן דוד and בת דודה are standard fixed expressions for male cousin and female cousin. They do not normally tell you whether the cousin is from your mother’s side or father’s side.
Why is שלי after the noun instead of before it?
That is the normal Hebrew pattern. Hebrew commonly says:
- בן דוד שלי = literally cousin my
- בת דודה שלי = literally female cousin my
So Hebrew possession is often built as noun + שלי / שלך / שלו / שלה, rather than my + noun as in English.