Breakdown of מסוכן ללכת לבד ברחוב הזה בלילה.
Questions & Answers about מסוכן ללכת לבד ברחוב הזה בלילה.
Why does the sentence start with מסוכן? Is Hebrew saying Dangerous to walk... instead of It is dangerous to walk...?
Yes. Hebrew often does not use a dummy subject like English it.
So:
- מסוכן = dangerous
- ללכת לבד ברחוב הזה בלילה = to walk alone on this street at night
Together, the sentence is literally something like:
- Dangerous to walk alone on this street at night
But in natural English, we translate it as:
- It is dangerous to walk alone on this street at night
That missing English it is very normal in Hebrew.
Why is it ללכת and not a present-tense verb like הולך?
Because after an adjective like מסוכן you usually use the infinitive to say to do something.
- ללכת = to walk / to go
- הולך = walking / goes or is going depending on context
So:
- מסוכן ללכת = it is dangerous to walk
If you used הולך, the structure would be different and would need a subject, for example:
- הוא הולך = he is walking / he walks
Here, the sentence is talking about the action in general, so the infinitive ללכת is the right form.
What does the ל־ in ללכת mean?
The prefix ל־ often marks the infinitive in Hebrew, similar to English to.
So:
- ללכת = to walk / to go
This is the dictionary-style infinitive form of the verb הלך.
You will see this a lot:
- לאכול = to eat
- לשתות = to drink
- לישון = to sleep
So in this sentence, ללכת is simply to walk.
What does לבד mean here? Is it an adjective or an adverb?
לבד means alone.
In this sentence, it functions like an adverb in English, describing how someone walks:
- ללכת לבד = to walk alone
Hebrew often uses words in ways that do not line up perfectly with English grammar labels, but for a learner, the important point is:
- לבד = alone / by oneself
Examples:
- אני לבד = I am alone
- היא גרה לבד = She lives alone
- ללכת לבד = to walk alone
Why is it ברחוב הזה for on this street? Doesn’t ב־ usually mean in?
Good question. The prefix ב־ often means in, at, or on, depending on context.
Here:
- ב + רחוב = ברחוב
- רחוב = street
So ברחוב הזה can be translated naturally as:
- on this street
- or more literally, in this street
In English, we usually say on the street, but Hebrew uses ב־ here.
So:
- ברחוב הזה = on this street
This is a normal Hebrew expression.
Why is it הרחוב הזה in effect, with both the on the noun and this after it? Why not just one marker of definiteness?
In Hebrew, when you say this/that + noun, the noun is usually definite, and the demonstrative comes after the noun.
So:
- רחוב = a street
- הרחוב הזה = this street
Because of the prefix ב־, הרחוב becomes ברחוב:
- ב + הרחוב הזה → ברחוב הזה
This is a very common pattern:
- הספר הזה = this book
- הבית הזה = this house
- הילדה הזאת = this girl
So Hebrew literally has something like the street this, but it simply means this street.
Why is הזה after רחוב instead of before it?
Because Hebrew demonstratives like this and that usually come after the noun.
Compare:
- English: this street
- Hebrew: הרחוב הזה
More examples:
- הילד הזה = this boy
- המכונית הזאת = this car
- האנשים האלה = these people
So the position may feel reversed to an English speaker, but it is completely normal in Hebrew.
Why is it הזה and not הזאת?
Because רחוב is a masculine noun.
Hebrew demonstratives must agree in gender and number with the noun:
- masculine singular: הזה
- feminine singular: הזאת
- masculine/feminine plural: האלה
So:
- רחוב = masculine → הרחוב הזה
- דרך or מכונית = feminine → הדרך הזאת, המכונית הזאת
That is why the sentence uses הזה.
Why is it בלילה? Does that mean at night or in the night?
בלילה means at night or during the night, depending on context.
It is made of:
- ב־ = in / at
- לילה = night
So:
- בלילה = at night
This is a very common time expression in Hebrew.
Examples:
- אני עובד בלילה = I work at night
- קר בלילה = It is cold at night
So in your sentence:
- ברחוב הזה בלילה = on this street at night
Why isn’t there a verb meaning is in the sentence?
Because in the present tense, Hebrew often leaves out the verb to be.
English says:
- It is dangerous
Hebrew simply says:
- מסוכן
This is called a nominal sentence. It is extremely common.
Examples:
- הוא עייף = He is tired
- הבית גדול = The house is big
- מסוכן ללכת שם = It is dangerous to walk there
But in past or future, Hebrew does use forms of to be:
- זה היה מסוכן = It was dangerous
- זה יהיה מסוכן = It will be dangerous
Why is מסוכן masculine singular? What is it agreeing with?
In this kind of impersonal sentence, מסוכן is usually in the masculine singular default form.
It is not really describing a specific masculine noun like street or man. Instead, it describes the whole situation:
- walking alone on this street at night is dangerous
Hebrew often uses masculine singular as the default form in general or impersonal statements.
You can think of מסוכן here as describing an abstract idea or situation, not a person.
Could the word order be different?
Yes, Hebrew word order is somewhat flexible, but the version you have is very natural.
Standard and natural:
- מסוכן ללכת לבד ברחוב הזה בלילה.
You may also hear structures like:
- ללכת לבד ברחוב הזה בלילה זה מסוכן.
- Literally: To walk alone on this street at night, that is dangerous.
This version is a bit more explicit and can add emphasis.
But the sentence you were given is concise and very idiomatic.
How would you pronounce this sentence?
A common transliteration is:
- mesukán lalékhet levád barekhóv hazé baláyla
Rough breakdown:
- מסוכן = me-su-KAN
- ללכת = la-LE-khet
- לבד = le-VAD
- ברחוב = ba-re-KHOV
- הזה = ha-ZE
- בלילה = ba-LAI-la
Notes:
- The kh sound in ללכת and ברחוב is the throaty Hebrew sound, like ch in German Bach or Scottish loch.
- Stress is usually near the end in these words.
Is ללכת here better translated as to walk or to go?
In this sentence, to walk is the best translation.
The verb הלך can mean go or walk, depending on context. But because the sentence is about being alone on a street at night, the idea is clearly:
- to walk alone
If the context were different, ללכת might be translated as to go.
So Hebrew is using one verb, and English chooses the most natural meaning from context.
Could I also say מסוכן ללכת ברחוב הזה לבד בלילה? Where should לבד go?
Yes, that would also be understandable.
Hebrew allows some flexibility in where adverb-like words such as לבד appear. The original sentence:
- מסוכן ללכת לבד ברחוב הזה בלילה
is very natural because לבד stays close to ללכת, so the phrase to walk alone is clear.
A version like:
- מסוכן ללכת ברחוב הזה לבד בלילה
is also possible, though it may sound slightly less smooth to some speakers.
For learners, the safest pattern is:
- ללכת לבד = to walk alone
So the original wording is a good model to follow.
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