לפני שאנחנו חותמות על החוזה, אנחנו רוצות לוודא מה בדיוק צריך לשלם עם הפיקדון.

Breakdown of לפני שאנחנו חותמות על החוזה, אנחנו רוצות לוודא מה בדיוק צריך לשלם עם הפיקדון.

לרצות
to want
מה
what
עם
with
להיות צריך
to need
אנחנו
we
לפני
before
על
on
ש
that
לשלם
to pay
בדיוק
exactly
לחתום
to sign
חוזה
contract
פיקדון
deposit
לוודא
to make sure

Questions & Answers about לפני שאנחנו חותמות על החוזה, אנחנו רוצות לוודא מה בדיוק צריך לשלם עם הפיקדון.

Why does the sentence use חותמות and רוצות? Aren’t those feminine forms?

Yes. Both חותמות and רוצות are feminine plural forms.

That tells you the speakers are talking about a group of women, or a group treated grammatically as feminine.

  • אנחנו חותמות = we (feminine) sign
  • אנחנו רוצות = we (feminine) want

If the speakers were masculine or a mixed-gender group, Hebrew would normally use:

  • אנחנו חותמים
  • אנחנו רוצים

So this sentence is specifically marked as being said by women.

Why is it לפני שאנחנו? What exactly does that mean grammatically?

לפני means before.

When Hebrew wants to say before we..., it often uses:

  • לפני ש... = before...
  • לפני שאנחנו... = before we...

Here, שאנחנו is basically ש + אנחנו.

So:

  • לפני = before
  • שאנחנו = that/we
  • לפני שאנחנו חותמות... = before we sign...

This is a very common structure in Hebrew:

  • אחרי שאנחנו מגיעים = after we arrive
  • לפני שאני הולך = before I go
Why is there a comma after החוזה?

The sentence begins with a subordinate clause:

  • לפני שאנחנו חותמות על החוזה = before we sign the contract

Then it moves to the main clause:

  • אנחנו רוצות לוודא... = we want to make sure...

Hebrew, like English, often uses a comma after an introductory clause. So the comma here works much like in English:

  • Before we sign the contract, we want to make sure...
Why does לחתום על use על? Shouldn’t על literally mean on?

Literally, yes, על often means on. But with the verb לחתום it is the normal preposition.

  • לחתום על חוזה = to sign a contract
  • לחתום על מסמך = to sign a document

So although it may feel like sign on, you should learn it as a fixed verb pattern:

  • חתם / חותם / לחתום על ...

In other words, על is just the preposition Hebrew uses after sign in this context.

Why is it החוזה and not just חוזה?

החוזה means the contract.

The ה־ is the definite article, like the in English.

So:

  • חוזה = a contract
  • החוזה = the contract

This sentence is talking about a specific contract that both speakers already know about, so Hebrew uses the definite form.

Why does Hebrew use רוצות לוודא? Is לוודא an infinitive?

Yes. לוודא is the infinitive: to make sure / to verify / to confirm.

After verbs like רוצה / רוצים / רוצות, Hebrew commonly uses an infinitive, just like English:

  • אני רוצה ללכת = I want to go
  • אנחנו רוצות לוודא = we want to make sure

So the structure is:

  • אנחנו רוצות = we want
  • לוודא = to make sure

Very standard Hebrew grammar.

What exactly does לוודא mean here? Is it to make sure, to verify, or to confirm?

All three are possible depending on context.

In this sentence, לוודא most naturally means to make sure.

So:

  • אנחנו רוצות לוודא = we want to make sure

But the basic idea of the verb is checking or confirming that something is correct or clear. In other contexts, verify or confirm could also work.

Why does the sentence say מה בדיוק צריך לשלם? Who is the subject of צריך here?

This is a very common Hebrew pattern.

צריך here is being used in an impersonal sense, like:

  • what exactly needs to be paid
  • what exactly one has to pay
  • what exactly has to be paid

So it does not necessarily mean he needs here, even though the form looks masculine singular.

Hebrew often uses masculine singular forms impersonally when speaking generally. That’s why you can get:

  • צריך לעשות = one needs to do / it is necessary to do
  • צריך לשלם = one needs to pay / it has to be paid

So מה בדיוק צריך לשלם means something like:

  • what exactly needs to be paid or
  • what exactly one has to pay
Why isn’t it צריכות לשלם if the speakers are feminine plural?

Because צריך here is not agreeing with we. It is not saying we need.

If the sentence meant we need to pay, then you would expect something like:

  • אנחנו צריכות לשלם = we (feminine) need to pay

But that is not what this sentence says.

Instead, it says:

  • מה בדיוק צריך לשלם = what exactly needs to be paid / what exactly has to be paid

So צריך is being used impersonally, not as a feminine plural verb/adjective matching אנחנו.

What does בדיוק add to the sentence?

בדיוק means exactly.

It adds precision or emphasis:

  • מה צריך לשלם = what needs to be paid
  • מה בדיוק צריך לשלם = what exactly needs to be paid

So the speakers are not just asking generally about payment. They want the details to be clear.

What does עם הפיקדון mean here? Does it literally mean with the deposit?

Yes, literally it means with the deposit.

In context, עם here most likely means something like:

  • along with the deposit
  • together with the deposit
  • at the time of paying the deposit

So the sentence is asking what must be paid in connection with the deposit payment.

Depending on context, it could mean:

  • what needs to be paid together with the deposit
  • what charges are due when the deposit is paid
What is פיקדון?

פיקדון means deposit.

Usually it refers to money paid in advance as security, for example in renting, booking, or agreements.

So:

  • פיקדון = deposit
  • הפיקדון = the deposit
Why is it הפיקדון and not just פיקדון?

For the same reason as החוזה: it is definite.

  • פיקדון = a deposit
  • הפיקדון = the deposit

The sentence assumes the speakers already know which deposit is being discussed, so Hebrew uses the definite form.

Is מה בדיוק צריך לשלם עם הפיקדון a direct question?

Not by itself in the sentence. It is an embedded question.

The full structure is:

  • אנחנו רוצות לוודא = we want to make sure
  • מה בדיוק צריך לשלם עם הפיקדון = what exactly needs to be paid with the deposit

So the second part is not being asked directly to the listener as a standalone question. It is the content of what they want to make sure about.

Compare:

  • מה בדיוק צריך לשלם? = What exactly needs to be paid?
  • אנחנו רוצות לוודא מה בדיוק צריך לשלם = We want to make sure what exactly needs to be paid
Could the sentence have said כמה צריך לשלם instead of מה צריך לשלם?

Yes, but it would mean something different.

  • מה צריך לשלם = what needs to be paid
    This asks which payment items / charges are required.
  • כמה צריך לשלם = how much needs to be paid
    This asks the amount.

So in your sentence, the focus is on what exactly is included, not necessarily the total sum.

What is the basic word order of the sentence?

The sentence is:

  • לפני שאנחנו חותמות על החוזה, אנחנו רוצות לוודא מה בדיוק צריך לשלם עם הפיקדון.

A simple breakdown is:

  1. לפני שאנחנו חותמות על החוזה
    = Before we sign the contract

  2. אנחנו רוצות לוודא
    = we want to make sure

  3. מה בדיוק צריך לשלם עם הפיקדון
    = what exactly needs to be paid with the deposit

So the sentence starts with a time clause, then gives the main statement, then gives the embedded question.

That order is very natural in both Hebrew and English.

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