Questions & Answers about אפשר לקבל כוס מים, בבקשה?
What does אפשר mean here, and why doesn’t the sentence say אני for I?
In this sentence, אפשר means something like is it possible or may one. Hebrew often uses this kind of impersonal wording instead of explicitly saying I.
So אפשר לקבל... is literally closer to:
- Is it possible to get...
- May I have...
That is why there is no אני in the sentence. Hebrew does not need to say I here, because the meaning is understood from the situation.
Why is לקבל used? Does it literally mean to receive?
Yes. לקבל literally means to receive or to get.
In everyday Hebrew, אפשר לקבל... ? is a very common and natural way to ask for something politely, especially in places like:
- restaurants
- cafés
- shops
- offices
So even though English might more often say Can I have... ?, Hebrew often says Is it possible to receive/get... ?
Why is the structure אפשר + infinitive?