בסוף הארוחה אבא תמיד שוטף את הכלים.

בסוף means at the end of or in the end of.

It is made of:

• ב־ = in / at
• סוף = end

So בסוף הארוחה means at the end of the meal.

In natural English, this whole phrase is often translated as after the meal or at the end of the meal, depending on context.

הארוחה means the meal.

The prefix ה־ is the Hebrew definite article, equivalent to the in English.

So:

• ארוחה = a meal / meal
• הארוחה = the meal

In this sentence, we are talking about a specific meal, so Hebrew uses הארוחה.

Also, after בסוף, Hebrew commonly uses a definite noun when you mean the end of the meal, not just an end of a meal.

אבא means dad.

It does not need ה־ because words like Dad, Mom, personal names, and many family titles used as names often behave like proper nouns.

So:

• אבא = Dad
• not האבא in this sentence

If you said האבא, it would usually mean the father, not Dad as a form of address or reference.

תמיד means always.

In Hebrew, adverbs like תמיד often come before the verb:

• אבא תמיד שוטף את הכלים
• literally: Dad always washes the dishes

This word order is very natural in Hebrew.

You may also hear other adverb placements in some contexts, but subject + תמיד + verb is one of the most common patterns.

שוטף is the masculine singular present-tense form of the verb לשטוף, which means to wash, to rinse, or to flush, depending on context.

Here it means washes.

Hebrew uses the present tense form for actions that happen regularly or habitually, especially when a word like תמיד is present.

So:

• שוטף = washes / is washing
• with תמיד, it clearly means always washes

In Hebrew present tense, verbs agree with the subject in gender and number.

אבא is masculine singular, so the verb is also masculine singular:

• שוטף = masculine singular

Compare:

• אבא שוטף = Dad washes
• אמא שוטפת = Mom washes
• הם שוטפים = They wash (masculine or mixed group)
• הן שוטפות = They wash (feminine)

So the form שוטף tells you the subject is one masculine person or thing.

את is the marker of a definite direct object.

It does not have a direct English translation here, but it tells you that the noun after it is the specific thing receiving the action.

So in:

• שוטף את הכלים

the word את marks הכלים as the direct object of שוטף.

A very important rule:

• use את before a definite direct object
• do not use it before an indefinite direct object

Compare:

• הוא שוטף את הכלים = He washes the dishes
• הוא שוטף כלים = He washes dishes

הכלים means the dishes or the utensils.

It is made of:

• כלים = dishes / utensils / tools / vessels, depending on context
• ה־ = the

Because the sentence refers to a specific set of dishes, Hebrew uses the definite form:

• הכלים = the dishes

This works together with את, because את is used before definite direct objects:

• את הכלים

Not literally in every context.

The singular כלי can mean tool, utensil, vessel, or item depending on context. The plural כלים has several meanings.

In everyday speech:

• לשטוף כלים = to wash dishes
• הכלים in this sentence is naturally understood as the dishes

So even though the word can be broader than English dishes, that is the correct meaning here.

Yes.

Hebrew present tense is often used for:

• actions happening now
• regular habits
• general truths

Because the sentence includes תמיד = always, the meaning is clearly habitual:

• Dad always washes the dishes

So even though שוטף is formally a present-tense form, in this sentence it expresses something that happens regularly, not necessarily right this second.

A simple transliteration is:

be-sof ha-a-ru-kha aba ta-mid sho-tef et ha-ke-lim

A more natural connected pronunciation is roughly:

b'sof ha-arukha aba tamid shotef et hakelim

A few helpful notes:

• בסוף often sounds like b'sof
• הארוחה begins with ha-
• שוטף has the sh sound as in ship
• כלים ends with -im, a very common masculine plural ending

Yes, absolutely.

That is a very natural English translation.

Hebrew says literally:

• At the end of the meal Dad always washes the dishes

But in normal English, both of these are good:

• At the end of the meal, Dad always washes the dishes
• After the meal, Dad always does the dishes

The exact English wording can vary, even though the Hebrew sentence stays the same.