היא מדדה את הקו שוב עם הסרגל, כי הוא היה קצר יותר ממה שחשבה.

Yes. Hebrew often drops subject pronouns when the verb already makes the subject clear.

Here, מדדה means she measured all by itself, because the past-tense verb form shows:

• 3rd person
• singular
• feminine

So both of these are possible:

• היא מדדה את הקו שוב...
• מדדה את הקו שוב...

Including היא can make the sentence feel a bit clearer, more explicit, or slightly more emphatic.

מדדה means measured.

It comes from the verb למדוד = to measure.

In this sentence, מדדה is:

• past tense
• 3rd person
• singular
• feminine

So:

• הוא מדד = he measured
• היא מדדה = she measured

Notice the feminine past form often adds -ה.

את is the direct object marker. Hebrew uses it before a definite direct object.

Here:

• הקו = the line
• It is specific/definite because of ה־
• So Hebrew uses את

That is why we get:

• מדדה את הקו = she measured the line

Compare:

• היא מדדה קו = she measured a line
• היא מדדה את הקו = she measured the line

Important: את usually does not mean anything by itself in English. It is just a grammar marker.

Because הקו means the line, while קו means a line or just line in a more general sense.

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

So:

• קו = a line / line
• הקו = the line

Since the sentence refers to a particular line, Hebrew uses הקו.

שוב means again.

So:

• מדדה את הקו שוב = measured the line again

Its placement here is very natural: after the object phrase or close to the verb phrase.

You may also hear slightly different word orders in Hebrew, depending on emphasis, such as:

• היא שוב מדדה את הקו
• היא מדדה שוב את הקו

But היא מדדה את הקו שוב is perfectly normal.

Yes. עם הסרגל literally means with the ruler.

Breakdown:

• עם = with
• הסרגל = the ruler

This is how Hebrew commonly expresses the instrument used to do something.

So:

• מדדה את הקו עם הסרגל = measured the line with the ruler

In context, English might also say using the ruler, but Hebrew often simply uses עם.

הסרגל means the ruler, while סרגל means a ruler.

So:

• עם סרגל = with a ruler
• עם הסרגל = with the ruler

The sentence uses הסרגל, which suggests a specific ruler, perhaps one already known in the context.

כי means because in this sentence.

So the second clause gives the reason:

• כי הוא היה קצר יותר... = because it was shorter...

Hebrew כי can sometimes have other meanings in different contexts, but because is the straightforward meaning here.

Because קו (line) is a masculine noun in Hebrew.

Hebrew nouns have grammatical gender, even for things that are not biologically male or female. Since קו is masculine, later words referring to it must also be masculine.

So:

• הקו = the line
• הוא = it / he (grammatically masculine)
• קצר = short (masculine form)

In English we say it, but Hebrew uses masculine or feminine forms according to the noun’s grammatical gender.

Because קצר describes הקו (the line), and קו is masculine singular.

Adjectives in Hebrew must agree with the noun they describe.

So:

• קו קצר = a short line
• קו קצר יותר = a shorter line

If the noun were feminine, you would use קצרה instead.

קצר יותר literally means short more, but in natural English it means shorter.

Hebrew usually forms comparatives with:

• adjective + יותר

So:

• קצר = short
• קצר יותר = shorter / more short

Other examples:

• גדול = big
• גדול יותר = bigger
• מהיר = fast
• מהיר יותר = faster

This is a very common Hebrew pattern.

This is one of the most useful parts of the sentence.

ממה שחשבה means roughly:

• than what she thought
• more literally: from what she thought

Breakdown:

• מ־ = from / than
• מה = what
• ש־ = that / which / what (a linking particle)
• חשבה = she thought

So:

• קצר יותר ממה שחשבה = shorter than she thought

Hebrew often uses מ־ after a comparative, where English uses than.

Both are possible, but שחשבה is more compact and very natural.

Since חשבה already means she thought, Hebrew does not need to include היא unless there is some special emphasis or a need for clarity.

So:

• ממה שחשבה = than she thought
• ממה שהיא חשבה = than she thought

The second version is a bit more explicit, but the first is very common and natural.

Because the one doing the thinking is she, the same woman referred to earlier in the sentence.

So:

• חשב = he thought
• חשבה = she thought

Even though the clause starts with ממה ש..., the subject of thought is still the woman, not the line.

The sentence has two main parts:

1. היא מדדה את הקו שוב עם הסרגל

   • She measured the line again with the ruler

2. כי הוא היה קצר יותר ממה שחשבה

   • because it was shorter than she thought

So the structure is:

• main clause
• כי
  • reason clause

This is a very common way to build longer Hebrew sentences.

Some of it can change, though the original version is very natural.

For example, Hebrew might also say:

• היא שוב מדדה את הקו עם הסרגל, כי הוא היה קצר יותר ממה שחשבה.
• היא מדדה שוב את הקו עם הסרגל, כי הוא היה קצר יותר ממה שחשבה.

These all mean roughly the same thing, but the position of שוב can slightly affect emphasis.

Still, the original sentence sounds normal and idiomatic.

A reasonable pronunciation guide is:

Hi madeda et ha-kav shuv im ha-sargel, ki hu haya katzar yoter mi-ma shekhashva.

A few notes:

• היא = hi
• הקו is pronounced ha-kav
• כי = ki
• הוא = hu

The exact pronunciation can vary a little by speaker and accent, but this will get you very close.