הכלוב במכונית.

car

Breakdown of הכלוב במכונית.

• כלוב: cage; crate

Questions & Answers about הכלוב במכונית.

Why is there no word for is in this sentence?

Because Hebrew often leaves out the verb to be in the present tense.

So הכלוב במכונית is literally something like the cage in the car, but it means the cage is in the car.

This is called a nominal sentence. In present-tense Hebrew, this is very common.

Compare:

• הכלוב במכונית = The cage is in the car
• Past tense: הכלוב היה במכונית = The cage was in the car
• Future tense: הכלוב יהיה במכונית = The cage will be in the car

So the missing is is normal Hebrew grammar.

What does ה at the beginning of הכלוב mean?

The prefix ה־ is the Hebrew definite article, meaning the.

So:

• כלוב = cage
• הכלוב = the cage

Unlike English, Hebrew usually adds the directly onto the front of the noun instead of writing it as a separate word.

What does ב at the beginning of במכונית mean?