מה הגזע?

In present-tense Hebrew, the verb to be is usually omitted. So מה הגזע? literally looks like what the-trunk/root?, but it means What is the trunk/root?

This is very normal in Hebrew:

• מה זה? = What is this?
• מי הוא? = Who is he?
• איפה הספר? = Where is the book?

If you want a present-tense is/are, Hebrew usually just leaves it out.

מה means what.

It is one of the most common Hebrew question words:

• מה = what
• מי = who
• איפה = where
• מתי = when

So מה הגזע? begins exactly the way an English question like What is ... ? begins.

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

So:

• גזע = a trunk / a root / a race / a stock depending on context
• הגזע = the trunk / the root / the race / the stock

In Hebrew, the is attached directly to the noun as a prefix, instead of being a separate word.

It is usually pronounced approximately ha-GEH-tza or ha-GZA, depending on speaking style and how carefully someone is pronouncing it.

A simple learner-friendly breakdown is:

• ה = ha
• גזע = geza

So the full phrase is:

• מה הגזע?
• approximately ma ha-GEH-tza?

A few pronunciation notes:

• ג = g as in go
• ז = z
• ע at the end is often very weak or silent in modern Israeli Hebrew, but it can slightly affect the vowel or syllable feel

The order is:

• מה = what
• הגזע = the trunk/root

So literally it is What the trunk/root?

That is a normal Hebrew way to form a simple question in the present tense. Since Hebrew leaves out is, the sentence does not need anything else.

גזע is masculine.

So if you later describe it with an adjective, the adjective should usually be masculine too. For example:

• הגזע גדול = The trunk is big

Its plural is:

• גזעים = trunks / roots / stocks / races, depending on context

And with the definite article:

• הגזעים = the trunks / the roots / the stocks / the races

Using הגזע means the speaker is asking about a specific thing already known in context: the trunk/root.

For example, if you are looking at a diagram, a tree, or a linguistic example, the speaker may be asking:

• What is the trunk?
• Which part is the trunk?
• What is the root?
  depending on context

Without ה־, מה גזע? would sound incomplete or unnatural in most situations.

Yes. גזע can have several meanings depending on context. Common ones include:

• tree trunk
• root/stem in some specialized contexts
• race/ethnicity
• stock/lineage

So the exact meaning of מה הגזע? depends heavily on where you saw it.

For a Hebrew learner, this is very common: one noun may have multiple meanings, and context tells you which one is intended.

Yes, but it means something slightly different.

• מה הגזע? = What is the trunk/root/race? or What is the root?
• איזה גזע? = Which trunk/root/race? or What kind of breed/race?

מה asks what?
איזה asks which? / what kind of?

So they are not always interchangeable.

Yes. It is short, but it is a complete and natural question in Hebrew.

Hebrew often allows very compact sentences, especially in:

• labels
• classroom speech
• textbook questions
• diagrams
• conversations where the context is already clear

Because the meaning is already understood from context, מה הגזע? can sound perfectly normal.