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THE PIRCHEI SHOSHANIM DIK DUK LEARNING PROJECT
An Overview
 Rabbi Shalom Gold - Pirchei Shoshanim 2003
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T H E
P I R C H E I
S H O S H A N I M
D I K
D U K
L E A R N I N G
P R O J E C T
A Short Overview of the
Construction of the
Hebrew Language
(In 100 words or less)
The Hebrew Language is built around three-letter root words, each of which forms the
core of the nouns, verbs, and other parts of speech relating to the root. The nuances of
eating, feeding, being fed, digesting, being eaten, gluttony, slaughtering knife,
devouring, eatable and indeed the word “food” itself, are all created by the addition of
predictable and consistent prefixes, suffixes, infixes (inserted letters), and vowels which
attach to a single, unique, three-letter root (shoresh). The keys to understanding are:
identifying the root and identifying the function of the letters and vowels
attaching to the root.
This book can teach you to do that, in just a few hours.
Abbreviations
The following abbreviations are used throughout this book:
G
N
D
T
P
C
=
=
=
=
=
=
Gender (masculine or feminine)
M = Male
F = Female
Number (singular or plural)
S = Singular Pl = Plural
Definitiveness (“the”)
Tense (past, present, future)
Person: (1st = I, we; 2nd = you [S], you [Pl]; 3rd = he, she [S], they, them [Pl]
Common for both M and F
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T H E P I R C H E I
O V E R V I E W
S H O S H A N I M
D I K
D U K
L E A R N I N G
P R O J E C T
Parts of Speech
I Noun
•
A noun is a person, place, thing, or concept. In Hebrew, It
always has gender and number.
•
A non-definitive word that substitutes for a noun (i.e. “it”),
“It” must agree in person, gender, and number with the noun it
replaces.
II Pronoun
A. Possessive Pronoun
•
A possessive pronoun shows ownership. It either takes the
place of a noun or is attached to a noun.
B. Demonstrative Pronoun
•
A word that identifies a specific object, i.e., “this” book.
•
An adjective describes how or what is the noun. In Hebrew, it
must agree with the noun in gender, number and
definitiveness. A noun’s adjective follows the noun and has
the same gender as the true gender of the noun.
III Adjective
A. Definite Article
•
A definitive article limits or specifies. In English the word
“the” is the definitive article. In Hebrew the prefix “v” is the
sign of the definitive article.
B. Indefinite Article
•
In Hebrew, there is no sign for the indefinite article. All nouns
are assumed to be indefinite unless they are made definitive.
•
A Verb expresses an action, a state of being, or a condition.
The verb indicates the time reference of the sentence - (past,
present, or future). The verb must agree with the subject noun
in gender, number, and person.
•
In English the infinitive is the “to” form of the verb (i.e. to
learn, to daven). In Hebrew, it is characterized by a “k” prefix
preceding the verb root as a relative makor vowel pattern.
•
An adverb describes, qualifies or limits a verb, adjective or
another adverb. In Hebrew, it does not have to agree with the
IV Verb
Infinitive
V Adverb
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T H E P I R C H E I
O V E R V I E W
S H O S H A N I M
D I K
D U K
L E A R N I N G
P R O J E C T
verb in gender, number, person, or definitiveness. He learns
quickly. “Quickly” is the adverb.
VI Preposition
•
A connective word that joins nouns or pronouns to the verb. A
preposition shows relationship (i.e. with, at from, of, by).
•
A conjunction connects words, phrases and clauses (i.e. and,
or, but).
VII Conjunction
Parts of the Sentence
I Subject
•
The subject of a sentence is a noun or pronoun that does,
causes, or receives the action of the verb. It has gender,
number, and person.
•
The direct object of a sentence receives the action of the verb.
II Object
A. Direct Object
•
The direct object answers the question “who” or “what” of the
verb. It must come directly after the verb (ex. I guarded a
Sefer Torah. “Sefer Torah” is the direct object.)
B. Indirect Object
•
An indirect object receives the action of the verb indirectly
(ex. Shimon gave the book to me. “To me” is the indirect
object.)
C. Object of the Preposition
•
A prepositional phrase consists of a preposition and a noun or
pronoun, with or without adjectives. The noun or pronoun is
the object of the preposition (ex. Moshe placed the book on the
table. Shimon learned in Yeshiva. “Table” and “Yeshiva” are
objects of the preposition.)
•
The predicate is the portion of the sentence containing the
verb. A predicate says something about the subject of the
sentence.
III Predicate
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