Pronouncing Hebrew Consonants . ו1
Reading Biblical Hebrew Chapter 1: Consonants
John C. Beckman 2016-08-09 Goal: Learn to Pronounce Hebrew Consonants When Reading 2 First sound of name = sound of consonant sounds like a hard g, as in go or give (ג ִּ֫ימֵ ל gimel) ג ,.E.g • sounds like h, as in he or hat (הֵֵא he) ה ,.E.g • Issues are silent . ע and ayin . א Alef • (depend on dot (dagesh פ and tag">pe ,כ kaf ,ב The sound of bet • • Some letters sound the same Caveats • Pronunciation varies with time and people group. • This video’s pronunciation is one modern Hebrew accent. • Traditional seminary pronunciation differs. 3
.is silent . א ִֵּ֫ לֵף Alef Just pronounce its vowel.
א א א א
sounds like the h in honor . א Alef) and the k in knight ) 4 with dagesh is b like blue berry ּבֵ ית Bet without dagesh is v like Velveeta בֵ ית Bet ּבֵֵּב ּב ּב בֵֵב ב ב 5 is hard g like garlic or gagh ג ִּ֫ימֵ ל Gimel
גֵֵג ג ג 6 is d like dates or dessert ד ִּ֫ לת Dalet
דֵֵד ד ד 7 is h like ham or hummus הֵ א He
הֵֵה ה ה 8 is v like Velveeta וו Vav
וֵֵֵו ו ו 9 is z like ziti and zucchini ז ִּ֫ין Zayin
זֵֵז ז ז 10 is a hard h sound like Bach or loch חֵ ית Ḥet
חֵֵח ח ח 11 is t like taco or toffee טֵ ית Tet
טֵֵט ט ט 12 is y like yogurt or yam יֹוד Yod
יֵֵֵי י י 13 with dagesh is k like kimchi or kiwi . ּכֵף Kaf without dagesh is hard h like Bach or loch . כֵף Kaf ּכֵֵּכ ּכ ּכ כֵֵכ כ כ :is pronounced the same ּכֵף סֹופית Final kaf
כ sounds like .ך and ,ּכ sounds like ּך 14 is L like lard or linguini ל ִּ֫מד Lamed
לֵֵל ל ל
16 is m like mocha מֵ ם Mem or moo goo gai pan 蘑菇雞片
מֵֵמ מ מ
:is pronounced the same מֵֵם סֹופית Final mem
מ sounds like . ם 17
is n like nachos or nan .נּון Nun
נֵֵנ נ נ
:is pronounced the same נּון סֹופית Final nun
נ sounds like .ן 18 is s like soufflé or soba ס ִּ֫מ ְך Samekh
סֵֵס ס ס 19
.is silent . ע ִּ֫ ין Ayin Just pronounce its vowel.
ע ע ע ע
(Like the h in honest and the p in psychology ) 20 with dagesh is p like pablum or poi . ּפֵֵא Pe without dagesh is f like falafel or fugu . פֵֵא Pe ּפֵֵּפ ּפ ּפ פֵֵפ פ פ :is pronounced the same ּפֵֵא סֹופית Final pe
פ sounds like .ף and ,ּפ sounds like ּף 21 is ts like matzo or rats צ ִּ֫די Tsadi
צֵֵצ צ צ
:is pronounced the same צ ִּ֫ד יֵסֹופית Final tsadi
צ sounds like .ץ 22 is k like kohlrabi or Koolaid קֹוף Qof
קֵֵק ק ק 23 .is a voiced uvular fricative or trill רֵ יׁש Resh English speakers use r like rocky road
רֵֵר ר ר 24
is s like sago or sufferin’ succotash . ׂשין Sin
ׂשֵֵׂש ׂש ׂש 25 is sh like shish kabab ׁשין Shin
ׁשֵֵׁש ׁש ׁש 26 is t like tamarind or tiramisu תו Tav
תֵֵת ת ת Certain Letters Sound the Same 27
.Silent. Just pronounce the following vowel ע ,א v ו ,ב Hard h like Bach or loch כ ,ח k ק ,ּכ t ת ,ט s ׂש ,ס Traditional Seminary Pronunciation: begedkefet Consonants 28 Some consonants change pronunciation with a dot (dagesh) • No dagesh sound that can continue (e.g., v and f) • Dagesh point-like sound (e.g., b and p) change in modern Hebrew בכפ Only v ב b ּב • ḥ כ k ּכ • f פ p ּפ • also change pronunciation גדת Traditionally gh ג g ג • ’hard th like ‘the ד d ד • ’soft th like ‘thin ת t ת • beged kefet’ consonants‘ בגדכפת •