21 Words And Phrases You NEED To Know Before Traveling To Israel
Shuk HaCarmel in Tel Aviv, Israel Image by iStock
Interning in Israel can sometimes feel like a vacation. Close to stunning beaches and scenic hikes, trendy restaurants and historical landmarks, it’s easy to remain in tourist territory. But when you’re spending months in Israel, it’s best to try to immerse.
Keep these key Hebrew phrases handy to ease into living and working in Israel:
“Shalom”: (Sha-lom): Hi, hello; goodbye
“Shalom” is the most common greeting in Israel, and it’s important to remember that it also means goodbye (Think aloha). It’s used in both informal and formal settings, at any time of day.
“Lehitraot”: (Le-heat-ra-ot): Goodbye
It’s more common than “shalom,” but most people actually just say, “bye!”
“Boker tov”: (Bo-ker tov): Good morning
“Erev tov”: (Er-ev tov): Good evening
“Ani [name]”: (Ah-nee): My name is ____.
“Naim meod”: (Nah-eem me-od): It’s a pleasure [to meet you].
“Toda”: (Toe-da): Thank you
If you want to add emphasis, say, “toda raba,” which means, “thank you very much.”
“Bevakasha”: (Bev-ak-ah-sha): You’re welcome
“At medaberet Anglit?” / “Ata medaber Anglit?”: (Aht med-ah-bear-et Ong-leet) / (Ahta med-ah-bear Ong-leet): Do you speak English?
Use the first when asking a woman, and the second when asking a man. This is an important phrase — if you’re in trouble or get flustered, you can look for someone to easily communicate with. In this case, gender rules apply. Hebrew doesn’t currently have gender-neutral terms.
“Lo”: (Low): No
“Ken”: Yes
“Ktsat”: (Ket-sat): A little
“Ma?”: What? Come again?
“Ani lo medaberet Ivrit” / “Ani lo medaber Ivrit”: (Ah-nee low med-ah-bear-et Eve-reet) / (Ah-nee low med-ah-bear Eve-reet): I do not speak Hebrew.
This is also gender dependent: Use the first if you are a woman, and the second if you are a man. Similar to the phrase above, this is helpful if you find yourself in a bind.
“Slicha”: (Slee-cha) (hard “ch”) : Excuse me.
You can say this when trying to get someone’s attention; for instance, before asking if they speak English or when waving down a bartender. It also means, “I’m sorry,” so it’s the perfect phrase to shout when making your way through a crowded shuk, the outdoor market.
“Eifo rehov [destination]”: (Eh-foe re-hov): Where is ____?
“Po:” (Poe): There
“Yalla”: (Yah-lah)
This phrase has a variety of meanings, from “Bring it on!” to “Hurry up!” to “OK” to “This is awesome!” to “I’m giving up” to “Talk later.”
“Kama ze ole?”: (Kah-mah zeh oh-ley): How much is it?
This is a helpful phrase when shopping, ordering food or picking up fresh fruits and vegetables at the shuk.
Speaking of, you should begin practicing your basic numbers. The man running my favorite dried fruit stand in Shuk HaCarmel in Tel Aviv would quiz me — soon he refused to let me order the weight of the food in English! It was a great lesson, mostly because it gave me the confidence to negotiate. No price in Israel is set in stone.
1. Echad (Eh-chad) (hard “ch”) 2. Shtaim (Sht-ime) 3. Shalosh (Sha-losh) 4. Arba (Ar-bah) 5. Hamesh (Ham-esh) 6. Shesh (Shey-shh) 7. Sheva (Sheh-vah) 8. Shmone (Shmo-neh) 9. Tesha (Tay-shah) 10. Eser (Es-ser)
“Efes:” (Ef-es): Zero
Good to know if you’re sharing your phone number and there is a zero. Which brings us to our next phrase…
“Ha-mispar sheli hu [number]”: (Ha-mees-par shell-lee hoo): My number is ___.
Israel is multicultural — be prepared to be spoken to in many languages besides Hebrew, including Arabic and Russian, even English. But you’ll be staying for a while — try your best and learn from the locals. Yalla!
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