Citizen Square explores Israeli culture through language, creative expressions, and personal stories.
This month, we’re diving into LOVE—that wild, messy, magical feeling that keeps us talking. Whether it’s for a person, a city, or the dish you’d eat every day if you could, we’re celebrating love in all its shapes and flavors.

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Hebrew Nugget

Love or Friendship? Hebrew’s Hidden Clue

Hebrew Nugget:

Love or Friendship? Hebrew’s Hidden Clue

One of the classic confusions in Hebrew is how we refer to a boyfriend or girlfriend. You might already know that it’s חבר (chah-ver) for a guy and חברה (chah-veh-rah) for a girl—but here’s the tricky part: these words also just mean… friend!

So how do you know if someone who says “הלכתי לסרט עם החברה שלי” means they went to the movies with a friend or with their special someone?

The answer, my friends, isn’t just blowing in the wind—it’s hidden in the magical “ה” הידיעה (the definite article ha-). If someone says החבר שלי (ha-chaver sheli) or החברה שלי (ha-chavera sheli), you can safely assume they’re talking about their partner, not just a friend.

Little letters, big impact! 😉

בית VS. הביתה

Hebrew Nugget:

בית VS. הביתה

You probably know the Hebrew word בית (bah-yeet), which means “house.” A house refers to the physical place you live in, but what word would you use in Hebrew when you want to talk about your home? The place you’re emotionally connected to, where you know how to find the light switches even in the dark, or where the WiFi connects automatically? 😉

Unfortunately, we don’t have an exact word for “home” in Hebrew (definitely something to nag the Hebrew Academy about!). However, we do have the term הביתה (hah-bahy-tah), which literally means “to the house,” but we use it when we want to say “I’m going home.”: אני הולך הביתה (ah-nee hoh-lehch hah-bahy-tah) for the masculine form, and אני הולכת הביתה (ah-nee hoh-leh-cheht hah-bahy-tah) for the feminine form.

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Citizen Square explores Israeli culture through language, creative expressions, and personal stories.
This month, we’re diving into LOVE—that wild, messy, magical feeling that keeps us talking. Whether it’s for a person, a city, or the dish you’d eat every day if you could, we’re celebrating love in all its shapes and flavors.

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Hebrew Nugget:

Love or Friendship? Hebrew’s Hidden Clue

One of the classic confusions in Hebrew is how we refer to a boyfriend or girlfriend. You might already know that it’s חבר (chah-ver) for a guy and חברה (chah-veh-rah) for a girl—but here’s the tricky part: these words also just mean… friend! So how do you know if someone who says “הלכתי לסרט עם החברה שלי” means they went to the movies with a friend or with their special someone? The answer, my friends, isn’t just blowing in the wind—it’s hidden in the magical “ה” הידיעה (the definite article ha-). If someone says החבר שלי (ha-chaver sheli) or החברה שלי (ha-chavera sheli), you can safely assume they’re talking about their partner, not just a friend. Little letters, big impact! 😉