A friend recently asked me why Hebrew used the same word - tik תיק - for both "bag, satchel" and "file, dossier, portfolio...

During the Pesach vacation, we visited the Biblical Museum of Natural History in Bet Shemesh. It's a really interesting museum, with li...

In Israel's last election cycle, there was much mention of the word hitnatzel התנצל - to apologize. This is the hitpael form of the ro...

A reader asked if there is any connection between the Hebrew word for wallet or purse - ארנק arnak , and the French word  arnaque - "t...

We've discussed a number of Hebrew colors in the past - let's take a look at one less commonly used: tzachor צחור. In the Even-S...

On Shabbat, a friend asked me if there was any connection between the word miluim מילואים used in describing the construction and service i...

A reader asked about the origin of the word dagesh דגש - the grammatical term for the dot put in Hebrew consonants, either to "harden...

In the Book of Esther, it says that the Jews "established and accepted" (the laws of Purim) - קִיְּמוּ וְקִבְּלוּ kimu v'kiblu...

In the discussion of the word kaftor כפתור, I presented a theory that it derives from the word keter כתר - "crown". Let's ta...

In the description of the menorah in Shemot 25:31, we see mention of the word kaftor כפתור. The word is translated in various translations ...

In my post on the word spiel , I suggested that the while the word likely entered English originally through German, the current pronunciati...

I do a lot of walking, and over the past few years, I've really begun to enjoy listening to podcasts while I walk. There aren't any ...

What is the difference between the similar words kahal קהל and kehila קהילה? Both can be defined as "assembly", "congregatio...

Let's see if there's a connection between the words netzach נצח - eternity, minatzeach מנצח - a musical conductor, and  nitzachon...

Reader David asked me if there is any connection between arak ערק - "deserted", orek עורק - "artery" (also in botany ...

In my previous post , I mentioned how the word for gate - בבא bava - derives from the root נבב meaning "hole" or "hollow...

The Yiddish word for grandmother is "bubbe". (There are many alternate spellings - in my family, for example, we spell it "bo...

In the book Lashon Hakodesh , the author includes the word chatul חתול - "cat" in a list of Hebrew words that appear in rabbinic ...

I recently received the book Lashon Hakodesh: History, Holiness & Hebrew  by Rabbi Reuven Chaim Klein. I honestly wasn't sure what t...

If you haven't noticed I tend to jump between capitalizing the "m" in the phrase "M/modern Hebrew". In some ways I t...