Year Two · Unit 9
מִין וּמִסְפָּר
Gender and Number
Everything in Hebrew is masculine or feminine — nouns, verbs, adjectives must all agree. No neutral. And beyond singular and plural, there is the dual — for things that come in natural pairs.
Gender — Every Noun Has a Gender
Hebrew has no neuter gender. Every noun is either masculine (זָכָר) or feminine (נְקֵבָה). Adjectives, verbs, and pronouns must match the gender of the noun they relate to.
Masculine default: Most nouns with no special ending are masculine.
Feminine endings: ה- (ah) and ת- (et/at) are the most common feminine endings — but many exceptions exist. Some masculine words end in ה- and some feminine words have no special ending at all.
| Type | Hebrew | Ending | Plural | Example |
|---|
| Masculine | סוּס | — | ים- (-im) | סוּס / סוּסִים — horse / horses |
| Feminine (-ah) | מַלְכָּה | ה- (-ah) | וֹת- (-ot) | מַלְכָּה / מְלָכוֹת — queen / queens |
| Feminine (-et) | שַׁבָּת | ת- (-at/et) | וֹת- (-ot) | שַׁבָּת / שַׁבָּתוֹת — Sabbath |
| Irregular (m looks f) | אָב | no ending | וֹת- (-ot) | אָב / אָבוֹת — father / fathers |
| Irregular (f looks m) | אֶרֶץ | no ending | וֹת- (-ot) | אֶרֶץ / אֲרָצוֹת — land (feminine!) |
Agreement — Nouns, Adjectives, and Verbs Must Match
In Hebrew, adjectives follow the noun and must match in gender and number. Verbs conjugate differently for masculine vs feminine subjects. The entire sentence is in agreement.
מֶלֶךְ גָּדוֹל — Melekh gadol — a great king (both masculine singular)
מַלְכָּה גְּדוֹלָה — Malkah gedolah — a great queen (both feminine singular)
מְלָכִים גְּדוֹלִים — Melakhim gedolim — great kings (both masculine plural)