divide & conquer reading chapter 5 sh'va

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© by R. Shmuel A. Goldstein

Format Divide & Conquer Hebrew Reading

(11i¥a§iŸ(12mŸ §z¦R(13dW§Wr(14L §zi¥a(15` §x©i©e(16L§Wxi¦Y(17`§h¥g(18E` §xi¦i(19i¥p§R¦n(20Ef§l§r©i

Divide & ConquerHebrew Reading

A Complete Guide to Formal Hebrew Reading Skills

zexeny zeiekfd lk

© COPYRIGHT 2004by

R. Shmuel A. GoldsteinN. Miami Beach, Florida [email protected]

305•725•7075

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced inany manner whatever, including information storage or retrievalin whole or in part (except for brief quotations in critical articles orreviews), without written permission from the author.

This booklet is part of a range of materials produced by

Helping Jewish Minds Succeed!

In memory of our dear grandparents, who started us off on the path of Torah.

Louis and Irma Hirschfeld

Ignatz and Eugenie Mark

Benjamin and Helen Jacobs

Aaron and Fannie Friedman

KexA mx§k¦f i¦d§i May their memory be blessed

And,In honor of Reb Shmuel Goldstein, whose unique methodology of teachingTorah started our children off on the right path.

Annette and Neil FriedmanBoca Raton, Florida Tammuz 5764


For a final and ultimate challenge, here is a Hebrewword with the most amount of syllables in all of thewritten Torah (Ezekiel 20:44).Try to divide this word and read.

m¤ki¥zeli¦l£r©k§eIt is told in a book called, “Yesod V’Shoresh Ha’avodah,that a certain righteous person was visited by theprophet Eliyahu. When the tzaddik asked what wasdelaying the coming of Mashiach, Eliyahu answeredthat the Jewish people did not know how to properlypronounce the letters and vowels during prayer.

I remember when I first began to look morecarefully at Hebrew words and noticed that the word©lWEx§im¦ , in the blessings after eating a meal, was

missing the letter “ i ” at the end. Yet it had the vowel“cheerik” with no letter above. When I asked myteacher about this, he taught me that as long as thefinal redemption has not come, Yerushalayim willalways be missing the ‘ i ’ - the spiritual perfection thatwe all yearn and hope for.” It is my hope that through

ContentsPreface 2

Basic Review 8

Introduction to Syllabication 8

Chapter 1 - Open Syllables 12

Chapter 2 - Closed Syllables 16

Chapter 3 - Tricky DotsShin or Sin with a Cholam 20

Chapter 4 - Quick Sounding SyllablesThe Chatafs 20

Chapter 5 - Sh’va RulesOverview: Sh’va Rules (Baby sh’va, please go to sleep!) 22The Sh’va Rules-In Detail 27Rules of Sh’va Under the Letters of r-dg` (Eye-Patch) 38Rules of Hay Hayadeeyah (Hey! Ha Ya Doin?) 39Priorities Rules of Sh’va (Get Your Priorities Right!) 40Oh No...A Test?!! (Don’t worry, answers are in back.) 41

Chapter 6 - Ending Sound SyllablesChallenging Words & Anomalies 44


Divide & Conquer Hebrew Reading Format

Below is a final list of words for practice that containsmost all the rules we have learned. If you havedifficulty on any of these words, the numbers on eachline refer to the pages in which that rule was taught.In addition, you should continue to use the “Divide &Conquer” method to practice these and other words.

(12-15)‚ ¤ceYdti ¥i¥iee¦v

(16-18)mi¦A ©xoeI¦vr©ayl

(20-21)dMep£gi¥l¢d¨Yx©f¡g¤d¤y

(27-30)a¥§fL§A §x¦wL §z`¥v

(32-35)el §C©bet§t¨i¦y §cw

(37-39)§Y§p©dl§rn§l¦nc¥n©l§n©d

(44-47)i©i©giel§Y DA §x¦w§A

(48-55)©deab¡i-Ÿd-¦e-d§i©e-i

Chapter 7 - Accents On Hebrew WordsThe Meteg “Uphill Signs” (Can You Produce Produce?) 50

Chapter 8 - Pauses .......In .......Reading......WordsPauses Between “Twin” Letters 52Pauses Between Closed Syllables and “Soft” Letters 54Pauses Inside Words 55

Chapter 9 - HaShem’s Name and its PronunciationI Deny? I Dunno? A’donai !!! 56Moshe & Kalaiv - Keepers of the Name 58

Chapter 10 - Kamatz KatanWhen “Ah” Becomes “Oh” (For Sefardim) 60

Chapter 11 - Check Your UnderstandingHow You Know You Know ! 64

Chapter 12 - ConclusionWhat’s It All For ? 66

Chapter 13 - AnswersYeah! A Book With Answers! 68

Divide & Conquer Hebrew Reading Preface

PrefaceThe goal of this book is to: • Strengthen the ability of those beginning to read

Hebrew using syllabication and other methods• Enhance the awareness and understanding of the

many wonderful details of Hebrew reading, for layman and educator alike.

It is not within the scope of this work to teachthe details of Hebrew grammar, or Torah reading skills,but to focus on the needs of those that wish to perfecttheir reading skills with vowels as found in the sidduror other similar text. When one masters readingthrough this approach, reading without vowels willbecome easy.

Whether you are familiar with reading Hebrew

or just in the beginning stages, this material will offer a

concise yet systematic approach to grasping the

mechanics of Hebrew reading. Many new insights and

often overlooked details will be explained allowing the

reader to read more accurately and fluently.



j When a Kamatz is on the first letter of a rootword and the last two letters of the root arel©tM-Doubledand the previous vowel is also a Kamatz.

Example

va|YA|sov aqi©e

The root of the above word is really .a.a.q . The letter“a-Vet” is dropped from the end of the word, but is stillconsidered “doubled”.

C Hebrew words such as lM and wg do not fit in theabove rules, but are still considered a Kamatz Katanand are pronounced with the long “o” sound.

Preface Divide & Conquer Hebrew Reading

This booklet will also provide an easy way to

understand and memorize these details through

varying mnemonic techniques and specific memory

tricks.

Many books have been published in Hebrew on

this subject and yet very few have been written for the

English speaking world. It is my hope that those

returning to their Jewish roots will reap the benefit of

what this unique guide can offer. To utilize this

material to its fullest, one is encouraged to first master

the names and sounds of both the Hebrew Alphabet

and vowels and how they’re combined. A review of

these skills are included in the beginning.

Enjoy your journey into what is truly a holy and

magnificent language to read, learn and live with.

Sincerely,

R. Shmuel Goldstein

2R


Key to Icons:

• Rules and their Numbers:

• Special Notes: C• Syllables on Hebrew words will be divided by

using two types of lines.

For regular syllables: |

For quick sounding syllables: \

• After every unit of rules, there will be a review section called “Divide & Conquer”.

These sections will have this icon:


y When a Kamatz blends together with a ”`a§y “and is not accented. This can be memorizedas: The “Mommy Kamatz” that C.A.N. (ClosedAnd Not accented)

Example

kor|BAN| §xw|o©A|


Chapter 5

The Rules ofSh’va


Chapter 7

Ending SoundSyllables

gi©|

Page 52


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of rules 1-8

(1DADO¦rDx¥p

(2DtFqDgi ¥xD E ¦

(3DzŸD lDWi ¦

(4D«©bŸpD N ªMD«pŸe£r

(5DnC ¦nD «O©rDzŸH ©d§l

(6Dza ¢wDzg§p ¦nDx q ¡«¤e

(7DW §t©pD p i ¦n§lDr §x©f

(8Dx £x «¥D «znF «wDx Ea£r «©A


Introduction to the Sh’vas

Learning about the “going” & “resting” sh'va will taketime and practice, but once these key rules aremastered, your ability to divide Hebrew words will beperfected and reading Hebrew becomes quite simple.

These rules of Sh’va are often never quite learned inmost Hebrew classes due to the many rules thatgovern them. In this book, I have made it easy foranyone to understand and memorize these rules.

Throughout these rules, I will refer to the “sh'va” as a“baby” in order to aid the memorization of when it willmake a sound or not. If there is a doubt what the ruleis when reading, one should pronounce the sh'vasound.10

10.In many prayer books, there are commonly found varioussymbols, such as a horizontal lines on top of letters that have ash’va. This is to show that the sh’va makes a sound. No horizontal line is necessary on the first letter of a wordbecause it will always be “going” except on the words of: i ¥Y §yand m¦i ©Y §y as will be explained further on.

Page 53


To begin with, there are two types of sh’va. They are called:

1) Going2) Resting

• The “going” sh’va will have a short “i” sound as in the word, “it”.11 or as in the first part of the word“c’mon”. It’s sound is represented by the apostrophe mark.

• The “resting” sh’va will have no sound.

The “going sh’va” is so called since it goes quickly intothe next syllable. This is because sh’va is not a truesyllable of its own but is a “half-type” syllable similar tothe “Cha’taf” vowels as explained above. Therefore,this syllable will also be represented with a dotted line.

A “resting sh’va” will have the syllable rest and stop.Only the sound of the letter will be pronounced.

11.According to Hebrew Grammar experts, there are a fewdifferent sounds that a “sh’va” can make depending on thesurrounding vowels. Generally speaking, Ashkenazim primarilymake a short “i” sound, and Sefardim use a quick short “e”sound as in the word “egg”. To distinguish it from a “Cha’tafSegol” we will use the short “i” sound.

15

14


RWhen a Hebrew word contains avertical line underneath, it indicates thesyllable where one must accent the word.

Example

«A|Ep|BA|noo|

The translation of the above word means, “In us”.

R When a Hebrew word does notcontain a vertical line underneath, the wordwill be accented on the last syllable.

Example

A|Ep|ba|NOO|

The translation of this word now means, “They built”.

Page 54


- Accentsb ¤z¤n

Can You Produce....Produce?

We will now learn about the proper place to accentHebrew words. It is important to emphasize Hebrewwords on the correct syllable, as in many cases itchanges the meaning and tenses of a word as will beshown.

C The custom of many Chassidim is to accent wordson the second to last syllable. Yet when this will differon the reading of Shma and the reading of the Torah,since they are biblical commandments. Nevertheless,Hebrew words should never be accented on a “sh’va”or any of the “chataf” vowels.

9


RWhen a word has a “going” sh’va, itwill have a quick sound that moves into thenext syllable.

§q\g©l|s’\LACH|

C This word is not pronounced as one syllable, “slach”. According the Hebrew

grammar, blends are only at the end of asyllable, but not at the start as is commonlyfound in English words.

Page 55

10


RWhen a word has a “resting” sh’va,that sh’va will be silent and will close thesyllable.

§Y©|at|

C This word is not pronounced as twosyllables, “a|tih|”. Use your finger as a blanketto cover up the baby sh’va that is resting. Thiswill make it easier to understand and read.


Chapter 6

Accents

¤n«K¤l

Page 56

13 e


= Music to Quiet the Baby mi¦n£r©h

R When a sh’va comes right after amusical note in a word, that sh’va is resting.

Memory Cue: Even if a “Daddy’s” voice mightwake of the baby, the music makes the babygo to sleep.

Exceptions: None

Example

ka|TON|ti| iY§p ÀŸhw|

C This particular rule applies to those thatare “Readers of the Torah”.


Now that we understand the two types of sh’vas, wewill now learn when they will be “going” or “resting”.

First we will start with a quick overview of all of these 7rules and then review each with memory cues,exceptions, and examples.

There are 5 main rules that explain when a sh’vamakes a sound.These can easily be remembered by the first five lettersthat “go” in order of the Hebrew alphabet. Each letterhints to a specific rule that affects the sh’va. Therefore,these rules will be referred by the letters and notnumbers. This will help to reinforce these rules. These are:

Going

d c b A `The next page shows what rules these letters stand for.

Page 57


` = First When a sh’va is under the first letter of a word, the sh’va will be “going” (i.e. makes a sound).

Example r’\oo|VAYN| §x\E`|o¥a|

A = 2 When 2 sh’vas are in the middle of a word, the first is a“resting” sh’va and the second is a “going” sh’va.

Example naf|sh’\CHA| §t©p|§W\L|

b = Gadol/Big When a sh’va comes after a “big” vowelsound, the sh’va will be “going”. The big vowel sounds are:

¨ F ¥ E i ¦Example yo|sh’\VAY| Fi|§W\i¥a|

c = Dagesh/Dot When a sh’va is under a letter that has a“dot” inside, the sh’va will be “going”.

Example za|m’\ROO| ©f|§O\Ex|

d = Hadomot/Same When a sh’va comes under the firstof two twin letters, the sh’va will be “going”.

Example ha|l’\LOO| ©d|§l\El|


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of thedri ¦c§i©d-d rule.

(1KxŸa §n ©dm¦I ¦e §l ©dd ¨ i ¦x §T ©d

(2mi ¦x a §C ©dgA ªW §n ©d©g ¥v©p §n©l 19

(3d l Ec§B ©dzFx F` §O ©dd k El §O ©d

(4zŸc§N ©i §n «©d 20W ¥C ©g §O ©dc ¥n©l §n ©d

(5m ¥g ©x §n ©dm l Fr§l ©d d r EW §i ©d21

19. This word really should have been written ©g¥v©p§n©d§l but isshortened to one letter. Therefore the same rule applies.

20. When a Hay Hayidi’a has a verticle line (“meteg”), the sh’vaafter it will rest and not make a sound. See chapter 6 for moreinformation on this special mark called a “meteg”.

21. When this type of Hay comes before a Yood with a Sh’va, theSh’va will still rest and not make a sound but the Yood willchange the sound of the Patach. See rule 16 below.

Page 58

c12


= Hey! Ha You Doin’? dri ¦c§i©d d

RWhen a sh’va comes after a ©d in front of a

word that describes a noun (called Hay Hayidi’a), thatsh’va is will be going.

Memory Cue: Even if the “Mommy” is trying to putthe baby to sleep, when her friend comes by and yells,“Hey! How you doin’?”,the baby will wake up.

Exceptions: Before the letter i (Yood) or when itappears with an “meteg” accent line.

Example

ha|m’|da|BER| ©d|§n\©c|x¥A|C This particular rule is difficult to mastersince it requires a working knowledge ofHebrew root words.


The last 2 main rules explain when a sh’va is silent.This can easily be remembered by the two letters thatspell the word “w©q-sack”. We “hit the sack” when it istime to “rest”. These letters are:

Resting

w q

The next page shows what rules these letters stand for.

Page 59


q = Sof/End When a sh’va is the last vowel, that sh’va willalways be resting (i.e. silent).

Example ba|ROOCH| A|KEx|

w = Katan/Small When a sh’va comes after a “small”vowel sound, the sh’va will be resting (i.e. silent).The small vowel sounds are:

© ’ ¤ ª ¦

Example oov|NAY| 12 §aE|d¥p|Additional rules that govern the way a sh’va issounded will be listed on pages 38-39.

12. According to the majority of opinions, this sh'va is resting anddoes not make a sound. However, the minor opinion of the“RaZah” states that this is a "going" sh'va.


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the r-dg` rule.

(1i ¦x c § ¤pxŸq § ¤I ©em ©W § ¤i

(2d ¤i §g ¦iE i §g ¦ez©i §g ¦nE

(3d ¤i §d¦p 18zF i §d¦lK ©R §d¤p

(4i ¦Y§r ©nWd l§r n §l ¦nzŸr ªA§r ©a £

(5FW § axŸf § ¤YsU §g ©n

(6Ki ¦W §g ¤dEl A §d¤I ©ei C §d i

(7K ©R §d dEl ¦R§r©I ©ei ¦Y§r©p n18. The letter “Hay” in the middle of a word does have a soundbut is silent at the end.

Page 60

11


= Eye Patch r-dg`

We have covered the 7 main rules of sh’va. Now we’llexplain additional rules that relate to the sh’va.

R When a sh’va comes under the letters of

r-d-g-`, the sh’va will always be resting.

Memory Cue: When the baby’s eyes are covered, itwill go to sleep.

Exceptions: None

Example

v’|sa|VA|ta| §e\U|§r«a|Y|


The following pages contain the same above rules, butwith many examples in order to better familiarizeoneself with them and master them. Extra pages that contain the previous rules will alsofollow for added practice. You should practice thesewords by dividing the words into their syllables andthen read them. By using this method, you’ll surely beable to...

“Divide & Conquer”!

Page 61


Rules of theGoing Sh’va


Page 62



`


dpFW` ¦x = First / `

R A sh’va under the first letter of a word willalmost always be a “going” sh’va (i.e. makes a sound)

Memory Cue: The first part of the day a baby wakesup and makes a noise.

Exceptions: The two Hebrew words of i¥Y§y / m¦i©Y§y ,the sh’va is resting (i.e. silent).

Example r’\oo|VAYN| §x\E`|o¥a|C This word is commonly mispronounced as asroo|vayn. This is because the quick moving sh’va is notheard clearly. This is an example of reading thatmistakenly follows what is heard and not what iswritten. However, there are words like, i¦p¥aE` «xd (Bamidbar 23:7) in which there is no sh’va under the xand the ` is silent, making the word pronounced as:ha|roo|vay|NEE.

Page 63


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the ` rule.

(1aŸx §AlFc§BxFx §c

(2z ¤ §ea ¥ §flEa §h

(3 E`x §i 13qFp §MxŸc§l

(4KFl §nm ª§pmŸc §q

(5g ©z §Rg©l §vsh §w

(6zEW §xg©l §WxŸ §U

(7sx §UKEp §Yr ©w §Y

13. This is an example of a resting “Alef”, meaning that it is silentand the E belongs to the x. It should be pronounced as Ex§i .


Step 1Step 2Step 3Write the RuleDivideWrite the Amount of Syllables

(1mi ¦c§W©M(2` §x©i©e(3m¥g§p©Y(4g©l§q(5Ex§q§g©i(6z©b§b¦W(7z¤k¤A §xªn(8Ec §xi(9m¦i©Y§W

(10dz§M¦gPage 64


Test on the 7Sh’va Rules

Now that we have covered these rules, it is time to testyour knowledge.

DIRECTIONS: On each Hebrew word there will be one or two“sh’vas” . When there are two, focus on the one that isboxed. An example is given on the first word. Answers will be provided at the end of this book.

Step 1) Look at each word carefully and decide whichof the first seven rules apply. When there are two ormore rules that may apply, follow the one that has thehighest priority. Afterwards, write the letter for that rule in the circle.The lettersStep 2) Divide the word into proper syllables using the“Stop-Line” method as shown previously.

Step 3) Write the amount of syllables in the square.

A


m¦i©p§W = 2 / ARWhen two sh’vas are in the middle of aword,the first one is “resting” (i.e. silent) and the secondis “going”.

Memory Cue: When two babies are going for a nap inthe middle of the day, the first one will rest but thesecond one will be make noise.

Exceptions: When there are two sh’va’s at the end of a

word. In that case they will both be resting e.g. §C §x©A rhyme to help you remember this rule and it’s exceptionis:“When you see two sh’va’s in the middle of a word

The first one will rest and the second is heard.

“But when you see two sh’vas at the endThey’ll both be resting and said as a blend”.

Example yach|s’\ROO| |Ex\§q|§g©iPage 65


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the A rule.

(1dx §M§f ¤L §Y§l ¦AL§l §cB

(2L §Y§r ©†CL §A §x ¦dEg §h §a¦i §e

(3L §x §k¦fd p §A§l ¤g`¥i l §R §x ©h

(4E f§l§r©iL §x §z ¦ML §zk¤l

(5i ¦c §R §q ¦nEx §q §n¦pL §x §t ¦q

(6L §x§f¤rL §c §g ©Rl ¥ §v §a ©w

(7q¥q §n§rxzFx §W §x ©WEr §x§fY


The priorities are as follows:

Rule Exceptions Priority

- q sh’va at the end. None 1

- ` sh’va in the beginning. None (Except m¦i©Y§W/i¥Y§W ) 1

- a Two sh’vas in the

middle or end.

None1

- d sh’va under the first of

twin letters.

None1

Eye Patch - sh’va under

the letters of r'dg`None

1

d Ha Ya Doin’ - sh’va after

a ©d in the front of a word.

None (Except before a §i and when it has a “meteg” «©d ).

1

- c sh’va under a dagesh Rule: q 2

- b sh’va after a “big”

sound vowel

Rules: A/q 3

- w sh’va after a “small”

sound vowel

Rules: /d/c’dricid-d 3

Page 66

Get Your Priorities Right

The “Daddy” Tzayrayvowel should cause thesh’va to make a sound,but doesn’t.

When there are twosh’vas, the first onerests and the secondshould make asound, but doesn’t.

The dot inside thisletter should cause the“sh’va” to make asound, but doesn’t.


Many times a Hebrew word will have more than onerule that may apply on a particular sh’va. When thishappens, one must look at which rule has a higherpriority and follow only that rule.

A great example of how many rules can apply to oneword is:

§C §x¥p

The priority on this word is as follows:a-Two sh’vas at the end will always be resting. This word is read as:

Example nayrd| §C §x¥p|

E - Only in the beginningof a word.

b


lFcb = Big / b

RA sh’va will be “going” when it comes afterthe “big” vowel sounds of:

¨F¥E14 i ¦Memory Cue: Just like a father that wakes up hisbaby with his big sounding voice.

Exceptions: Rule q / A as in the words:

`§h¥g and §C §x¥p .

Example yo|sh’\VAY| Fi|§W\i¥a|

14. - Only if a Shoorook E is in the beginning of a word.

Page 67

Notice that theKamatz has a line“dripping” downthe side. Imaginethis as ketchupfrom food he ate.Guys are a littlemessy sometimes.

Only a Shoorookin the middle of aword is a “Daddy”vowel. If it’s inthe beginning it isa “Mommy”instead.


To visually memorize the above five “big”vowels, look at the picture below.

Study the “Father Vowels” in this picture andthen fill them in the picture on the next page and seehow well you did.

i ¦ E ¥ F ¨


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the w rule.

(1wg §v¦idg§p ¦n E` §xI©e

(2o w §x ªRog§l ªym¥r §xE

(3x ¥Y §q ¤o F i§l¤rL§l«¤l ©d§p

(4dn §k ’g 17i ©k §C §x ’ni ¦M §x ’v

(5mx §a ©i ¥x §y ©dŸr §x ©R

(6mŸ §z ¦Roq §x ªnd¥p §aE

(7qFr §k ¤o ©A §xwmr §a ©W17. Sefardim pronounce this Kamatz as a long "o" sound. Formore information, how to recognize this special “Small Kamatz” see Chapter 9.

Page 68


Fill in the Mommy Vowels and then check on theprevious page to see if you did it correctly.


Fill in the Daddy Vowels and then check on theprevious page to see if you did it correctly.

Page 69


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the b rule.

(1L§li ¦v©iE` §xi¦I ©eL §xi¦r

(2L §aEhi ¥t §qEnL §cEg¦i

(3Ea §W¥iL §zi ¥AoFy §x¥b

(4i ¥a §WFie i ¨ §xŸw 15mi¦r §xFM

(5Ec §x«iEx §n «W ¦dEp §z«p §e

(6L §yŸxi ¦z §eqg§p i ¦Rm ¤k §z` ¥v

(7L §zEa §WEk§l «di ¦ §xi ¦Y15. A “cholom” can also be written without a the letter “vav”


To help one memorize the above six small “MotherVowels”, one should visually memorize them with theaid of the picture below. Study this picture and fillthem in the picture on the next page.

Page 70

w



ohw = Small / w

R After a “small” vowel sound, a sh’va will be“resting”.

© ’ ¤ ª ¦

Memory Cue: The mother will put her baby to sleepwith her small soft voice.

Exceptions: Rules: c / d/ and dri ¦c§i©d 'd such

as: KxŸa§œn©d

Example zim|RA| §n¦f|dx|C Some Sefard siddurim will show a“Mommy” Kamatz with a longer stem. When a“Cheerik” blends, many Jews will change itssound to a short “i”.

c


W¥bc = Emphasis / c

R When a sh’va comes under a letter thathas a Dagesh-dot inside, the sh’va will be “going”.

Memory Cue: Even if the “mommy” tries to put thebaby sh’va down for a nap in the middle of the day, the“doggy-dagesh” will wake it up with it’s loud bark.

Exceptions: Rule q as in the word: §C §x© .

Example sa|b’\AY|noo| ©U|§A\¥r|Ep|

C This word can be heard to be commonlymispronounced by many cantors as:sa|bay|noo

Page 71


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the c rule.

(1Ex §O©fLi¤pt§N ¦nEp¥r §A ©U

(2Ex §A ©c`¥d§I ¤W Ea §S¦p

(3El §C©bEx §O©fEx §R©q

(4Ex §V ©AEl§G ¦im ¤k§N ªM

(5dz §E ¦wEpW §C ¦wEp ¥g §O ©U

(6Eb §Q ©Ri¥p §X ªc §nEr§B ¦Y

(7dz §M ¦gEW §T ©AEp §Y¦i


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the q rule.

(1KExA§C §x¥p§A §W¦i©e

(2` §x©i©e§J §a¥i©e§Y§p ©

(3§Y ©K ¥O©r§C §x ©

(4§h §Ww©d§Y §t©i§Y §w ©gv

(5K¤l ¤n§Y §c©lFi16K ¤xŸ

(6§Y §n©lg§T §W©i§Y §n©rh

16. The two letters of Y/c come from the same part of the mouth.This makes it hard to say each letter properly when a sh’va isresting on both and these letters are together. Therefore, somesay the sh’va under the c as if it were “going”.

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q


sFq = End / q

RWhen a sh’va is the last vowel, it willalways be “resting”.

Memory Cue: At the end of the day, a tired baby willalways go to sleep.

Exceptions: None

Example chayt| `§h¥g|C Notice that the sh’va is not on the last letter, but isthe last vowel, thereby making it rest. The last letter ` issilent and doesn’t make a sound.

C Keep in mind the rule when there are two sh’va’s atthe end of a word, they will both be resting.

Example ard| §C §x©|

d


zFnFc©d = Twin Letters / d

RWhen a sh’va is under the first of twinletters, the sh’va will be “going”.

Memory Cue: Hey, look at those twin lady letters!The first one has a baby that is making noise.

Exceptions: None


Page 73


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the d rule.

(1Et §t ¨E f§f Adx §x¥b

(2zFa §aFci¦p§p ¦dEp§P ©xi ¦e

(3dn §n fo i ¦W §WFgi¥l§l ©h

(4L §k «¤xa §iEp§p FM miv §vFl

(5i¥l§l©r ©nEc §c pi ¥a §aFq

(6dx §xFrEW §WwEn §nFx

(7En §nWL §kFzz©b§b ¦W


Rules of theResting Sh’va

Page 74


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the d rule.

(1Et §t ¨E f§f Adx §x¥b

(2zFa §aFci¦p§p ¦dEp§P ©xi ¦e

(3dn §n fo i ¦W §WFgi¥l§l ©h

(4L §k «¤xa §iEp§p FM miv §vFl

(5i¥l§l©r ©nEc §c pi ¥a §aFq

(6dx §xFrEW §WwEn §nFx

(7En §nWL §kFzz©b§b ¦W


Rules of theResting Sh’va

Page 75

q


sFq = End / q

RWhen a sh’va is the last vowel, it willalways be “resting”.

Memory Cue: At the end of the day, a tired baby willalways go to sleep.

Exceptions: None

Example chayt| `§h¥g|C Notice that the sh’va is not on the last letter, but isthe last vowel, thereby making it rest. The last letter ` issilent and doesn’t make a sound.

C Keep in mind the rule when there are two sh’va’s atthe end of a word, they will both be resting.

Example ard| §C §x©|

d


zFnFc©d = Twin Letters / d

RWhen a sh’va is under the first of twinletters, the sh’va will be “going”.

Memory Cue: Hey, look at those twin lady letters!The first one has a baby that is making noise.

Exceptions: None


Page 76


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the c rule.

(1Ex §O©fLi¤pt§N ¦nEp¥r §A ©U

(2Ex §A ©c`¥d§I ¤W Ea §S¦p

(3El §C©bEx §O©fEx §R©q

(4Ex §V ©AEl§G ¦im ¤k§N ªM

(5dz §E ¦wEpW §C ¦wEp ¥g §O ©U

(6Eb §Q ©Ri¥p §X ªc §nEr§B ¦Y

(7dz §M ¦gEW §T ©AEp §Y¦i


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the q rule.

(1KExA§C §x¥p§A §W¦i©e

(2` §x©i©e§J §a¥i©e§Y§p ©

(3§Y ©K ¥O©r§C §x ©

(4§h §Ww©d§Y §t©i§Y §w ©gv

(5K¤l ¤n§Y §c©lFi16K ¤xŸ

(6§Y §n©lg§T §W©i§Y §n©rh

16. The two letters of Y/c come from the same part of the mouth.This makes it hard to say each letter properly when a sh’va isresting on both and these letters are together. Therefore, somesay the sh’va under the c as if it were “going”.

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w



ohw = Small / w

R After a “small” vowel sound, a sh’va will be“resting”.

© ’ ¤ ª ¦

Memory Cue: The mother will put her baby to sleepwith her small soft voice.

Exceptions: Rules: c / d/ and dri ¦c§i©d 'd such

as: KxŸa§œn©d

Example zim|RA| §n¦f|dx|C Some Sefard siddurim will show a“Mommy” Kamatz with a longer stem. When a“Cheerik” blends, many Jews will change itssound to a short “i”.

c


W¥bc = Emphasis / c

R When a sh’va comes under a letter thathas a Dagesh-dot inside, the sh’va will be “going”.

Memory Cue: Even if the “mommy” tries to put thebaby sh’va down for a nap in the middle of the day, the“doggy-dagesh” will wake it up with it’s loud bark.

Exceptions: Rule q as in the word: §C §x© .

Example sa|b’\AY|noo| ©U|§A\¥r|Ep|

C This word can be heard to be commonlymispronounced by many cantors as:sa|bay|noo

Page 78


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the b rule.

(1L§li ¦v©iE` §xi¦I ©eL §xi¦r

(2L §aEhi ¥t §qEnL §cEg¦i

(3Ea §W¥iL §zi ¥AoFy §x¥b

(4i ¥a §WFie i ¨ §xŸw 15mi¦r §xFM

(5Ec §x«iEx §n «W ¦dEp §z«p §e

(6L §yŸxi ¦z §eqg§p i ¦Rm ¤k §z` ¥v

(7L §zEa §WEk§l «di ¦ §xi ¦Y15. A “cholom” can also be written without a the letter “vav”


To help one memorize the above six small “MotherVowels”, one should visually memorize them with theaid of the picture below. Study this picture and fillthem in the picture on the next page.

Page 79


Fill in the Mommy Vowels and then check on theprevious page to see if you did it correctly.


Fill in the Daddy Vowels and then check on theprevious page to see if you did it correctly.

Page 80

Notice that theKamatz has a line“dripping” downthe side. Imaginethis as ketchupfrom food he ate.Guys are a littlemessy sometimes.

Only a Shoorookin the middle of aword is a “Daddy”vowel. If it’s inthe beginning it isa “Mommy”instead.


To visually memorize the above five “big”vowels, look at the picture below. The vowel chartbelow the picture, shows how each vowel sounds ismatched to the one below it.

Sefardim pronounce the Cholam-F / `Ÿ as thesame sound as the matching “Mother Kamatz” vowelbelow it. Study the “Father Vowels” in this picture andthen fill them in the picture on the next page and seehow well you did.

i ¦ E ¥ F ¨


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the w rule.

(1wg §v¦idg§p ¦n E` §xI©e

(2o w §x ªRog§l ªym¥r §xE

(3x ¥Y §q ¤o F i§l¤rL§l«¤l ©d§p

(4dn §k ’g 17i ©k §C §x ’ni ¦M §x ’v

(5mx §a ©i ¥x §y ©dŸr §x ©R

(6mŸ §z ¦Roq §x ªnd¥p §aE

(7qFr §k ¤o ©A §xwmr §a ©W17. Sefardim pronounce this Kamatz as a long "o" sound. Formore information, how to recognize this special “Small Kamatz” see Chapter 9.

Page 81

Get Your Priorities Right

The “Daddy” Tzayrayvowel should cause thesh’va to make a sound,but doesn’t.

When there are twosh’vas, the first onerests and the secondshould make asound, but doesn’t.

The dot inside thisletter should cause the“sh’va” to make asound, but doesn’t.


Many times a Hebrew word will have more than onerule that may apply on a particular sh’va. When thishappens, one must look at which rule has a higherpriority and follow only that rule.

A great example of how many rules can apply to oneword is:

§C §x¥p

The priority on this word is as follows:a-Two sh’vas at the end will always be resting. This word is read as:

Example nayrd| §C §x¥p|


b


lFcb = Big / b

RA sh’va will be “going” when it comes afterthe “big” vowel sounds of:

¨F¥E14 i ¦Memory Cue: Just like a father that wakes up hisbaby with his big sounding voice.

Exceptions: Rule q / A as in the words:

`§h¥g and §C §x¥p .

Example yo|sh’\VAY| Fi|§W\i¥a|

14. - Only if a Shoorook E is in the beginning of a word.

Page 82


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the A rule.

(1dx §M§f ¤L §Y§l ¦AL§l §cB

(2L §Y§r ©†CL §A §x ¦dEg §h §a¦i §e

(3L §x §k¦fd p §A§l ¤g`¥i l §R §x ©h

(4E f§l§r©iL §x §z ¦ML §zk¤l

(5i ¦c §R §q ¦nEx §q §n¦pL §x §t ¦q

(6L §x§f¤rL §c §g ©Rl ¥ §v §a ©w

(7q¥q §n§rxzFx §W §x ©WEr §x§fY


The priorities are as follows:

Rule Exceptions Priority

- q sh’va at the end. None 1

- ` sh’va in the beginning. None (Except m¦i©Y§W/i¥Y§W ) 1

- a Two sh’vas in the

middle or end.

None1

- d sh’va under the first of

twin letters.

None1

Eye Patch - sh’va under

the letters of r'dg`None

1

d Ha Ya Doin’ - sh’va after

a ©d in the front of a word.

None (Except before a §i and when it has a “meteg” «©d ).

1

- c sh’va under a dagesh Rule: q 2

- b sh’va after a “big”

sound vowel

Rules: A/q 3

- w sh’va after a “small”

sound vowel

Rules: /d/c’dricid-d 3

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Test on the 7Sh’va Rules

Now that we have covered these rules, it is time to testyour knowledge.

DIRECTIONS: On each Hebrew word there will be one or two“sh’vas” . When there are two, focus on the one that isboxed. An example is given on the first word. Answers will be provided at the end of this book.

Step 1) Look at each word carefully and decide whichof the first seven rules apply. When there are two ormore rules that may apply, follow the one that has thehighest priority. Afterwards, write the letter for that rule in the circle.The lettersStep 2) Divide the word into proper syllables using the“Stop-Line” method as shown previously.

Step 3) Write the amount of syllables in the square.

A


m¦i©p§W = 2 / ARWhen two sh’vas are in the middle of aword,the first one is “resting” (i.e. silent) and the secondis “going”.

Memory Cue: When two babies are going for a nap inthe middle of the day, the first one will rest but thesecond one will be make noise.

Exceptions: When there are two sh’va’s at the end of a

word. In that case they will both be resting e.g. §C §x©A rhyme to help you remember this rule and it’s exceptionis:“When you see two sh’va’s in the middle of a word

The first one will rest and the second is heard.

“But when you see two sh’vas at the endThey’ll both be resting and said as a blend”.

Example yach|s’\ROO| |Ex\§q|§g©iPage 84


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the ` rule.

(1aŸx §AlFc§BxFx §c

(2z ¤ §ea ¥ §flEa §h

(3 E`x §i 13qFp §MxŸc§l

(4KFl §nm ª§pmŸc §q

(5g ©z §Rg©l §vsh §w

(6zEW §xg©l §WxŸ §U

(7sx §UKEp §Yr ©w §Y

13. This is an example of a resting “Alef”, meaning that it is silentand the E belongs to the x. It should be pronounced as Ex§i .


Step 1Step 2Step 3Write the RuleDivideWrite the Amount of Syllables

(1mi ¦c§W©M(2` §x©i©e(3m¥g§p©Y(4g©l§q(5Ex§q§g©i(6z©b§b¦W(7z¤k¤A §xªn(8Ec §xi(9m¦i©Y§W

(10dz§M¦gPage 85



`


dpFW` ¦x = First / `

R A sh’va under the first letter of a word willalmost always be a “going” sh’va (i.e. makes a sound)

Memory Cue: The first part of the day a baby wakesup and makes a noise.

Exceptions: The two Hebrew words of i¥Y§y / m¦i©Y§y ,the sh’va is resting (i.e. silent).

Example r’\oo|VAYN| §x\E`|o¥a|C This word is commonly mispronounced as asroo|vayn. This is because the quick moving sh’va is notheard clearly. This is an example of reading thatmistakenly follows what is heard and not what iswritten. However, there are words like, i¦p¥aE` «xd (Bamidbar 23:7) in which there is no sh’va under the xand the ` is silent, making the word pronounced as:ha|roo|vay|NEE.

Page 86

11


= Eye Patch r-dg`

We have covered the 7 main rules of sh’va. Now we’llexplain additional rules that relate to the sh’va.

R When a sh’va comes under the letters of

r-d-g-`, the sh’va will always be resting.

Memory Cue: When the baby’s eyes are covered, itwill go to sleep.

Exceptions: None

Example

v’|sa|VA|ta| §e\U|§r«a|Y|


The following pages contain the same above rules, butwith many examples in order to better familiarizeoneself with them and master them. Extra pages that contain the previous rules will alsofollow for added practice. You should practice thesewords by dividing the words into their syllables andthen read them. By using this method, you’ll surely beable to...

“Divide & Conquer”!

Page 87


q = Sof/End When a sh’va is the last vowel, that sh’va willalways be resting (i.e. silent).

Example ba|ROOCH| A|KEx|

w = Katan/Small When a sh’va comes after a “small”vowel sound, the sh’va will be resting (i.e. silent).The small vowel sounds are:

© ’ ¤ ª ¦

Example oov|NAY| 12 §aE|d¥p|Additional rules that govern the way a sh’va issounded will be listed on pages 38-39.

12. According to the majority of opinions, this sh'va is resting anddoes not make a sound. However, the minor opinion of the“RaZah” states that this is a "going" sh'va.


Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of the r-dg` rule.

(1i ¦x c § ¤pxŸq § ¤I ©em ©W § ¤i

(2d ¤i §g ¦iE i §g ¦ez©i §g ¦nE

(3d ¤i §d¦p 18zF i §d¦lK ©R §d¤p

(4i ¦Y§r ©nWd l§r n §l ¦nzŸr ªA§r ©a £

(5FW § axŸf § ¤YsU §g ©n

(6Ki ¦W §g ¤dEl A §d¤I ©ei C §d i

(7K ©R §d dEl ¦R§r©I ©ei ¦Y§r©p n18. The letter “Hay” in the middle of a word does have a soundbut is silent at the end.

Page 88

c12


= Hey! Ha You Doin’? dri ¦c§i©d d

RWhen a sh’va comes after a ©d in front of a

word that describes a noun (called Hay Hayidi’a), thatsh’va is will be going.

Memory Cue: Even if the “Mommy” is trying to putthe baby to sleep, when her friend comes by and yells,“Hey! How you doin’?”,the baby will wake up.

Exceptions: Before the letter i (Yood) or when itappears with an “meteg” accent line.

Example

ha|m’|da|BER| ©d|§n\©c|x¥A|C This particular rule is difficult to mastersince it requires a working knowledge ofHebrew root words.


The last 2 main rules explain when a sh’va is silent.This can easily be remembered by the two letters thatspell the word “w©q-sack”. We “hit the sack” when it istime to “rest”. These letters are:

Resting

w q

The next page shows what rules these letters stand for.

Page 89


` = First When a sh’va is under the first letter of a word, the sh’va will be “going” (i.e. makes a sound).

Example r’\oo|VAYN| §x\E`|o¥a|

A = 2 When 2 sh’vas are in the middle of a word, the first is a“resting” sh’va and the second is a “going” sh’va.

Example naf|sh’\CHA| §t©p|§W\L|

b = Gadol/Big When a sh’va comes after a “big” vowelsound, the sh’va will be “going”. The big vowel sounds are:

¨ F ¥ E i ¦Example yo|sh’\VAY| Fi|§W\i¥a|

c = Dagesh/Dot When a sh’va is under a letter that has a“dot” inside, the sh’va will be “going”.

Example za|m’\ROO| ©f|§O\Ex|

d = Hadomot/Same When a sh’va comes under the firstof two twin letters, the sh’va will be “going”.



Divide & Conquer Divide and read these examples of thedri ¦c§i©d-d rule.

(1KxŸa §n ©dm¦I ¦e §l ©dd ¨ i ¦x §T ©d

(2mi ¦x a §C ©dgA ªW §n ©d©g ¥v©p §n©l 19

(3d l Ec§B ©dzFx F` §O ©dd k El §O ©d

(4zŸc§N ©i §n «©d 20W ¥C ©g §O ©dc ¥n©l §n ©d

(5m ¥g ©x §n ©dm l Fr§l ©d d r EW §i ©d21

19. This word really should have been written ©g¥v©p§n©d§l but isshortened to one letter. Therefore the same rule applies.

20. When a Hay Hayidi’a has a verticle line (“meteg”), the sh’vaafter it will rest and not make a sound. See chapter 6 for moreinformation on this special mark called a “meteg”.

21. When this type of Hay comes before a Yood with a Sh’va, theSh’va will still rest and not make a sound but the Yood willchange the sound of the Patach. See rule 16 below.

Page 90

13 e


= Music to Quiet the Baby mi¦n£r©h

R When a sh’va comes right after amusical note in a word, that sh’va is resting.

Memory Cue: Even if a “Daddy’s” voice mightwake of the baby, the music makes the babygo to sleep.

Exceptions: None

Example

ka|TON|ti| iY§p ÀŸhw|

C This particular rule applies to those thatare “Readers of the Torah”.


Now that we understand the two types of sh’vas, wewill now learn when they will be “going” or “resting”.

First we will start with a quick overview of all of these 7rules and then review each with memory cues,exceptions, and examples.

There are 5 main rules that explain when a sh’vamakes a sound.These can easily be remembered by the first five lettersthat “go” in order of the Hebrew alphabet. Each letterhints to a specific rule that affects the sh’va. Therefore,these rules will be referred by the letters and notnumbers. This will help to reinforce these rules. These are:

Going

d c b A `The next page shows what rules these letters stand for.

Page 91

divide & conquer reading chapter 5 sh'va

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