7-1
Chapter 7 (Adjectives): Goals

The book teaches how to inflect adjectives,
changing the vowels as needed.
– My class does not require inflecting adjectives.

You do need to be able to:
1. Identify the gender and number of an adjective
based on its ending.
2. Identify the lexical form of an adjective when it has
an ending and the vowels have changed.
3. Identify how an adjective is being used
(substantival, predicate, or attributive).
4. Translate an adjective depending on how it is used.
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7-2
Chapter 7 (Adjectives): Agenda

Inflecting Adjectives

Using Adjectives

Mappiq

Directional Ending
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7-3
Inflecting Adjectives

Adjectives are masculine or feminine, singular or plural
– No dual adjectives

Adjective matches Gender and Number of the noun that
it modifies or for which it substitutes.
– Dual nouns use plural adjectives

Adjectives use expected endings (Except some MS ‫) ֶ ה‬
– endingless or ‫ֶ ה‬
MS
– ‫ָה‬
FS
– ‫ִ ים‬
MP
– ‫ֹות‬
FP
Lexical form
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7-4
Adjectives Match Gender & Number, Not Ending

An adjective always matches the gender and number of
the noun that it modifies or substitutes for.
–
‫ִאי ׁ וֹוב‬
–
‫ִאָּׁשָ ה וֹובָ ה‬
– ‫וֹובים‬
ִ
‫ָ ׁים‬
ִ ‫אָנ‬

a good man
a good woman
good men
An adjective does not necessarily match the ending on
the noun that it modifies.
– ‫ָ ׁים וֹובֹות‬
ִ ‫ָנ‬
–
‫א ׁ וֹובָ ה‬
– ‫וֹובים‬
ִ
‫אָ בֹות‬
good women
good fire
good fathers
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7-5
Practice Parsing Adjectives
MS
FS
MP
FP
MS
FS
MP
FP
MS
FS
MP
FP
‫וֹוב‬
‫וֹוב‬
‫וֹוב‬
‫וֹוב‬
‫ַרע‬
‫ַרע‬
‫ַרע‬
‫ַרע‬
‫יָפֶ ה‬
‫יָפֶ ה‬
‫יָפֶ ה‬
‫יָפֶ ה‬
‫ וֹוב‬.1
‫ וֹובָ ה‬.2
‫וֹובים‬
ִ
.3
‫ וֹובֹות‬.4
‫ ַרע‬.5
‫ ָרעָ ה‬.6
‫ ָר ִעים‬.7
‫ ָרעֹות‬.8
‫ יָפֶ ה‬.9
‫ יָפָ ה‬.10
‫ י ִָפים‬.11
‫ יָפֹות‬.12
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7-6
Chapter 7 (Adjectives): Agenda

Inflecting Adjectives

Using Adjectives

Mappiq

Directional Ending
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7-7
Three Uses for Adjectives

Substantival
– Acts as a noun.
– E.g., ‘the good’

Attributive
– Modifies a noun.
– E.g., ‘the good book’

Predicative
– Asserts something about a noun.
– The noun is the subject of the sentence.
– The predicate adjective acts as the verb.
– E.g., ‘The book is good.’
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7-8
The Article and Position Indicate the Use

Substantival – Does not modify a noun.
– ‫‘ הַ ּטֹובָ ה‬the good (woman? Torah?)’

Attributive
– Attributive After noun, Article Agrees
– ‫‘ הָ ִאָּׁשָ ה הַ ּטֹובָ ה‬the good woman’
– ‫‘ ִאָּׁשָ ה וֹובָ ה‬a good woman’ (or predicate)

Predicative
– Predicative dePrived of the article
– ‫ הָ ִאָּׁשָ ה וֹובָ ה‬or ‫‘ וֹובָ ה הָ ִאָּׁשָ ה‬the woman is good’
– ‫‘ וֹובָ ה ִאָּׁשָ ה‬a woman is good’
– ‫‘ ִאָּׁשָ ה וֹובָ ה‬a woman is good’ (or attributive)
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7-9
Detecting How an Adjective is Used
1. Is the adjective near a noun with the same gender and number
that it makes sense that the adjective is modifying the noun?
2.
–
No  Substantival
–
Yes  Predicate or Attributive
Does the adjective have the article?
–
Yes  Attributive
–
No  Attributive or Predicate
(predicate never has the article)
3.
Adjective before the noun  Predicate
4.
Definite noun but indefinite adjective  Predicate
5. Indefinite adjective after indefinite noun
 Predicate or Attributive
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7-10
Detecting How an Adjective is Used
Nearby noun
matches ♀♂ #?
NO
Yes
Adjective has
the article?
Yes
‫הַ ּטֹוב‬
Substantival
‫הָ ִאי ׁ הַ ּטֹוב‬
ׁ ‫הַ ּטֹוב הָ ִאי‬
Attributive
NO
Adjective after
the noun?
NO
ׁ ‫וֹוב ִאי‬
Predicate
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7-11
Detecting How an Adjective is Used
Adjective lacks the article.
Adjective after the noun.
Adjective agrees
in definiteness
with the noun?
No
Predicate
Yes
Attributive
or
Predicate
Indefinite Adjective
After
Indefinite Noun
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Practice: Indicate Adjective Use and Translate
7-12
‫ הַ ֵּ֫ספֶ ר הַ ּטֹוב‬.1
the good book (attributive)
‫ וֹוב הַ ֵּ֫ספֶ ר‬.2
the book is good (predicate)
‫ הַ ֵּ֫ספֶ ר וֹוב‬.3
the book is good (predicate)
‫ ֵּ֫ספֶ ר וֹוב‬.4
a good book OR a book is good
‫ הָ ֵָּ֫א ֶרץ הַ ּטֹובָ ה‬.5
the good land (attributive)
‫ וֹובָ ה הָ ֵָּ֫א ֶרץ‬.6
the land is good (predicate)
‫ּתֹורה‬
ָ
ַ‫ יְ ָׁ ָרה ה‬.7
the law is upright (predicate)
ִ
ְ‫ הַ ִמ ְ ׁפָ ִוים הַ ג‬.8
the great judgments (attributive) ‫דֹולים‬
‫ הֶ חָ כָ ם‬.9
the wise (man) (substantival)
‫יקים‬
ִ ‫ הַ כֹּהָנִ ים הַ צַ ִד‬.10
the righteous priests (attributive)
‫ הָ עבָ ִדים הָ ָר ִעים‬.11
the wicked servants (attributive)
‫ ָר ִעים הָ עבָ ִדים‬.12
the servants are wicked (predic.)
‫ הָ ִעיר הַ גְ דֹולָ ה‬.13
the great city (attributive)
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7-13
Chapter 7 (Adjectives): Agenda

Inflecting Adjectives

Using Adjectives

Mappiq

Directional Ending
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7-14
Mappiq

Hay ‫ ה‬at the end of a word is always a vowel letter
– Hay with mappiq ‫ ּה‬is always the consonant Hay.

Thus, at the end of a word:
– ‫ = ָ ה‬vowel letter Qamets Hay = â
– ‫ = ָ ּה‬Vowel Qamets + Consonant Hay = āh
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7-15
Chapter 7 (Adjectives): Agenda

Inflecting Adjectives

Using Adjectives

Mappiq

Directional Ending
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7-16
Directional Ending vs. Feminine Singular Ending

‫ ָ ה‬Accented = Feminine Singular
– The book won’t show an accent mark, since the
accent is on the last syllable of the word.

‫ ָ ה‬NOT accented = Directional Ending
– The book shows an accent mark because the accent is
NOT on the last syllable of the word.
– ‫‘ ֵַּ֫א ְרצָ ה‬to/toward a land’
– ‫ירה‬
ָ ‫‘ הָ ִֵּ֫ע‬to/toward the city’
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