No linking verb in the present
"I am Dana" is simply ani Dana: the present tense needs no linking verb at all. "He is tall" — hu gavoa; "it is expensive" — ze yakar. The linker appears only in the past and the future. For example: “אני דנה.” — I am Dana. A rule from the Hebrew course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
"I am Dana" is simply ani Dana: the present tense needs no linking verb at all. "He is tall" — hu gavoa; "it is expensive" — ze yakar. The linker appears only in the past and the future.
There is no verb "to have" here either. Instead there is the pattern yesh + who + what: yesh li yeled is literally "there is to me a child". The negation of the same pattern is ein: ein li zman — I have no time.
The pronouns below carry a lot of weight. A present-tense verb does not show who acts, so the pronoun or the context does.
Table
| Who | Hebrew | How it reads | About whom |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | אני | ani | about oneself |
| you | אתה | ata | to a man |
| you | את | at | to a woman |
| he | הוא | hu | about a man |
| she | היא | hi | about a woman |
| we | אנחנו | anachnu | about us |
| you | אתם | atem | to a group |
| they | הם | hem | men or a mixed group |
| they | הן | hen | women |
By example
- אני דנה.ани Дана.I am Dana.
- יש לי ילד.йеш ли йелед.I have a child.
- אין לי זמן.эйн ли зман.I have no time.
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
Does Hebrew have a verb to be in the present?
There is no verb "to have" here either. Instead there is the pattern yesh + who + what: yesh li yeled is literally "there is to me a child". The negation of the same pattern is ein: ein li zman — I have no time.
Hebrew sentence without a verb?
"I am Dana" is simply ani Dana: the present tense needs no linking verb at all. "He is tall" — hu gavoa; "it is expensive" — ze yakar. The linker appears only in the past and the future.
How to say I have in Hebrew?
There is no verb "to have" here either. Instead there is the pattern yesh + who + what: yesh li yeled is literally "there is to me a child". The negation of the same pattern is ein: ein li zman — I have no time.
Why does Hebrew have no word for have?
There is no verb "to have" here either. Instead there is the pattern yesh + who + what: yesh li yeled is literally "there is to me a child". The negation of the same pattern is ein: ein li zman — I have no time.
What does it look like in a Hebrew example sentence?
“אני דנה.” (ани Дана.) — I am Dana. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.