תהיה בשקט
tihye besheket
To say "be quiet" in Hebrew, use תהיה בשקט (tihye besheket).
The phrase is used as a request or command for someone to stop making noise.
What does it mean word for word?
The word בשקט means "in quiet/silence". It is composed of the prefix ב which means "in" and השקט which means "the quiet", literally translating to "in quietness".
Which one should you use?
The phrase תהיה בשקט is a request to be quiet, whereas the word שתוק is a much more aggressive and rude way to say "shut up".
How does it change in a sentence?
The form changes depending on whom you are addressing: use תהיה בשקט for a male (masculine singular), תהיי בשקט for a female (feminine singular) and תהיו בשקט when addressing a group (plural).
How do you pronounce it?
tihye besheket
When do people say it?
If you want to tell someone to be quiet in a friendly, casual manner, you can use the word דַּי to mean "enough" or "stop it".
Did you know?
- In a very formal or literary setting, a person might use the word דּוּמִי to command silence, which sounds much more dramatic and ancient than the everyday תהיה בשקט.
- The word שקט is shared with Arabic, where the root refers to calmness or tranquility, reflecting the deep linguistic ties between the two Semitic languages.
- The aggressive command שתוק comes from a root meaning 'to be silent', but in modern slang, it can be used ironically between close friends as a way of saying 'no way' or 'get out of here'.
Examples in context
- הילד ישן. תהיה בשקט עכשיו!The child is sleeping. Just be quiet now!This sentence shows how to use תהיה בשקט when a child is sleeping.Tatoeba #5456495 by fekundulo, translation #2820092 by AlanF_US
- רק תהיה בשקט.Just be quiet.This sentence shows a simple use of תהיה בשקט.Tatoeba #1879142 by MrShoval, translation #1860703 by CK
- תהיה בשקט לרגע.Be quiet for a moment.This sentence shows how to use תהיה בשקט to ask for silence for a moment.Tatoeba #1711514 by MrShoval, translation #40046 by CK
- 4 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Ido and Agur are in a library.
- עידו Idoעגור, תהיה בשקט בבקשה.Agur, tihye besheket bevakasha.Agur, please be quiet.
- עגור Adiסליחה, שכחתי שאנחנו בספריה.Slikha, shakhati she'anakhnu bisifriya.Sorry, I forgot we are in the library.
- עידו Idoכולם מסתכלים עלינו.Kulam mistaklim aleinu.Everyone is looking at us.
- עגור Adiבסדר, אני אהיה בשקט.Beseder, ani ehye besheket.Okay, I will be quiet.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
