ציפור \ צִפּוֹר
tsipórfeminine
The English word "bird" is translated into Hebrew as ציפור \ צִפּוֹר (tsipór) or עוֹף.
Meaning: animal (noun)
Ways to say it
| Hebrew | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| ציפור \ צִפּוֹר | tsipór | feminine |
| עוֹף | of | masculine |
Use the word to refer to the animal. The choice between the two forms depends on whether you are discussing a specific bird or birds in a general, culinary or agricultural sense.
Which one should you use?
ציפור \ צִפּוֹר refers to a specific bird as an individual animal. In contrast, עוֹף is often used to refer to birds collectively or to birds in the context of poultry or fowl.
How does it change in a sentence?
ציפור \ צִפּוֹר is a feminine noun, and its plural form is ציפורים. Because it is feminine, any adjectives describing it must also be in the feminine form, such as קטנה (small) in the phrase ציפור קטנה. The form עוֹף is a masculine noun.
How do you pronounce it?
tsipór
Did you know?
- The word עוֹף is the imperative form of the verb 'to fly'. This creates a linguistic link where the animal is named after the action it performs.
- The term עוֹף is used in the Bible to categorize all winged creatures, including bats, long before modern biological classification separated mammals from birds.
- The word ציפור shares a common ancestral root with the Arabic word عُصْفُور ('usfur'), which also means 'sparrow' or 'bird'.
Examples in context
- אני ראיתי ציפור יפה היום.I saw a beautiful bird today.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “bird” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ציפור, CC BY-SA 4.0.
