Ways to say it
| Hebrew | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| חָשׁוּךְ | khashukh |
| אָפֵל | afél |
The adjective is used to describe a state of having an absolute or relative lack of light. While the adjective חָשׁוּךְ describes the quality of being dark, the noun forms חושך and חשך are used to refer to the absence of light itself.
Which one should you use?
חָשׁוּךְ is the standard, common adjective used to describe a room, a place or an object that lacks light. In contrast, אָפֵל is a more poetic or literary term used to describe darkness, often implying a profound, heavy or mystical gloom.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective חָשׁוּךְ changes based on the gender and number of the noun it describes: use חֲשׁוּכָה for feminine nouns and חֲשׁוּכִים for masculine plural nouns. Note that the noun for 'darkness' is חֹשֶׁךְ.
How do you pronounce it?
khashukh
What mistakes should you avoid?
Do not use the word שחור to mean 'dark' in the sense of a lack of light. שחור is the standard Hebrew word for the color 'black'.
Did you know?
- The root letters for חָשׁוּךְ are shared with words relating to silence and secrecy, linking the absence of light to the absence of sound or information.
- In modern Hebrew, if you want to describe a very dark color like 'dark blue', you would use the word כהה rather than חָשׁוּךְ.
- In Hebrew, the word for 'darkness' itself, חֹשֶׁךְ, can sometimes carry a moral connotation, implying something is 'dark' in a wicked or evil sense.
Examples in context
- הלילה חשיךThe night is dark.
- השטיח השחור נותן מראה אפל לחדר.The black rug gives a dark appearance to the room.
- הַחֶדֶר חָשׁוּךְ מְאוֹד.ha-kheder khashukh me'od.The room is very dark.
- הַרְחֹב חָשׁוּךְ בַּלַּיְלָה.ha-rechov khashukh ba-laila.The street is dark at night.
- אֲנִי לֹא אוֹהֶבֶת כְּשֶׁהַמָּקוֹם חָשׁוּךְ.ani lo ohevet kshe-ha-makom khashukh.I don't like it when the place is dark.
Example conversation
Noam and Noa are entering a room with the lights off.
- נועם Noamנועה, למה כל כך חָשׁוּךְ כאן?Noa, lama kol kach chashuch kan?Noa, why is it so dark in here?
- נועה Noaשכחתי להדליק את האור, נועם.Shachachti lehadlik et ha'or, Noam.I forgot to turn on the light, Noam.
- נועם Noamאני לא רואה כלום.Ani lo ro'e klum.I can't see anything.
- נועה Noaהנה, עכשיו כבר לא חָשׁוּךְ.Hine, achshav kvar lo chashuch.Here, now it's not dark anymore.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “dark” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
