הוא
hu/huːʔ/
In Hebrew, "he is" is expressed by הוא (hu).
The phrase is used to identify a male person or thing as being a certain way or in a certain state.
Which one should you use?
While הוא refers to a male, the feminine counterpart היא (hi) means "she is".
How does it change in a sentence?
The word הוא functions as both "he" and "he is" because Hebrew does not use a copula (the verb "to be") in the present tense.
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is hu.
Did you know?
- The word הוא is derived from the root הָוָה, which means 'to be' or 'to exist'.
- In certain contexts, הוא can be used to mean 'this' or 'that' when pointing to a specific person or thing to identify it.
- When used in a sentence, הוא can be placed after the adjective for emphasis, effectively changing the sentence to 'the one who is [X] is he'.
Examples in context
- הוא לא זר לי.He is no stranger to me.This sentence shows how to use הוא to express that someone is not a stranger.Tatoeba #6032003 by fekundulo, translation #295809 by CK
- הוא כבר לא ילד.He is no longer a child.This sentence uses הוא to state that someone is no longer a child.Tatoeba #1401234 by Eldad, translation #373279 by kotobaboke
- הוא לא נמצא שם.He is not there.This sentence uses הוא to indicate that someone is not in a specific location.Tatoeba #1437543 by MrShoval, translation #1437331 by caspian
- 987 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Daniel and Noa are talking about a new colleague.
- דניאל Danielהוא חבר טוב שלי.hu khaver tov sheli.He is a good friend of mine.
- נועה Noaהוא נראה מאוד נחמד.hu nir'eh me'od nekhmad.He looks very nice.
- דניאל Danielכן, הוא אדם מצוין.ken, hu adam metsuyan.Yes, he is an excellent person.
- נועה Noaאני שמחה להכיר אותו.ani smekha lehakir oto.I am happy to meet him.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry הוא, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries הוא, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
