Ways to say it
| Hebrew | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| עזר | 'azár | |
| סייע | siyéa' | masculine |
The verb is used to describe the action of providing assistance to someone or something. While עזר is the standard way to express this, you may encounter related nouns like עֶזְרָה, which is the common noun for help or assistance and סיוע, which refers to aid or assistance in more formal or administrative contexts.
Which one should you use?
עזר is the common, everyday verb used to say help. In contrast, סייע is a more formal way to say assist or provide aid. For the nouns, עֶזְרָה is the common term for help, whereas סיוע is a formal noun often used for official or administrative aid.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The first-person singular past tense of עזר is עזרתי, meaning 'I helped'.
How do you pronounce it?
'azár
What mistakes should you avoid?
If you are in a life-threatening emergency and need to shout for help, do not use the verbs for assistance. Instead, use the imperative הַצִּילוּ.
Did you know?
- The verb עזר shares the same root as the word for 'goat' עֵז, though they have different meanings in modern Hebrew.
- The imperative הצילו (save!) is actually a plural command, meaning it is literally telling 'you all' to 'save' or 'rescue', which is why it is the standard way to call for help from a crowd.
- The root of עזר is used to form the word עזרים, which refers to 'teaching aids' or 'tools' in an educational setting.
Examples in context
- למה לא עזרת לו?Why didn't you help him?This sentence uses עזר to ask a question about helping someone.Tatoeba #758978 by Eldad, translation #3662412 by AlanF_US
- תום עזר לנו מאד.Tom was a big help to us.This sentence uses עזר to show that Tom was a help to us.Tatoeba #4688972 by fekundulo, translation #3161776 by CK
- הוא ביקש את עזרתי.He asked me for help.This sentence uses עזר to show that someone asked for help.Tatoeba #798669 by Eldad, translation #297645 by CK
- 272 more sentences on Tatoeba
Sources
- Wiktionary, “help” translations and entries עזר, סייע, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
