אח קטן
akh katan/ʔaːχ/ → /ʔaːħ kaˈtan/word by word
The Hebrew phrase for "little brother" is אח קטן (akh katan).
This phrase is used to refer to a male sibling who is younger than the speaker or another person.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the noun אח, meaning brother and the adjective קטן, meaning small or little.
Which one should you use?
While אח קטן is common in casual speech, if you want to be more precise about the age difference, you may use אח צעיר, which means "younger brother".
How does it change in a sentence?
To say "little brothers" in the plural, use אחים קטנים, where both the noun and the adjective are in the masculine plural form.
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is akh katan. The IPA is /ʔaːχ/ → /ʔaːħ kaˈtan/.
Did you know?
- The word אחים for 'brothers' is used in Hebrew to mean 'siblings' in general, regardless of gender. A person might say they have three אחים even if some of them are sisters.
- The adjective קטן is a cognate of the word ቀጢን in the ancient language Ge'ez, which was the liturgical language of Ethiopia.
- While אח קטן refers to a sibling, the word אח is also frequently used in Hebrew to mean a 'comrade' or a 'brother-in-arms' among soldiers.
Examples in context
- האח הקטן שלי אוהב מוזיקה.My little brother loves music.
- יש לי אח קטן.yesh li ach katan.I have a little brother.
- האם יש לך אח קטן?ha-im yesh lecha ach katan?Do you have a little brother?
Example conversation
Itay and Rotem are talking about their families.
- איתי Itayרוטם, יש לך אח קטן?Rotem, yesh lach ach katan?Rotem, do you have a little brother?
- רוטם Rotemלא, יש לי רק אחות גדולה.Lo, yesh li rak achot gdola.No, I only have an older sister.
- איתי Itayאני מבין, לאני יש אח קטן.Ani mevin, li yesh ach katan.I see, I have a little brother.
- רוטם Rotemאיך קוראים לו?Eich kor'im lo?What is his name?
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (אח, קטן) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries אח, קטן, CC BY-SA 4.0.
