בעלי
ba'ali
The English phrase "my husband" is translated into Hebrew as בעלי (ba'ali).
בעלי is a term used by a woman to refer to the man she is married to.
What does it mean word for word?
The word is a combination of בעל (ba'al), meaning husband or owner and the first-person possessive suffix -י (-i), meaning "my".
How do you pronounce it?
ba'ali
Did you know?
- In biblical texts, the word בעל was used as the name of a Canaanite storm god. This created a linguistic tension in the Bible between the term for husband and the name of a foreign deity.
- In Hebrew, the word בעלי is an adjective-noun hybrid that can also describe someone who possesses a certain trait. For example, בעלי חסד describes someone who is 'possessor of grace' or 'kind-hearted'.
- The root of בעלי is used in the term בעל הבית, which means 'the host' or 'the landlord'. This links the concept of being a husband to the responsibility of managing a physical home.
Examples in context
- תחזיר לי את בעלי!Give me back my husband!This sentence is useful for expressing a demand involving בעלי.Tatoeba #1194473 by Eldad, translation #631225 by DJ_Saidez
- אדם זה אינו בעלי.This man is not my husband.This sentence is useful for clarifying that a specific man is not the speaker's בעלי.Tatoeba #6059945 by fekundulo, translation #3044172 by Amastan
- בעלי משקה את הפרחים.My husband is watering the flowers.This sentence is useful for describing an action being performed by בעלי.Tatoeba #4073693 by papilichasisto, translation #3861734 by thegui
- אני אוהבת ללכת לטיולים עם בעלי.I love going on trips with my husband.
- 37 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Noa and Noam are talking at a coffee shop.
- נועה Noaבעלי מגיע בקרוב.ba'ali magi'a bekarov.My husband is arriving soon.
- נועם Noamהוא בא לכאן?hu ba lekan?Is he coming here?
- נועה Noaכן, הוא בדרך.ken, hu baderech.Yes, he is on the way.
- נועם Noamאוקיי, נחכה לו יחד.okay, nechakah lo yachad.Okay, we will wait for him together.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
