מה זה?
ma ze?/maː zɛ/word by word
The Hebrew phrase for "what is it?" is מה זה? (ma ze?)
מה זה? is a question used to ask for the identity or name of an object.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of מה, which means "what" and זה, which means "this" or "it".
Which one should you use?
While מה זה? literally means "what is this?", it serves as the standard way to ask "what is it?" in Hebrew.
How do you pronounce it?
ma ze?
Did you know?
- In colloquial Israeli speech, מה זה? can be used sarcastically to question someone's behavior, essentially meaning 'What is wrong with you?'
- If you are asking about an object that is grammatically feminine, you would not use מה זה? but rather change the second word to מה זאת? to match the gender.
- The word זה is a close relative of the Arabic word 'hadha', showing how common Semitic roots are across the Middle East.
Examples in context
- מה זה?mah ze?What is it?
- סליחה, מה זה?slikha, mah ze?Excuse me, what is it?
Example conversation
Maya and Noam are looking at a strange object on the table.
- מאיה Mayaנועם, מה זה?Noam, mah ze?Noam, what is it?
- נועם Noamזה משהו חדש שקניתי.ze mashehu khadash she-kaniti.It is something new that I bought.
- מאיה Mayaזה נראה מאוד מעניין.ze nir'eh me'od me'anyen.It looks very interesting.
- נועם Noamכן, אני אוהב אותו.ken, ani ohev oto.Yes, I love it.
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (מה, זה) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries זה, מה, CC BY-SA 4.0.
