Learn how to ask about someone's age
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| Shalom, ani Yana. Hi everybody! I’m Yana. |
| Welcome to HebrewPod101.com’s “Ivrit be-shalosh dakot”. The fastest, easiest, and most fun way to learn Hebrew. |
| In the last lesson we learned how to talk about your location and the importance of various prefixes. |
| In this lesson, we are going to learn how to talk about your age. |
| It’s normal for young people in Israel to ask each other’s age. Of course, it might be risky to ask it to people over 30! |
| If someone asks you Ben kama ata? Or Bat kama at? Just know that it means “How old are you?” depends on your gender, of course. . |
| [slowly] Ben kama ata? For a guy. |
| [slowly] Bat kama at? For a girl. |
| Do you remember the word Kama? We learned it in lesson 8 when asking Kama ze ole? |
| So Kama in general, refers to number, quantity. |
| Now you have to answer with your age! In Hebrew we say Ani (I am), then use the same word Ben or Bat, depending on your gender, and then your age. |
| Here are some examples. |
| “I am 18” - Ani Ben Shmona-esre. (man) |
| Ani Bat Shmona-esre. (woman) |
| “I am 20” - Ani ben esrim. |
| Ani bat esrim. |
| “I am 25” - Ani ben esrim ve-hamesh. |
| Ani bat esrim ve-hamesh. |
| “I am 40” - Ani ben arbaim. |
| Ani bat arbaim. |
| Isn’t it easy? You just say Ani Ben/Bat and your age! |
| Lets do some more practice; |
| I will ask you your age twice, one for each gender, and give you a moment to answer. Answer after the sentence that corresponds to your gender. |
| Ready? |
| Ben kama ata? |
| [slowly] Ben kama ata? |
| Bat kama at? |
| [slowly] Bat kama at? |
| Great job! |
| Here is a tip to remember easily; |
| Ben- in Hebrew also means “boy”, and, |
| Bat - means “girl”. So you can easily remember when asking about a girl’s age or boy’s age. |
| Now it’s time for Yana’s Insights. |
| In more official situations, it is common to guess one’s age by asking if he/she is a University student? Or working after graduation etc., University students’ ages in Israel are different than in other countries- mostly it varies between 20-25 years old. So keep that in mind! |
| In this lesson, we learned how to talk about your age in Hebrew. Next time we’ll learn how to talk about your possessions. |
| I'll be waiting for you with the answer in the next Ivrit be-shalosh dakot. |
| Lehitraot ve-ad ha-paam ha-baa!! |
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