Lamed and Mem

Learn how to write lamed and mem

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Lesson Transcript

Shalom, ani Yana! Welcome to Hebrewpod101.com’s Alef-Beit be-kalei kalut.

The fastest, easiest, and most fun way to learn the Hebrew alphabet: the alef-beit!

Last lesson we reached the half-way point of the Hebrew Alef-Beit and did a review of what you’ve learned so far. Did you practice them all?

So I guess you are ready for the next two letters that we will learn in this lesson.

They are ל `Lamed`, with the sound of `L`, and the letter מ `Mem`, with an `M` sound.

So lets start writing:

ל`Lamed` looks different in hand and print writing, so pay attention and remember to pronounce the letter while writing;

ל (handwriting)

ל looks like a loop, doesn`t it? The word "loop" in Hebrew actually starts with `Lamed`- לֹוּלָאָה `Lulaa`- a loop.

לוּלָאָה

Can you read this word without niqqud?

לולאה (handwriting)

לולאה-Loop- easy to remember, right?

In print it looks like this;

ל (print)

So how "loop" will look in print?

לולאה (print)

ילד-`Yeled` -is a boy in Hebrew.

ילד (handwriting)

and in print-

ילד (print)

If you wondered how we make the sound of `e` in ילד, you’re paying very good attention. There’s a new niqqud there called `Segol`, and it looks like this- ֶ - , You say it with the sound `e`.

So lets write ילד with proper niqqud;

יֶלֶד (handwriting)

and in print-

יֶלֶד (print)

another example using `Segol` is -

כֶּלֶב-`Kelev`- a dog.

כֶּלֶב (handwriting)

and in print-

כֶּלֶב (print)

Could you read `Kelev` without the niqqud there at all?

כלב

Great!

The next letter is מ - `Mem`, and it hשד an `M` sound.

In hand writing, it looks like this-

one, two, three.

and in print-

one, two.

מ-`Mem` changes when at the end of a word, just like, in the previous lesson, `Haf`.

It looks like this- ם

one, two.

and in print-ם

one, two, three.

You might say it looks like a square.

מָיִם -`Maim`- is water in Hebrew.

here you can see both variations of `Mem`-

מָיִם (with niqqud)

מָיִם

and in print-

מָיִם(with niqqud).

מָיִם

So how would you read this word?

מֶלֶךְ (meleh with niqqud)

this is `meleh`- a king.

מלך

מֶ

לֶ

ךְ

Can you write `meleh` in print?

Here's Yana's insight:

Have you been checking out the Alef-Beit transcripts for HebrewPod101's lessons? I bet you can read a lot more now than you could after lesson 2. Go back and browse the Alef-Beit transcripts for a lesson or two, and you'll be amazed at how far you've come! Just think - a little more, and you'll understand the whole thing!

This lesson we learned the letters `Lamed` and `Mem` and the niqqud `Segol` (with the sound of e).

In the next lesson We will have a little quiz, so practice your Alef-Beit and the niqqud!