Learn how to refuse politely in Hebrew
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| Introduction |
| Eric: Welcome to 3-Minute Hebrew Season 1, Lesson 6 - Refusing Politely. In this lesson, you’ll learn how to politely refuse an invite in Hebrew. |
| Body |
| Eric: First, we’ll learn how to say 'No, thank you.' in Hebrew. |
| Yaara: [Normal] לא תודה.(lo toda.) |
| Eric: First is an adverb meaning 'No' |
| Yaara: [Normal] לא [Slow] לא (lo) |
| Eric: Last is the noun meaning 'Thank’ |
| Yaara: [Normal] תודה [Slow] תודה(toda) |
| Eric: Listen again to the phrase meaning 'No, thank you.' |
| Yaara: [Slow] לא תודה. [Normal] לא תודה. |
| Eric: Ok, now let's take a look at the formal way to say 'Thank you, but I have to decline.' |
| Yaara: [Normal] תודה, אבל אני נאלץ לסרב.(toda, aval ani ne'elatz lesarev.) |
| Eric: First is a noun meaning 'Thank’ |
| Yaara: [Normal] תודה [Slow] תודה (toda) |
| Eric: Next is the conjunction meaning 'But' |
| Yaara: [Normal] אבל [Slow] אבל (aval) |
| Eric: Next is the pronoun meaning 'I' |
| Yaara: [Normal] אני [Slow] אני (ani) |
| Eric: Next is the verb meaning 'to be forced' |
| Yaara: [Normal] נאלץ [Slow] נאלץ (ne'elatz) |
| Eric: Last is the verb meaning 'to decline' |
| Yaara: [Normal] לסרב [Slow] לסרב(lesarev) |
| Eric: Listen again to the formal phrase meaning 'Thank you, but I have to decline.' |
| Yaara: [Slow] תודה, אבל אני נאלץ לסרב. [Normal] תודה, אבל אני נאלץ לסרב. |
| Eric: Next we’ll learn the way to say 'Sorry, but I already have plans.' |
| Yaara: [Normal] אני מצטער, כבר קבעתי תכניות.(ani mitz'ta'er, kvar kavati tokhniyot.) |
| Eric: First is a pronoun meaning 'I' |
| Yaara: [Normal] אני [Slow] אני (ani) |
| Eric: Next is the verb meaning ‘sorry' |
| Yaara: [Normal] מצטער [Slow] מצטער(mitz'ta'er) |
| Eric: Next is the adverb meaning ‘already' |
| Yaara: [Normal] כבר [Slow] כבר (kvar) |
| Eric: Next is the verb meaning ‘to set’ or ‘to make' |
| Yaara: [Normal] קבעתי [Slow] קבעתי (kavati) |
| Eric: Last is the noun meaning ‘plans' |
| Yaara: [Normal] תכניות [Slow] תכניות(tokhniyot) |
| Eric: Listen again to the phrase meaning 'Sorry, but I already have plans.' |
| Yaara: [Slow] אני מצטער, כבר קבעתי תכניות. [Normal] אני מצטער, כבר קבעתי תכניות. |
| Eric: Finally, we have a way to say 'Sorry, I can't.' |
| Yaara: [Normal] מצטער, אני לא יכול.(mitz'ta'er, ani lo yakhol.) |
| Eric: First is a verb meaning 'Sorry' |
| Yaara: [Normal] מצטער [Slow] מצטער(mitz'ta'er) |
| Eric: Next is the pronoun meaning 'I' |
| Yaara: [Normal] אני [Slow] אני(ani) |
| Eric: Next is the adverb meaning 'No' |
| Yaara: [Normal] לא [Slow] לא(lo) |
| Eric: Last is the verb meaning ‘can' |
| Yaara: [Normal] יכול [Slow] יכול(yakhol) |
| Eric: Listen again to the phrase meaning 'Sorry, I can't.' |
| Yaara: [Slow] מצטער, אני לא יכול. [Normal] מצטער, אני לא יכול. |
| Cultural Insight |
| Eric: Now it's time for a quick cultural insight. |
| Yaara: If you’ve been invited somewhere and you can't or don't want to go, it's okay to politely decline. The important thing is not to give a vague or uncertain answer, as it’s considered rude and doesn't take into account the time or the efforts of the person giving the invitation. Israelis appreciate directness. |
Outro |
|---|
| Eric: And that’s all for this lesson. Don’t forget to check out the lesson notes, and we’ll see you in the next lesson! |
| Yaara: להתראות |
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