Modal verbs יָכוֹל, צָרִיךְ, אֶפְשָׁר
Ability, need, want, and permission in Israeli Hebrew are a small set: יָכוֹל, צָרִיךְ, רוֹצֶה, חַיָּב, plus the impersonals אֶפְשָׁר, אָסוּר, מֻתָּר, כְּדַאי. Personal modals conjugate and then take an infinitive.
Conjugate יָכוֹל / צָרִיךְ / רוֹצֶה / חַיָּב and add an infinitive; leave אֶפְשָׁר, אָסוּר, מֻתָּר, and כְּדַאי frozen and impersonal.
יָכוֹל / יְכוֹלָה / יְכוֹלִים is ability. צָרִיךְ / צְרִיכָה / צְרִיכִים is need. רוֹצֶה / רוֹצָה / רוֹצִים is want. חַיָּב / חַיֶּבֶת / חַיָּבִים is obligation. Each is followed by לְ plus the infinitive: אֲנִי יָכוֹל לָבוֹא, אַתְּ צְרִיכָה לָלֶכֶת, הֵם רוֹצִים לִישׁוֹן.
| Hebrew | Transliteration | English | |
|---|---|---|---|
| אֲנִי יָכוֹל לָבוֹא בְּשֵׁשׁ | ani yakhol lavo beshesh | I can come at six | |
| אַתְּ צְרִיכָה לַעֲזֹר | at tzrikhah la'azor | You need to help | |
| הֵם רוֹצִים לִישׁוֹן | hem rotzim lishon | They want to sleep |
| Modal | Shape | Example |
|---|---|---|
| יָכוֹל | conjugates + infinitive | אֲנִי יָכוֹל לָבוֹא |
| צָרִיךְ | conjugates + infinitive | אֲנִי צָרִיךְ לָלֶכֶת |
| רוֹצֶה | conjugates + infinitive | אֲנִי רוֹצֶה לִישׁוֹן |
| חַיָּב | conjugates + infinitive | אֲנִי חַיָּב לְהַגִּיד |
| אֶפְשָׁר | frozen + infinitive | אֶפְשָׁר לָשֶׁבֶת |
| אָסוּר | frozen + infinitive | אָסוּר לְעַשֵּׁן |
| מֻתָּר | frozen + infinitive | מֻתָּר לַחֲנוֹת |
| כְּדַאי | frozen + infinitive | כְּדַאי לִרְאוֹת |
אֶפְשָׁר לָשֶׁבֶת means “one may sit / it is possible to sit,” not “I am possible.” אָסוּר לְעַשֵּׁן is “smoking is forbidden.” מֻתָּר is the allowed counterpart. כְּדַאי is “it is worth it.” To name a person, add לְ: אָסוּר לְךָ, כְּדַאי לָהּ לָבוֹא. There is no אֲנִי אֶפְשָׁר.
| Hebrew | Transliteration | English | |
|---|---|---|---|
| אֶפְשָׁר לִסְגֹּר אֶת הַחַלּוֹן? | efshar lisgor et hakhalon? | May one close the window? | |
| אָסוּר לְעַשֵּׁן כָּאן | asur le'ashen kan | It is forbidden to smoke here | |
| כְּדַאי לְךָ לִרְאוֹת אֶת זֶה | kedai lekha lir'ot et ze | You should see this |
צָרִיךְ שֶׁ plus a future-like clause is used when the subject of the need is not the same as the speaker’s infinitive subject, or for a slightly stronger demand: צָרִיךְ שֶׁתָּבוֹא. Negate personal modals with לֹא: אֲנִי לֹא יָכוֹל, אֲנִי לֹא צָרִיךְ. Negate impersonals the same way: אִי אֶפְשָׁר, לֹא כְּדַאי, or switch אָסוּר / מֻתָּר.
| Hebrew | Transliteration | English | |
|---|---|---|---|
| צָרִיךְ שֶׁתַּגִּיד לָהּ | tzarikh shetagid lah | You need to tell her | |
| אֲנִי לֹא יָכוֹל הַיּוֹם | ani lo yakhol hayom | I cannot today | |
| אִי אֶפְשָׁר לַחֲנוֹת פֹּה | i efshar lakhanot po | It is impossible to park here |
Exceptions
Ba li as a casual want
בָּא לִי plus a noun or infinitive is a very common spoken “I feel like.” It is not a conjugate of רוֹצֶה and does not take a personal prefix. Negative is לֹא בָּא לִי.
| לֹא בָּא לִי לָצֵאת | lo ba li latzet | I don’t feel like going out |
Yakhol in the past
Past ability is יָכֹלְתִּי, יָכֹלְתָּ, יָכֹל, יָכֹלְנוּ. A polite request often uses the future of יכול anyway: תוּכַל / תּוּכְלִי. Do not build past ability with היה יכול unless you mean a periphrastic “would have been able” in a counterfactual.
Common mistakes
אֲנִי אֶפְשָׁר לָבוֹא → אֲנִי יָכוֹל לָבוֹא
אֶפְשָׁר is impersonal; a person “can” with יָכוֹל.
אֲנִי צָרִיךְ שֶׁאֲנִי לָלֶכֶת → אֲנִי צָרִיךְ לָלֶכֶת
Same-subject need takes the infinitive, not צריך ש plus a copy of אֲנִי.
הִיא יָכוֹל לָבוֹא → הִיא יְכוֹלָה לָבוֹא
יָכוֹל agrees in gender and number.
Go on to
Infinitives
The dictionary-style to write form in Hebrew is לכתוב. That ל־ infinitive follows רוצה, יכול, צריך, אוהב, and a long list of other verbs, and it is also how signs give instructions.
A1 · 10 minPresent tense
The Hebrew present is a four-form participle: one each for masculine singular, feminine singular, masculine plural, and feminine plural. It covers I am writing and I write, and it does not mark person.
A1 · 12 minNegation
Israeli Hebrew splits negation by what you are denying: לֹא before verbs and adjectives, אֵין for “there isn’t” and “don’t have,” and אַל before an imperative. Extra words such as שׁוּם and אַף sit comfortably beside that first negator.
A1 · 10 minFormal vs casual register
The same Israeli Hebrew grammar can sound like a text message or like a letter to a clerk. Casual speech drops הַאִם, prefers יֵשׁ לִי and אַתָּה רוֹצֶה, and uses short replies; formal style restores הַאִם, נָא, and fuller verbs of request.
B1 · 12 min