Freenikud mark
Patach בַ
"a" as in father, the same as kamatz in Israeli Hebrew. Written below the letter.
בַshown on bet (ב)
Sound
a
"a" as in father, the same as kamatz in Israeli Hebrew.
Position
below the letter
Under a final ח, ע or הּ it is read before the letter: רוּחַ is "ru-ach".
Examples
| English | Hebrew | Transliteration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| hand | יַד | yad | |
| Sabbath | שַׁבָּת | shabbat |
Sounds the same as
Patach and Kamatz are both read “a” in Israeli Hebrew. They are written differently because they come from different historical vowel lengths, a distinction some communities (Yemenite, older Ashkenazi pronunciation) still keep in speech.