היה

Hebrew edit

Root
ה־י־ה (h-y-h)

Pronunciation edit

(Modern Israeli Hebrew) IPA^(key): /(h)aˈja/
Audio (file)

Verb edit

הָיָה • (hayá) third-singular masculine past (pa'al construction)

to be: to exist
- Tanach, Genesis 1:3, with translation of the Jewish Publication Society:
  וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים יְהִי אוֹר וַיְהִי־אוֹר׃
  vayómer 'elohím y'hí 'ór vay'hí-'ór.
  And God said: 'Let there be light.' And there was light.
to be: connects a noun to a prepositional phrase or adjective describing it
- Tanach, Leviticus 26:12, with translation of the Jewish Publication Society:
  וְהִתְהַלַּכְתִּי בְּתוֹכְכֶם וְהָיִיתִי לָכֶם לֵאלֹהִים וְאַתֶּם תִּהְיוּ־לִי לְעָם׃
  v'hithalakhtí b'tokh'khém v'hayíti lakhém lelohím v'atém tihyú-lí l'ám.
  And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be My people.
הבית היה אדום
habáyit hayá adóm
the house was red
to happen, take place, occur
נֵס גָּדוֹל הָיָה שָׁם.
nés gadól hayá shám.
A great miracle happened there.
to be: connects a term to its definition
- 2011, The 52nd International Mathematical Olympiad, problem 5:
  תהא $f$ פונקציה מקבוצת השלמים לקבוצת השלמים החיוביים.
  Let $f$ be a function from the set of integers to the set of positive integers.
- 2016, The 57th International Mathematical Olympiad, problem 3:
  יהא $P=A_{1}A_{2}...A_{k}$ מצולע מישורי קמור.
  Let $P=A_{1}A_{2}...A_{k}$ be a convex polygon in the plane.
to be: connects a subject to a role the subject plays
to be: indicates ownership, possession, or the like
אם יהיה לי
im yihyé li
if I'll have

Usage notes edit

The present tense is usually omitted; in some cases a pronoun (such as הוא,‎ יש, or הינו) is used rather than any form of the verb.

Conjugation edit

Conjugation of הָיָה (see also Appendix:Hebrew verbs)

finite forms		masculine singular	feminine singular	masculine plural	feminine plural
non-finite forms		to-infinitive: לִהְיוֹת
past	first person	הָיִיתִי		הָיִינוּ
	second person	הָיִיתָ	הָיִית	הֱיִיתֶם	הֱיִיתֶן
	third person	הָיָה	הייתה \ הָיְתָה	הָיוּ
present	all persons	(*הוֹוֶה)	(*הוֹוָה)	(*הוֹוִים)	(*הוֹוֹת)
future	first person	אֶהְיֶה		נִהְיֶה
	second person	תִּהְיֶה	תִּהְיִי	תּהְיוּ	תִּהְיֶינָה¹
	third person	יִהְיֶה/יְהֵא¹	תִּהְיֶה/תְּהֵא¹	יִהְיוּ	תִּהְיֶינָה¹
imperative	second person	הֱיֵה	הֲיִי	הֱיוּ	הֲיֶינָה¹
notes		Uncommon in modern informal Hebrew, but used in formal speech and writing.

Derived terms edit

אהיה אשר אהיה
הָיֹה הָיָה (hayó hayá, “once upon a time”)

References edit

H1961 in Strong, James (1979) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible