הם

See also: ה״מ‎ and Appendix:Variations of "em"

Hebrew

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -em

Etymology 1

Has cognates in other Semitic languages, such as Arabic هم‎ (hum, “they”). The central sense is “they”; other senses are by extension.

Adjective

הֵם • (hem)

1. Those, yon, the masculine plural distant demonstrative adjective, masculine plural of הוא‎ (hu').

Usage notes

• This adjective is nearly always found in its definite form הָהֵם‎ (hahém).

Antonyms

• (those): אֵלֶּה‎ (éileh, “these-MASCULINE”)

Derived terms

• בימים ההם‎ (bayamím hahém, “formerly, in olden days”)

Related terms

• הוא‎ (hu', “that-MASCULINE”)
• היא‎ (hi', “that-FEMININE”)
• הן‎ (hen, “those-FEMININE”)

Pronoun

הֵם • (hem) m pl

1. They, the third-person masculine plural personal pronoun, masculine plural of הוא‎ (hu').
2. Those, yon, the masculine plural distant demonstrative pronoun, masculine plural of הוא‎ (hu').
3. Are, a masculine plural present-tense copula, masculine plural of הוא‎ (hu').

Usage notes

• Like the other personal pronouns, הם is not used as a direct object, as the object of preposition, or as a possessive pronoun; rather, its sense is incorporated into the preceding word (which is usually a preposition, especially in Modern Hebrew), which then appears in its third-person-masculine-plural-personal-pronoun-including form. This applies to its demonstrative-pronoun sense as well, as these senses are not truly distinct.
• Like other masculine plural forms, הם is used both with masculine-only antecedents or referents and with mixed-gender antecedents or referents.
• Like other masculine plural forms with feminine counterparts in -ן (-n), הם is sometimes substituted for its feminine counterpart הן‎ (in which case it takes feminine adjectives and verbs), but this is not usually considered correct.

Synonyms

• (those): אֵלֶּה‎ (éileh, “these-MASCULINE”)
• (are): הינם‎ (hinám, “here they-MASCULINE are, they-MASCULINE are, are-MASCULINE”)

Antonyms

• (those): אֵלֶּה‎ (éileh, “these-MASCULINE”)
• (are): אינם‎ (einám, “there they are-MASCULINE not, they-MASCULINE are not, are-MASCULINE not”)

Related terms

• הוא‎ (hu', “he, it-MASCULINE, that-MASCULINE, am/is/are-MASCULINE-SINGULAR”)
• היא‎ (hi', “she, it-FEMININE, that-FEMININE, am/is/are-FEMININE-SINGULAR”)
• הן‎ (hen, “they-FEMININE, those-FEMININE, are-FEMININE”)

See also

Hebrew personal pronouns

		singular	plural
1st person		אֲנִי‎ (aní), אנוכי / אָנֹכִי‎ (anokhí)	אֲנַחְנוּ‎ (anákhnu), אָנוּ‎ (ánu)
2nd person	m	אַתָּה‎ (atá)	אַתֶּם‎ (atém)
	f	אַתְּ‎ (at)	אַתֶּן‎ (atén)
3rd person	m	הוּא‎ (hu)	הֵם‎ (hem)
	f	הִיא‎ (hi)	הֵן‎ (hen)

Etymology 2

From English heme.

Noun

הם • (him)

1. (biology, medicine) Heme.

Further reading

• הם‎ on the Hebrew Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^he

Anagrams

• מה‎