Complex Conjunctions in Hebrew

In Brief

Use לכן for a result (“therefore”), בנוסף for an added point (“in addition”), and בכל זאת when the result goes against an expectation (“nevertheless” or “still”). למרות הכל means “despite everything,” while the paired structure לא רק...אלא גם means “not only...but also.” These connectors do not change for gender, number, or tense.

Overview

At A1, words such as ו־ (“and”), אבל (“but”), כי (“because”), and אז (“then/so”) are enough to build short conversations. At A2, more precise connectors let you explain how one idea relates to another. You can mark a consequence, add a separate point, or show that something happened in spite of an obstacle.

English often allows several loose translations for the same Hebrew connector. For example, בכל זאת may be “nevertheless,” “even so,” or the conversational “still.” The important skill is therefore not matching one Hebrew word to one English word. It is recognizing the logical relationship between the ideas.

Some items in this lesson join two clauses (groups of words that express an idea, usually with their own verb), while others organize complete sentences. In everyday learning, both are often called connecting words. Their grammar differs, but all of them help a listener follow your reasoning.

How It Works

Choose the relationship first

Relationship	Hebrew	Usual English equivalent	Core pattern
Cause → result	לכן	therefore, so	reason + לכן + result
Addition	בנוסף	in addition, additionally	statement + בנוסף + added point
Unexpected result	בכל זאת	nevertheless, even so, still	obstacle + בכל זאת + result
Concession	למרות הכל	despite everything	למרות הכל + main statement
Paired addition	לא רק...אלא גם	not only...but also	לא רק + X + אלא גם + Y

These forms are invariable: they stay the same regardless of who acts or when the action happens. The verbs around them still take their normal tense, gender, and number forms.

לכן: from reason to consequence

לכן introduces a result. The information before it gives the reason or situation; the information after it gives the consequence.

היה קר, לכן לבשתי מעיל.
“It was cold, so I wore a coat.”

A useful beginner pattern is:

[reason], לכן [result].

Do not reverse the logic accidentally. In ירד גשם, לכן נשארנו בבית (“It rained, so we stayed home”), rain is the reason and staying home is the result.

English “so” has several jobs, but לכן specifically marks consequence. It does not mean “so” as an intensifier in “so tired,” and it is not the ordinary choice for “and then.” Hebrew אז is more conversational and can mean “then” or “so”; לכן is more explicit and is common in careful speech and writing.

בנוסף: adding another point

בנוסף adds a separate fact, reason, or task. It often comes at the beginning of a sentence or clause and is commonly followed by a comma in edited writing:

בנוסף, אני צריך לקנות חלב.
“In addition, I need to buy milk.”

It can also be followed by ל־ plus a noun phrase: בנוסף לעבודה means “in addition to the work” or “besides the work.” Notice the two patterns:

• בנוסף, ... — introduces another complete point.
• בנוסף ל־... — “in addition to ...” before a noun or noun-like expression.

For a simple “also” inside one sentence, גם is usually more natural: גם אני רוצה קפה (“I also want coffee”). בנוסף sounds more like an organizer of information.

בכל זאת: contrary to expectation

בכל זאת says that the second event happened even though the first fact made it unlikely. It often corresponds to “nevertheless,” “even so,” or “still.”

הוא היה עייף. בכל זאת הוא בא.
“He was tired. Nevertheless, he came.”

The obstacle may be stated in the previous clause, an earlier sentence, or the wider conversation. Because the phrase refers back to that obstacle, it can open a new sentence naturally. It may also appear after the subject: הוא בכל זאת בא. That placement can put extra focus on the surprising decision to come.

Do not confuse בכל זאת with אבל. אבל merely contrasts two ideas; בכל זאת adds the stronger meaning “despite that fact.”

למרות הכל: despite everything

למרות הכל is a fixed concessive phrase: it presents all the known difficulties as an obstacle that did not prevent the outcome.

למרות הכל, הצלחנו.
“Despite everything, we succeeded.”

Here, למרות functions like the English preposition “despite” (a word placed before a noun or noun phrase), and הכל means “everything.” For one specific noun, use למרות + noun: למרות הגשם (“despite the rain”). Before a full clause, Hebrew normally uses למרות ש־: למרות שהיה קר (“although it was cold”). This distinction becomes especially important beyond the fixed phrase taught here.

לא רק...אלא גם: balanced addition

The paired construction לא רק...אלא גם highlights two items and often makes the second one feel additional or more striking:

היא לא רק קוראת עברית, אלא גם כותבת בעברית.
“She not only reads Hebrew but also writes in Hebrew.”

Place לא רק directly before the first element being compared and אלא גם directly before the matching second element. This is called parallel structure: both sides have the same grammatical shape.

• two nouns: לא רק קפה, אלא גם תה — “not only coffee but also tea”
• two adjectives: לא רק זול, אלא גם נוח — “not only cheap but also comfortable”
• two verb phrases: לא רק למדנו, אלא גם תרגלנו — “we not only studied but also practiced”

Hebrew sometimes omits גם after אלא, especially in certain styles, but לא רק...אלא גם is the clearest pattern for learners.

Word order and punctuation

The normal word order inside each clause does not have to change because of these connectors. Hebrew allows some flexibility for emphasis, but at A2 you can safely keep ordinary subject–verb–object order.

A comma is useful between two substantial clauses and after an opening connector such as בנוסף or למרות הכל. In short sentences, punctuation varies, especially in informal messages. Do not copy English punctuation mechanically: the logic and readability matter more than inserting a comma before every connector.

Examples in Context

Hebrew	English	Note
היה קר, לכן לבשתי מעיל.	It was cold, so I wore a coat.	A condition leads to a result.
האוטובוס איחר, לכן הגענו מאוחר.	The bus was late, so we arrived late.	לכן introduces the consequence.
אין לי זמן היום, לכן אעשה את זה מחר.	I do not have time today, so I will do it tomorrow.	Present reason, future result.
בנוסף, אני צריך לקנות חלב.	In addition, I need to buy milk.	Adds another task.
בנוסף לעברית, היא לומדת ערבית.	In addition to Hebrew, she studies Arabic.	בנוסף ל־ comes before a noun.
המלון קרוב לים. בנוסף, יש בו בריכה.	The hotel is near the sea. In addition, it has a pool.	Adds a separate advantage.
היה גשם חזק. בכל זאת יצאנו לטייל.	There was heavy rain. Even so, we went for a walk.	The action defies an expectation.
הוא היה עייף, אבל בכל זאת בא.	He was tired, but he came anyway.	אבל and בכל זאת may reinforce the contrast.
לא הסכמתי איתה, ובכל זאת הקשבתי לה.	I did not agree with her, and nevertheless I listened to her.	Respectful action despite disagreement.
למרות הכל, הצלחנו.	Despite everything, we succeeded.	Fixed phrase before the outcome.
למרות הגשם, המשחק המשיך.	Despite the rain, the game continued.	למרות before a noun.
היא לא רק מדברת עברית, אלא גם קוראת ספרים בעברית.	She not only speaks Hebrew but also reads books in Hebrew.	Two parallel verb phrases.
קנינו לא רק לחם, אלא גם גבינה וירקות.	We bought not only bread but also cheese and vegetables.	Two parallel objects.
המסעדה לא רק זולה, אלא גם מצוינת.	The restaurant is not only inexpensive but also excellent.	Two parallel adjectives.

Common Mistakes

Using לכן to introduce the reason

• Wrong: לבשתי מעיל, לכן היה קר. (when you mean the cold caused the choice)
• Right: היה קר, לכן לבשתי מעיל.
• Why: לכן points forward to a result. Put the cause before it and the consequence after it.

Treating בנוסף exactly like גם

• Awkward: בנוסף אני רוצה קפה. (for the simple meaning “I also want coffee”)
• Natural: גם אני רוצה קפה.
• Also natural: הזמנתי ארוחת בוקר. בנוסף, אני רוצה קפה.
• Why: גם attaches “also” to a particular element. בנוסף normally adds a new point to the discussion.

Putting a full clause directly after למרות

• Wrong: למרות היה קר, יצאנו.
• Right: למרות שהיה קר, יצאנו.
• Also right: למרות הקור, יצאנו.
• Why: Use למרות ש־ before a clause, but למרות alone before a noun phrase such as הקור (“the cold”).

Using בכל זאת for ordinary contrast

• Unclear: אני אוהב קפה, בכל זאת היא אוהבת תה.
• Right for simple contrast: אני אוהב קפה, אבל היא אוהבת תה.
• Why: Different preferences are merely a contrast. בכל זאת requires an expectation that is not fulfilled: היא לא אוהבת קפה. בכל זאת היא שתתה כוס. (“She does not like coffee. Even so, she drank a cup.”)

Losing the balance in לא רק...אלא גם

• Awkward: היא לא רק קוראת, אלא גם הספר מעניין.
• Right: היא לא רק קוראת את הספר, אלא גם מסכמת אותו.
• Why: The two highlighted parts should be parallel. Match a noun with a noun, an adjective with an adjective, or a verb phrase with a verb phrase.

Usage Notes

לכן is neutral but can sound more deliberate than conversational אז. In an informal exchange, a speaker might say הייתי עייף, אז הלכתי הביתה (“I was tired, so I went home”). In an explanation, email, or short essay, לכן makes the cause-and-result link unmistakable.

בנוסף is especially useful when listing reasons, features, or tasks. In spontaneous speech, וגם (“and also”) is often lighter and more natural. Using בנוסף in every sentence can make a casual story sound like a report.

בכל זאת is common in both speech and writing. English translations vary with tone: “nevertheless” is formal, while “even so,” “still,” and “anyway” may sound more conversational. Hebrew does not need a different form for each of those English choices.

In unpointed Hebrew, these connectors are written exactly as shown. Attached prefixes remain attached: ובכל זאת means “and nevertheless,” while ולכן means “and therefore.” The conjunction ו־ is not written as a separate word.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

You do not need to master the following contrasts at A2, but you will meet them in news, essays, and more formal conversation.

Hebrew has a wider family of result connectors. כתוצאה מכך means “as a result of that” and explicitly refers back to an event. לפיכך also means “therefore” but is more formal than לכן. In careful writing, choosing among them helps establish register without changing the basic cause → result logic.

Concession can be expressed in two different grammatical shapes:

Shape	Example	Meaning
למרות + noun	למרות העייפות, המשכנו.	Despite the tiredness, we continued.
למרות ש־ + clause	למרות שהיינו עייפים, המשכנו.	Although we were tired, we continued.
obstacle + בכל זאת + result	היינו עייפים. בכל זאת המשכנו.	We were tired. Even so, we continued.

More formal concessive forms include אף על פי ש־ (“although/even though”) and על אף (“despite”). They belong to the same logical family, but their sentence patterns must still be respected.

With לא רק...אלא גם, moving לא רק changes what is in focus. Compare לא רק דנה קראה את הספר (“not only Dana read the book”) with דנה לא רק קראה את הספר, אלא גם סיכמה אותו (“Dana not only read the book but also summarized it”). In the first, the focus is on who read; in the second, it is on what Dana did. Advanced writers use this placement deliberately.

Practice Tips

1. Take five pairs of basic sentences and label the relationship first: result, addition, or unexpected outcome. Then join them with לכן, בנוסף, or בכל זאת.
2. Build parallel pairs with לא רק...אלא גם. Start with nouns, then adjectives, then complete verb phrases. Read both halves aloud to check that they match.
3. While reading short Hebrew posts or news items, circle each connector and draw an arrow between the ideas it links. For לכן, the arrow should run from cause to result; for בכל זאת, mark the obstacle and the surprising outcome.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Basic Conjunctions — review ו־, אבל, או, כי, גם, and אז before choosing more precise links between ideas.