Prepositions with Pronoun Suffixes in Hebrew

Overview

The concept of Prepositions with Pronoun Suffixes (מילות יחס עם כינויים) is a beginner-level topic in Hebrew grammar. Prepositions inflect with pronoun suffixes: לי (to me), לך (to you), שלי (mine), בו (in it), ממנו (from him). Essential for daily speech.

Understanding prepositions with pronoun suffixes builds on your knowledge of Prepositions and is essential for constructing natural-sounding Hebrew sentences. This topic is classified at the A1 level of the CEFR framework, meaning it is expected of learners at the beginner stage.

Even at the early stages, getting comfortable with prepositions with pronoun suffixes will give you the confidence to express yourself more clearly. Hebrew learners often find that once they grasp this concept, many other parts of the language start to fall into place.

How It Works

Key Principles

Prepositions inflect with pronoun suffixes: לי (to me), לך (to you), שלי (mine), בו (in it), ממנו (from him). Essential for daily speech.

Core Forms

Hebrew	Meaning
תן לי.	Give (it) to me.
אני מדבר איתך.	I'm talking with you.
הספר שלה.	Her book.
אני חושב עליו.	I'm thinking about him.

How Prepositions Inflect

Prepositions in Hebrew take pronoun suffixes instead of being followed by separate pronoun words. Each preposition has its own inflection pattern.

Person	ל- (to)	ב- (in)	עם (with)	על (on/about)
I	לי	בי	איתי	עליי
You (m)	לך	בך	איתך	עליך
You (f)	לך	בך	איתך	עליך
He	לו	בו	איתו	עליו
She	לה	בה	איתה	עליה
We	לנו	בנו	איתנו	עלינו
They (m)	להם	בהם	איתם	עליהם

Examples in Context

Hebrew	English	Note
תן לי.	Give (it) to me.	common usage
אני מדבר איתך.	I'm talking with you.	common usage
הספר שלה.	Her book.	common usage
אני חושב עליו.	I'm thinking about him.	common usage
הוא דיבר עליי.	He spoke about me.	על + pronoun
שמעתי ממנה.	I heard from her.	מ- + pronoun
בואו אלינו.	Come to us.	אל + pronoun
זה בשבילך.	This is for you.	בשביל + pronoun

Common Mistakes

Confusing masculine and feminine forms

• Wrong: Using the masculine form when addressing a woman
• Right: Always match the pronoun to the gender of the person
• Why: Hebrew consistently distinguishes gender in second and third person pronouns. Using the wrong gender is immediately noticeable.

Word order errors

• Wrong: Placing the pronoun in the wrong position
• Right: Follow standard Hebrew word order for pronouns
• Why: While Hebrew has some word order flexibility, pronouns have preferred positions that affect naturalness.

Omitting required pronouns

• Wrong: Dropping a pronoun that is needed for clarity
• Right: Include the pronoun when the context requires it
• Why: While Hebrew allows some pronoun dropping (since verbs carry person information), certain contexts require explicit pronouns.

Practice Tips

1. Practice the full paradigm (all persons) of each form until you can produce them from memory. Use flashcards with the person on one side and the correct form on the other.
2. Write short dialogues that require multiple forms. For example, create a conversation where different people talk about what they have, where they are, or what they want.

Related Concepts

• Prepositions — prerequisite concept