I know we did not have “Hebrew word of the week” in a while – so I decided to take this week and do only Hebrew words!

We are going to learn Israeli slangs that you might not have heard of and you will laugh when you realize what they mean J

So let us start…

Sababa – Cool, chill, all-right etc – this one you all know, Israelis use Sababa ALL the time! It has so many different meanings, when someone asks you “How are you?” – We say “Sababa!” When someone asks us to do something – we say “Sababa”. This word has so many different meanings you cannot really sum it up in one translation!

Gadol – Big, awesome – with the literal meaning of it being big we actually use it when something good or exciting happens.

Le’echol Sratim – The literal translation is “to eat movies” but when you say it to someone, it means they love drama, they are acting crazy, or they think there is an issue when in fact there is not.  When someone is stressing out about something, we will tell him “stop eating a movie and just see what happens”

Leerzom – Literal translation is “to flow” but in slang it means to go with the flow. “What are we doing tonight? –“Nizrom!” That is what we say when we tell someone to just go with it.

Lachfor – Literal translation is “to dig”, but in slang it means someone who talks too much.

Chaval Al Hazman – Literally translates to “waste of time” but in slang, it means the best thing ever.

Yalla – “Let’s go” or “come on!” Derives from Arabic. It is used in daily language to express one’s desire to get people moving.

Achi/ Achoti – My bro, my dude, my brother. The female equivalent is achoti, which means my girl or my sister.

Achla / Magniv – Both mean cool. Achla also means good – so if someone asks how you are, you can say Achla.

Al ha-panim – Literal: On the face, Slang: Really bad. “How are you feeling?” –“Al ha-panim!” “How was your exam?” – “Al Ha-panim”. We use this phrase when things are not going our way, or if we are not feeling great.

Chetzi co-ach – Literal: Half strength-half power, Slang: Not that good. When you are feeling iffy in Hebrew you will feel Chetzi-Co-ach, seen a movie and it is not that good? It is Chetzi co-ach.

Until next time…

Or