Streetwise Hebrew #45 'It's Not You, It's Me': Non-committal Hebrew
"Let's stay in touch," "Something has to change," "It's not you, it's me" – all languages have these disingenuous, non-committal and empty phrases. So how do we say them in Hebrew?
Hear the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon
New Words and Expressions:
Ata achshav kvar lo muchan lehitchayev – You're no longer ready to commit – אתה עכשיו כבר לא מוכן להתחייב
Mechuyavoot – Commitment – מחוייבות
Chayav – Must – חייב
Mashehu chayav lehishtanot – Something got to change – משהו חייב להשתנות
Ani chayav lalechet – I must go – אני חייב ללכת
Kama ani chayav / chayevet lecha? – How much do I owe you? – כמה אני חייב/חייבת לך
Nir'eh – We'll see – נראה
Nedaber me-halev – We'll talk from the heart – נדבר מהלב
Az nedaber – We'll talk – אז נדבר
Daber iti – Talk to me – דבר איתי
Nihye bekesher – We'll be in touch – נהיה בקשר
Spontani? – Are you spontaneous? (=Are you free right now?) – ספונטני
Ani rotsa lifgosh otcha spontani – I want to meet you spontaneously – אני רוצה לפגוש אותך ספונטני
Ani spontani – I am spontaneous – אני ספונטני
Anachnu od nir'ee et ha-yamim ha-'acherim – We'll see different days – אנחנו עוד נראה את הימים האחרים
"Tsochakim et ha-aviv, ha-ahavot, ha-neurim ve'et ha-dvarim asher shachachnu kvar eich hem nir'im" – Laughing the spring, the love, the youth, and the things we've already forgotten how they look. – צוחקים את האביב, האהבות, הנעורים ואת הדברים אשר שכחנו כבר איך הם נראים
Playlist and Clips:
Sarit Hadad – Ha-ke'ev ha-ze (lyrics)
Shanti Mantra – Ravi Shankar & George Harrison
Yirmi Kaplan – Mashehu chayav lehishtanot (lyrics)
Shlomo Artzi – Nedaber me-halev (lyrics)