How do I tell vowel Vav from consonant Vav?

By the mark. A dot above or inside the Vav: it is a vowel, o or u. A vowel point under the Vav: it is the consonant v. A Vav with no mark at all, in a text without vowels, is usually o or u.

Why does i often have a Yod after it?

The Yod lengthens the i and stays visible in texts without vowels, so the word is recognised even without the dot. שִׁיר, song, is written with the Yod.

How many vowels does Hebrew have?

Five sounds: a, e, i, o, u. There are more marks because some sounds are written in two ways, but after steps 7 and 8 you know them all.

Free course · Step 8 of 15

I, O and U, and the three faces of Vav

The last three vowels. I is a dot under the letter (chirik), often followed by a Yod: בִּי is bi. O is a dot high up, alone (cholam) or above a Vav: וֹ. U is three dots in a diagonal under the letter (kubutz) or a dot inside a Vav: וּ.

And here the letter that gives most trouble comes back. Vav has three faces: with a dot on top, וֹ, it is the vowel o; with a dot in its middle, וּ, it is the vowel u; with a vowel point of its own, under or beside it, like וַ or וְ, it is the consonant v. So: dot above, o; dot inside, u; a vowel of its own, v.

The exercises alternate the three faces until Vav stops surprising you, and with all five vowels you read any syllable.

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Step 8 of 15 · Explanation

I, O and U, and the three faces of Vav

i is one dot under the letter (hiriq): is bi.

Often a Yod follows it and does nothing but confirm the i: is still bi.

Questions

How do I tell vowel Vav from consonant Vav?: By the mark. A dot above or inside the Vav: it is a vowel, o or u. A vowel point under the Vav: it is the consonant v. A Vav with no mark at all, in a text without vowels, is usually o or u.
Why does i often have a Yod after it?: The Yod lengthens the i and stays visible in texts without vowels, so the word is recognised even without the dot. שִׁיר, song, is written with the Yod.
How many vowels does Hebrew have?: Five sounds: a, e, i, o, u. There are more marks because some sounds are written in two ways, but after steps 7 and 8 you know them all.

And then?

In a free trial lesson we talk on Google Meet and I set your goals. With a free account the steps you finish follow you to every device.

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I, O and U, and the three faces of Vav

Questions

And then?

The steps of the course