היה

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Hebrew

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Root
ה־י־ה (h-y-h)

Etymology

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From Proto-Semitic *hwy (to fall, happen, be, become).[1]

Pronunciation

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Verb

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הָיָה (hayá) (pa'al construction)

  1. to be: to exist
    • Tanach, Genesis 1:3, with translation of the Jewish Publication Society:
      וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים יְהִי אוֹר וַיְהִי־אוֹר׃
      vayómer 'elohím y'hí 'ór vay'hí-'ór.
      And God said: 'Let there be light.' And there was light.
  2. to be: connects a noun to a prepositional phrase or adjective describing it
    • Tanach, Leviticus 26:12, with translation of the Jewish Publication Society:
      וְהִתְהַלַּכְתִּי בְּתוֹכְכֶם וְהָיִיתִי לָכֶם לֵאלֹהִים וְאַתֶּם תִּהְיוּ־לִי לְעָם׃
      v'hithalakhtí b'tokh'khém v'hayíti lakhém lelohím v'atém tihyú-lí l'ám.
      And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be My people.
    הבית היה אדום
    habáyit hayá adóm
    the house was red
  3. to happen, take place, occur
    נֵס גָּדוֹל הָיָה שָׁם.
    nés gadól hayá shám.
    A great miracle happened there.
  4. to be: connects a term to its definition
    • 2011, The 52nd International Mathematical Olympiad, problem 5:
      תהא פונקציה מקבוצת השלמים לקבוצת השלמים החיוביים.
      Let be a function from the set of integers to the set of positive integers.
    • 2016, The 57th International Mathematical Olympiad, problem 3:
      יהא מצולע מישורי קמור.
      Let be a convex polygon in the plane.
  5. to be: connects a subject to a role the subject plays
  6. to be: indicates ownership, possession, or the like
    אם יהיה לי
    im yihyé li
    if I'll have

Usage notes

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  • The present tense is usually omitted; in some cases a pronoun (such as הוא,‎ יש, or הינו) is used rather than any form of the verb.

Conjugation

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Derived terms

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References

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  1. ^ Huehnergard, John (2011) “Proto-Semitic Language & Culture; Semitic Roots”, in American Heritage Dictionary[1], 5th edition, Appendix II: Semitic Roots, page 2074 of 2066-2078