Free lessonLevel B110 min read12 practice words

Nif'al: the Passive and “Becoming” Binyan

The binyan of things that happen to you: a glass that breaks, a baby who falls asleep, a friend who stays for dinner. One pattern, three jobs.

Nif'al is about what happens, not what you do. The נִ at the start of נִכְנַס, נִשְׁאַר and נִפְגַּשׁ is your signal.

One binyan, three jobsthe big picture

What happens to you, not what you do

Your phone slips out of your hand. You don't say “I broke it”; you say הַטֶּלֶפוֹן נִשְׁבַּר, the phone broke. Nif'al tells the story from the side of the one the action happens to: the subject doesn't act, something happens to it.

In the verbs lesson you met nif'al as the passive of pa'al. That is one of its jobs. It has two more: changes of state, like falling asleep or getting scared, and a group of everyday verbs that you simply translate as ordinary verbs: to enter, to stay, to meet up.

The signature: נִ before the root in the past and the present (נִכְתַּב, נִכְתָּב), and no מ at the start of the present, just like pa'al.

Three everyday situations

הַטֶּלֶפוֹן שֶׁלִּי נִשְׁבַּר.

ha-telefon sheli nishbar

My phone broke.

הַתִּינוֹק נִרְדַּם סוֹף סוֹף.

ha-tinok nirdam sof sof

The baby finally fell asleep.

נִכְנַסְתִּי לַחֲנוּת וְנִשְׁאַרְתִּי שָׁעָה.

nikhnasti la-khanut ve-nish’arti sha’a

I went into the shop and stayed for an hour.

Three jobs at a glance

Three jobs at a glance
Job	Verbs	Meaning
Passive of pa'al	נִכְתַּב · נִשְׁבַּר · נִסְגַּר	was written, broke, closed
Change of state	נִרְדַּם · נִבְהַל · נִפְגַּע	fell asleep, got scared, got hurt
Everyday verbs	נִכְנַס · נִשְׁאַר · נִפְגַּשׁ	entered, stayed, met up

One pattern serves all three jobs. The meaning comes from the verb itself, so learn each nif'al verb with its translation.

The passive: pa'al and nif'al pairspa'al → nif'al

Same root, the spotlight moves

You walk into the kitchen and there is glass all over the floor. Who did it? Maybe you don't know, maybe it doesn't matter. What you report is what happened to the glass: הַכּוֹס נִשְׁבְּרָה, the glass broke.

Compare the pa'al sentence דָּנִי שָׁבַר אֶת הַכּוֹס. To switch to nif'al, the object moves into the subject's place, אֶת disappears because there is no object any more, and the verb agrees with its new subject: כּוֹס is feminine, so נִשְׁבְּרָה.

Only a pa'al verb with a direct object can be flipped like this. הָלַךְ (went) has no object, so it has no passive.

One event, two angles

Pa'al: who did it

דָּנִי שָׁבַר אֶת הַכּוֹס.

Dani shavar et ha-kos

Dani broke the glass.

הָעִירִיָּה סָגְרָה אֶת הַכְּבִישׁ.

ha-iriya sagra et ha-kvish

The city council closed the road.

Nif'al: what happened to it

הַכּוֹס נִשְׁבְּרָה.

ha-kos nishbera

The glass broke.

הַכְּבִישׁ נִסְגַּר.

ha-kvish nisgar

The road was closed.

Seven pairs worth knowing

Seven pairs worth knowing
Pa'al: someone does it	Nif'al: it happens	Meaning
סָגַר	נִסְגַּר	closed → was closed, closed
שָׁבַר	נִשְׁבַּר	broke → got broken, broke
כָּתַב	נִכְתַּב	wrote → was written
פָּתַח	נִפְתַּח	opened → was opened, opened
גָּנַב	נִגְנַב	stole → was stolen
גָּמַר	נִגְמַר	finished → ended, was over
מָצָא	נִמְצָא	found → was found, is located

נִמְצָא has a second, everyday meaning in the present: “is located”. הַתַּחֲנָה נִמְצֵאת לְיַד הַבַּנְק, the station is next to the bank.

Event or state?

Nif'al describes an event: something happened. To describe how things are now, Hebrew uses an adjective from the same root: סָגוּר (closed), פָּתוּחַ (open), שָׁבוּר (broken).

הַחֲנוּת נִסְגְּרָה.

ha-khanut nisgera

The shop closed. (an event: it happened)

הַחֲנוּת סְגוּרָה.

ha-khanut sgura

The shop is closed. (a state: how it is now)

“By whom?”: עַל יְדֵי and the spoken wayformal vs spoken

Naming the doer, or not

In the news you will see the doer added with עַל יְדֵי (by): הַכְּבִישׁ נִסְגַּר עַל יְדֵי הַמִּשְׁטָרָה, the road was closed by the police. This is the language of headlines, reports, signs and formal writing.

In conversation Israelis hardly ever say עַל יְדֵי. If they know who did it, they use the active verb. If they don't know or don't care, they use the “they” form with no subject: סָגְרוּ אֶת הַכְּבִישׁ, literally “they closed the road”. And nif'al without a doer is perfectly everyday: הַכְּבִישׁ נִסְגַּר.

Don't confuse עַל יְדֵי (by someone) with עַל יַד (next to), which means the same as לְיַד.

One piece of news, four ways

One piece of news, four ways
Where you hear it	Sentence	Meaning
News, formal writing	הַכְּבִישׁ נִסְגַּר עַל יְדֵי הַמִּשְׁטָרָה.	The road was closed by the police.
Speech, doer known	הַמִּשְׁטָרָה סָגְרָה אֶת הַכְּבִישׁ.	The police closed the road.
Speech, doer unknown	סָגְרוּ אֶת הַכְּבִישׁ.	They've closed the road.
Speech, only the result	הַכְּבִישׁ נִסְגַּר.	The road has been closed.

Only the first one sounds like a newspaper. The other three are what you will hear on the street.

What you'll hear in conversation

גָּנְבוּ לִי אֶת הָאוֹפַנַּיִם!

ganvu li et ha-ofanayim

My bike got stolen! (literally: they stole my bike)

קוֹרְאִים לִי מִיכַל.

kor’im li Mikhal

My name is Michal. (literally: they call me Michal)

אָמְרוּ בַּחֲדָשׁוֹת שֶׁמָּחָר יֵרֵד גֶּשֶׁם.

amru ba-khadashot she-makhar yered geshem

They said on the news that it will rain tomorrow.

אוֹי, הַקּוֹבֶץ נִמְחַק!

oy, ha-kovets nimkhak

Oh no, the file got deleted! (nobody is named, only what happened)

Becoming and everyday verbsno doer at all

Things that simply happen

You sit down to watch a film and wake up at the credits: נִרְדַּמְתִּי, I fell asleep. Nobody put you to sleep; it simply happened. Nif'al is the natural home for these changes of state, where English says “fall”, “get” or “become”: fall asleep, get scared, get hurt.

Then there is a group of very common nif'al verbs that you translate as ordinary verbs: נִכְנַס (to enter), נִשְׁאַר (to stay), נִפְגַּשׁ (to meet up), נִזְכַּר (to recall), נִגְמַר (to end), נוֹלַד (to be born). Don't hunt for a passive meaning in them; learn each one with its preposition.

נוֹלַד looks different because its root, י־ל־ד, starts with י: with such roots nif'al opens with נוֹ instead of נִ. The endings are regular: נוֹלַדְתִּי, נוֹלְדָה.

Changes of state

נִרְדַּמְתִּי מוּל הַטֶּלֶוִיזְיָה.

nirdamti mul ha-televizya

I fell asleep in front of the TV.

הַיְלָדִים נִבְהֲלוּ מֵהָרַעַשׁ.

ha-yeladim nivhalu me-ha-ra’ash

The children got scared of the noise.

הִיא נִפְגְּעָה בַּתְּאוּנָה, אֲבָל הִיא בְּסֵדֶר.

hi nifge’a ba-te’una, aval hi beseder

She got hurt in the accident, but she's fine.

English needs “get”, “fall” or “become” here. Hebrew needs nothing but the binyan.

Six everyday verbs and their prepositions

Six everyday verbs and their prepositions
Verb	Preposition	Meaning	Example
נִכְנַס	לְ־	to enter, go in	נִכְנַסְתִּי לַמִּשְׂרָד.
נִשְׁאַר	בְּ־	to stay, remain	נִשְׁאַרְנוּ בַּבַּיִת.
נִפְגַּשׁ	עִם	to meet up with	נִפְגַּשְׁתִּי עִם חֲבֵרִים.
נִזְכַּר	בְּ־	to remember, recall	פִּתְאוֹם נִזְכַּרְתִּי בַּפְּגִישָׁה.
נִגְמַר	לְ־	to end; to run out (for someone)	נִגְמַר לָנוּ הֶחָלָב.
נוֹלַד	בְּ־	to be born	נוֹלַדְתִּי בְּחֵיפָה.

נִגְמַר also means “to run out”: the thing is the subject and the person comes with לְ: נִגְמְרָה לִי הַסּוֹלְלָה, my battery died.

פָּגַשׁ or נִפְגַּשׁ?

פָּגַשׁ אֶת: met, ran into

פָּגַשְׁתִּי אֶת דָּנָה בַּסּוּפֶּר.

pagashti et Dana ba-super

I ran into Dana at the supermarket.

נִפְגַּשׁ עִם: met up with

נִפְגַּשְׁתִּי עִם דָּנָה לְקָפֶה.

nifgashti im Dana le-kafe

I met up with Dana for coffee.

פָּגַשׁ takes אֶת: you met someone, often by chance or for the first time. נִפְגַּשׁ takes עִם: you met up, usually by arrangement. Both are everyday.

Quick check

1 of 4

“The glass broke.” Which sentence says it?

Present and past: נִ plus the endings you knowthe core tables

Two tenses you already half know

On the phone before a meeting: אֲנִי נִכְנֶסֶת עַכְשָׁיו, I'm going in now. That's the present. Afterwards: נִכְנַסְתִּי בַּזְּמַן, I went in on time. That's the past. Both are built on נִ + root.

The present takes the four endings from the present lesson: נִכְנָס, נִכְנֶסֶת, נִכְנָסִים, נִכְנָסוֹת. The past takes the person endings from the past lesson: נִכְנַסְתִּי, נִכְנַסְנוּ, נִכְנְסוּ. Learn the “he” form and the rest follows.

In the masculine singular, present and past sound the same: נִכְנָס (enters) and נִכְנַס (entered) are both “nikhnas”, and without nikud both are written נכנס. A time word or the context tells them apart.

Present tense: four forms

Present tense: four forms
Who	to be written	to enter
אֲנִי / אַתָּה / הוּא	נִכְתָּב	נִכְנָס
אֲנִי / אַתְּ / הִיא	נִכְתֶּבֶת	נִכְנֶסֶת
אֲנַחְנוּ / אַתֶּם / הֵם	נִכְתָּבִים	נִכְנָסִים
אֲנַחְנוּ / אַתֶּן / הֵן	נִכְתָּבוֹת	נִכְנָסוֹת

When the last root letter is ח or ע, the feminine ends in ־ַחַת or ־ַעַת: נִפְתַּחַת, נִפְגַּעַת.

Past tense: every person

Past tense: every person
Person	to be written	to enter
אֲנִי	נִכְתַּבְתִּי	נִכְנַסְתִּי
אַתָּה	נִכְתַּבְתָּ	נִכְנַסְתָּ
אַתְּ	נִכְתַּבְתְּ	נִכְנַסְתְּ
הוּא	נִכְתַּב	נִכְנַס
הִיא	נִכְתְּבָה	נִכְנְסָה
אֲנַחְנוּ	נִכְתַּבְנוּ	נִכְנַסְנוּ
אַתֶּם / אַתֶּן	נִכְתַּבְתֶּם / נִכְתַּבְתֶּן	נִכְנַסְתֶּם / נִכְנַסְתֶּן
הֵם / הֵן	נִכְתְּבוּ	נִכְנְסוּ

Before ־ָה and ־וּ the middle vowel drops: נִכְנְסָה, נִכְנְסוּ. A guttural in the middle takes a short “a” instead: נִשְׁאֲרָה, נִבְהֲלוּ.

Sentences to read aloud

הַחֲנוּת נִסְגֶּרֶת בְּשֶׁבַע.

ha-khanut nisgeret be-sheva

The shop closes at seven.

הַדְּלָתוֹת נִפְתָּחוֹת מִצַּד יָמִין.

ha-dlatot niftakhot mi-tsad yamin

The doors open on the right-hand side.

נִשְׁאַרְנוּ בַּבַּיִת כָּל הַשַּׁבָּת.

nish’arnu ba-bayit kol ha-shabat

We stayed at home all Saturday.

הִיא נִרְדְּמָה בָּאוֹטוֹבּוּס.

hi nirdema ba-otobus

She fell asleep on the bus.

אֵיפֹה נוֹלַדְתָּ?

eifo noladta

Where were you born?

Future and infinitive: the doubled letterwhere the נ hides

The נ melts into a dagesh

Making plans: נִפָּגֵשׁ מָחָר? (shall we meet tomorrow?), אֶפְשָׁר לְהִכָּנֵס? (may I come in?). In the future and the infinitive the נ of nif'al disappears. In its place the first root letter is doubled, marked by a dagesh, and an “a” follows it: יִכָּנֵס, לְהִכָּנֵס.

You can hear the dagesh in ב, כ and פ: nikhnas becomes yikanes, nifgash becomes yipagesh, nivhal becomes yibahel. The prefixes from the future lesson go in front as usual: אֶכָּנֵס, תִּכָּנֵס, יִכָּנֵס, נִכָּנֵס.

The infinitive is לְהִ + the future stem: יִכָּתֵב ← לְהִכָּתֵב, יִכָּנֵס ← לְהִכָּנֵס, יִשָּׁאֵר ← לְהִשָּׁאֵר. Without nikud it is written with a י: להיכנס, להישאר.

From past to future

נִכְנַסיִכָּנֵסhe entered → he will enterkh → k

נִפְגַּשׁיִפָּגֵשׁhe met up → he will meet upf → p

נִבְהַליִבָּהֵלhe got scared → he will get scaredv → b

נִשְׁאַריִשָּׁאֵרhe stayed → he will stay

Future tense: every person

Future tense: every person
Person	to be written	to enter
אֲנִי	אֶכָּתֵב	אֶכָּנֵס
אַתָּה	תִּכָּתֵב	תִּכָּנֵס
אַתְּ	תִּכָּתְבִי	תִּכָּנְסִי
הוּא	יִכָּתֵב	יִכָּנֵס
הִיא	תִּכָּתֵב	תִּכָּנֵס
אֲנַחְנוּ	נִכָּתֵב	נִכָּנֵס
אַתֶּם / אַתֶּן	תִּכָּתְבוּ	תִּכָּנְסוּ
הֵם / הֵן	יִכָּתְבוּ	יִכָּנְסוּ

Watch out: נִכָּנֵס (we will enter) and נִכְנַס (he entered) differ only in the dagesh and the vowels. Without nikud: ניכנס against נכנס.

When the first letter can't double

א, ה, ח, ע and ר never take a dagesh. When one of them is the first root letter, the vowel before it stretches instead: יִ becomes יֵ, לְהִ becomes לְהֵ. With א, ה, ח and ע the past and present also start with נֶ instead of נִ.

When the first letter can't double
Past	Present	Future	Infinitive	Meaning
נֶעֱלַם	נֶעֱלָם	יֵעָלֵם	לְהֵעָלֵם	to disappear
נֶחְשַׁב	נֶחְשָׁב	יֵחָשֵׁב	לְהֵחָשֵׁב	to be considered
נִרְדַּם	נִרְדָּם	יֵרָדֵם	לְהֵרָדֵם	to fall asleep

This is for recognition. When you see יֵ or לְהֵ at the start of a verb, think nif'al.

Plans and requests

נִפָּגֵשׁ מָחָר בִּשְׁמוֹנֶה?

nipagesh makhar bi-shmone

Shall we meet tomorrow at eight?

אֶפְשָׁר לְהִכָּנֵס?

efshar lehikanes

May I come in?

אֲנִי רוֹצָה לְהִשָּׁאֵר עוֹד קְצָת.

ani rotsa lehisha’er od ktsat

I want to stay a little longer.

אֲנִי לֹא מַצְלִיחַ לְהֵרָדֵם.

ani lo matsliakh leheradem

I can't fall asleep.

אַל תִּלָּחֵץ, יִהְיֶה בְּסֵדֶר.

al tilakhets, yihye beseder

Don't stress, it'll be fine.

The imperative uses the same stem: הִכָּנֵס! (come in!), הִכָּנְסִי, הִכָּנְסוּ. In everyday speech the future is more common: תִּכָּנֵס, תִּכָּנְסִי.

Quick check

1 of 5

“Yesterday she stayed at work until late.”

אֶתְמוֹל הִיא ___ בָּעֲבוֹדָה עַד מְאֻחָר.

Common mistakes and summary

Five mistakes worth fixing now

אֶת הַכּוֹס נִשְׁבְּרָההַכּוֹס נִשְׁבְּרָה
In nif'al the thing is the subject, not the object, so אֶת disappears.
הַחֲנוּת נִסְגַּרהַחֲנוּת נִסְגְּרָה
The verb agrees with its new subject: חֲנוּת is feminine.
נִפְגַּשְׁתִּי אֶת דָּנָהנִפְגַּשְׁתִּי עִם דָּנָה
נִפְגַּשׁ takes עִם. With אֶת use pa'al: פָּגַשְׁתִּי אֶת דָּנָה.
אֲנִי רוֹצֶה לְנִכְנַסאֲנִי רוֹצֶה לְהִכָּנֵס
The infinitive is לְהִ + a doubled first letter, never לְ + the past form.
הַסֵּפֶר נִכְתַּב עַל יַד דָּנָההַסֵּפֶר נִכְתַּב עַל יְדֵי דָּנָה
“By” is עַל יְדֵי. עַל יַד means “next to”.

And keep event and state apart: הַחַלּוֹן נִשְׁבַּר (the window broke), but הַחַלּוֹן שָׁבוּר (the window is broken).

What to remember

Nif'al tells what happens to the subject: the passive of pa'al, a change of state, or an everyday verb like נִכְנַס.
From pa'al to nif'al: the object becomes the subject, אֶת drops, and the verb agrees with its new subject.
עַל יְדֵי belongs to formal writing. In speech, use the active verb or the “they” form: סָגְרוּ אֶת הַכְּבִישׁ.
Present and past: נִ + root + the endings you know: נִכְנֶסֶת, נִכְנַסְתִּי.
Future and infinitive: the נ hides in a doubled first letter (יִכָּנֵס, לְהִכָּנֵס); gutturals and ר stretch the vowel instead (יֵעָלֵם, לְהֵרָדֵם).

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Frequently asked questions

What is nif'al in Hebrew?: One of the seven binyanim. It is the passive of pa'al (נִכְתַּב, was written), but it also expresses changes of state (נִרְדַּם, fell asleep) and includes everyday verbs with an active meaning, such as נִכְנַס (entered) and נִשְׁאַר (stayed). Its sign is the נִ before the root in the past and present.
How do I say “was written” or “was closed” in Hebrew?: Put the pa'al root into nif'al and make the verb agree with the subject: הַמִּכְתָּב נִכְתַּב (the letter was written), הַחֲנוּת נִסְגְּרָה (the shop was closed). Hebrew needs no separate word for “was”. This works for pa'al verbs; verbs in pi'el and hif'il have their own passive binyanim: סֻפַּר (was told), הֻזְמַן (was invited).
Why is it לְהִכָּנֵס and not לְנִכְנַס?: In the future and the infinitive the נ of nif'al merges into the first root letter, which is doubled: לְהִכָּנֵס, יִכָּנֵס. That is also why you hear “k” instead of “kh”. Without nikud the word is written with a י: להיכנס.
Do Israelis use the passive in everyday speech?: Nif'al itself, yes: הַכּוֹס נִשְׁבְּרָה and הַסֶּרֶט נִגְמַר are completely everyday. What sounds formal is naming the doer with עַל יְדֵי. In conversation people use the active verb (דָּנָה כָּתְבָה אֶת זֶה) or the “they” form: סָגְרוּ אֶת הַכְּבִישׁ.

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One binyan, three jobs
The passive: pa'al and nif'al pairs
“By whom?”: עַל יְדֵי and the spoken way (Free account)
Becoming and everyday verbs (Free account)
Present and past: נִ plus the endings you know (Free account)
Future and infinitive: the doubled letter (Free account)
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Keep practicing
Questions

Job

Verbs

Meaning

Passive of pa'al

נִכְתַּב · נִשְׁבַּר · נִסְגַּר

was written, broke, closed

Change of state

נִרְדַּם · נִבְהַל · נִפְגַּע

fell asleep, got scared, got hurt

Everyday verbs

נִכְנַס · נִשְׁאַר · נִפְגַּשׁ

entered, stayed, met up

Pa'al: someone does it

Nif'al: it happens

Meaning

סָגַר

נִסְגַּר

closed → was closed, closed

שָׁבַר

נִשְׁבַּר

broke → got broken, broke

כָּתַב

נִכְתַּב

wrote → was written

פָּתַח

נִפְתַּח

opened → was opened, opened

גָּנַב

נִגְנַב

stole → was stolen

גָּמַר

נִגְמַר

finished → ended, was over

מָצָא

נִמְצָא

found → was found, is located

Where you hear it

Sentence

Meaning

News, formal writing

הַכְּבִישׁ נִסְגַּר עַל יְדֵי הַמִּשְׁטָרָה.

The road was closed by the police.

Speech, doer known

הַמִּשְׁטָרָה סָגְרָה אֶת הַכְּבִישׁ.

The police closed the road.

Speech, doer unknown

סָגְרוּ אֶת הַכְּבִישׁ.

They've closed the road.

Speech, only the result

הַכְּבִישׁ נִסְגַּר.

The road has been closed.

Verb

Preposition

Meaning

Example

נִכְנַס

לְ־

to enter, go in

נִכְנַסְתִּי לַמִּשְׂרָד.

נִשְׁאַר

בְּ־

to stay, remain

נִשְׁאַרְנוּ בַּבַּיִת.

נִפְגַּשׁ

עִם

to meet up with

נִפְגַּשְׁתִּי עִם חֲבֵרִים.

נִזְכַּר

בְּ־

to remember, recall

פִּתְאוֹם נִזְכַּרְתִּי בַּפְּגִישָׁה.

נִגְמַר

לְ־

to end; to run out (for someone)

נִגְמַר לָנוּ הֶחָלָב.

נוֹלַד

בְּ־

to be born

נוֹלַדְתִּי בְּחֵיפָה.

Who

to be written

to enter

אֲנִי / אַתָּה / הוּא

נִכְתָּב

נִכְנָס

אֲנִי / אַתְּ / הִיא

נִכְתֶּבֶת

נִכְנֶסֶת

אֲנַחְנוּ / אַתֶּם / הֵם

נִכְתָּבִים

נִכְנָסִים

אֲנַחְנוּ / אַתֶּן / הֵן

נִכְתָּבוֹת

נִכְנָסוֹת

Person

to be written

to enter

אֲנִי

נִכְתַּבְתִּי

נִכְנַסְתִּי

אַתָּה

נִכְתַּבְתָּ

נִכְנַסְתָּ

אַתְּ

נִכְתַּבְתְּ

נִכְנַסְתְּ

הוּא

נִכְתַּב

נִכְנַס

הִיא

נִכְתְּבָה

נִכְנְסָה

אֲנַחְנוּ

נִכְתַּבְנוּ

נִכְנַסְנוּ

אַתֶּם / אַתֶּן

נִכְתַּבְתֶּם / נִכְתַּבְתֶּן

נִכְנַסְתֶּם / נִכְנַסְתֶּן

הֵם / הֵן

נִכְתְּבוּ

נִכְנְסוּ

Person

to be written

to enter

אֲנִי

אֶכָּתֵב

אֶכָּנֵס

אַתָּה

תִּכָּתֵב

תִּכָּנֵס

אַתְּ

תִּכָּתְבִי

תִּכָּנְסִי

הוּא

יִכָּתֵב

יִכָּנֵס

הִיא

תִּכָּתֵב

תִּכָּנֵס

אֲנַחְנוּ

נִכָּתֵב

נִכָּנֵס

אַתֶּם / אַתֶּן

תִּכָּתְבוּ

תִּכָּנְסוּ

הֵם / הֵן

יִכָּתְבוּ

יִכָּנְסוּ

Past

Present

Future

Infinitive

Meaning

נֶעֱלַם

נֶעֱלָם

יֵעָלֵם

לְהֵעָלֵם

to disappear

נֶחְשַׁב

נֶחְשָׁב

יֵחָשֵׁב

לְהֵחָשֵׁב

to be considered

נִרְדַּם

נִרְדָּם

יֵרָדֵם

לְהֵרָדֵם

to fall asleep

Frequently asked questions

What is nif'al in Hebrew?

One of the seven binyanim. It is the passive of pa'al (נִכְתַּב, was written), but it also expresses changes of state (נִרְדַּם, fell asleep) and includes everyday verbs with an active meaning, such as נִכְנַס (entered) and נִשְׁאַר (stayed). Its sign is the נִ before the root in the past and present.

How do I say “was written” or “was closed” in Hebrew?

Put the pa'al root into nif'al and make the verb agree with the subject: הַמִּכְתָּב נִכְתַּב (the letter was written), הַחֲנוּת נִסְגְּרָה (the shop was closed). Hebrew needs no separate word for “was”. This works for pa'al verbs; verbs in pi'el and hif'il have their own passive binyanim: סֻפַּר (was told), הֻזְמַן (was invited).

Why is it לְהִכָּנֵס and not לְנִכְנַס?

In the future and the infinitive the נ of nif'al merges into the first root letter, which is doubled: לְהִכָּנֵס, יִכָּנֵס. That is also why you hear “k” instead of “kh”. Without nikud the word is written with a י: להיכנס.

Do Israelis use the passive in everyday speech?

Nif'al itself, yes: הַכּוֹס נִשְׁבְּרָה and הַסֶּרֶט נִגְמַר are completely everyday. What sounds formal is naming the doer with עַל יְדֵי. In conversation people use the active verb (דָּנָה כָּתְבָה אֶת זֶה) or the “they” form: סָגְרוּ אֶת הַכְּבִישׁ.