Memorize these four letters:

heh, vav, yod, lamed

Learn the basic concept of syllables:

1. Every Hebrew syllable begins with a consonant (C)
2. Every syllable includes a vowel (V)
3. A syllable MAY end with an additional consonant:
   1. If it ends with a vowel, it is called an “open syllable” (CV)
   2. If it ends with a consonant, it is called a “closed syllable” (CVC)
4. If a word ends with a consonant, its last syllable is always closed (CVC)

Consider these words:

1. LeV - one syllable, closed
2. BaVeL - two syllables, the first is open, the second is closed

The word Lev, which means heart (figuratively including the mind or will). This word consists of a single closed syllable - also, notice how Lamed is the only letter that reaches up above the top line of the other letters.

An example of a two syllable word, Bavel. Notice how the first syllable is open and the last syllable is closed. (The line is just for illustrative purposes to show where the syllables are divided.)

But, at this point, we have a problem, an ambiguous situation… What if a word is supposed to end in a vowel sound???

So some of the letters began to serve double duty as indicators for the presence of certain vowels. Basically, sometimes they act as vowels. At first, this was only at the end of the words. Later on, they could also be used as vowels in the middle of words. These letters are called the “Matres Lectionis” which means “Mothers of Reading”.

Learn the basic concept of matres lectionis:

1. The letter heh can sometimes be used at the end of a word to show that the previous consonant has a vowel after it, usually a vowel with an “uh, “ah”, or “eh” sound.
2. The letter vav can be used for the same purpose, but to indicate “oo” or “oh” vowels more specifically.
3. The letter yod can also be used for the same purpose, but to represent “ey” or “ee” vowels more specifically.

So lets try that out… If we want to write Leva instead of Lev, we can now just put a “heh” at the end of the word. Levah. The “h” doesn't really make a sound there, but it tells us that the letter before it (vet) has a vowel sound attached to it. We still see this in English today for names that came from Hebrew, this is why the name Sarah can be spelled either with or without the h, for instance.

Consider this word:

1. LeVah - two syllables, both open due to the use of heh as a matre lectionis.

New letters learned in this Lesson: heh, vav, yod, and lamed.

New words learned: Lev (heart), Levah (flame), Bavel (the place)

Matres Lectionis: Heh is usually “H” but is also often used to indicate a vowel at the end of a word. Vav is V/W but can also represent the back-close vowels (“oh” and “oo” sounds.) Yud is usually “Y” but is also often used to indicate the front-close vowels (“ey” and “ee” sounds.)

So a trade-off has happened. Instead of having an ambiguous situation of whether or not there is a vowel, now there's an ambiguous situation about whether a letter is actings as a vowel or a consonant in particular situations, but don't worry too much about that for now. Some of this will make almost no difference in reading and understanding the text. And, we will gain some additional tools to tell the difference in the upcoming lessons.

Master the Lesson 3 Flashcards before you proceed to Lesson 4.