Lesson 5 | Nouns
[2] Rules With Exceptions
Those are the rules—not too complicated—that is, until we begin to talk about the exceptions. Ready?
Exception #1: form
As we said in the previous step, feminine nouns typically end with an a-class vowel + ה, or with a ת. All other noun forms are usually masculine. But while this is the case for the majority of distinct nouns in the Hebrew Bible, it is not true for all. And sure enough, several of the most common nouns in the Hebrew Bible are, in fact, exceptions in this respect.
We saw one exception in the last step where רֶגֶל is listed as feminine, though it does not end in ה or ת. (In fact, all body parts which come in pairs are feminine in gender.) Here are some more of the most common nouns in the תנ״ך (Old Testament), most of which are exceptional in one way or another.
common masculine nouns
| בֵּן | בָּנִים | son / sons | |
| אִישׁ | אֲנָשִׁים | man / men | |
| בַּיִת | בָּתִּים | house / houses | |
| אַב | אָבוֹת | father / fathers | |
| דָּבָר | דְּבָרִים | word / words | |
| עַם | עַמִּים | people / peoples |
common feminine nouns
| שָׁנָה | שָׁנִים | year / years | |
| עִיר | עָרִים | city / cities | |
| אִשָּׁה | נָשִׁים | woman / women | |
| בַּת | בְּנוֹת | daughter / daughters | |
| חֶרֶב | חַרְבוֹת | sword / swords | |
| רֶגֶל | רְגָלִים | leg / legs |
Exception #2: plural endings
Besides exceptions related to a noun’s singular form, many nouns in the Hebrew Bible are also exceptional with regard to the plural ending they receive. This, once again, is true of many of the most common nouns.
For example, אִשָּׁה is a feminine noun, but receives the masculine plural ending ים in its plural נָשִׁים. But note that this does not change this noun’s gender. Whether singular or plural, it is still a feminine noun and requires any related verb or adjective to likewise be feminine.
Exception #3: gender-both
Up to this point, we have talked about masculine and feminine gender nouns. But there are some nouns that are classified as gender-both because they can take either a masculine or feminine verb or adjective. The most common examples are פָּנִים (“face”), אֶרֶץ (“land” or “earth”), יַד (“hand”) and נֶפֶשׁ (“soul”).
That being said, most gender-both nouns function primarily as either masculine or feminine. For instance, all four of the above examples will most often function as feminine nouns.
Exception #4: plural form with singular meaning
Some words only appear in the plural form, though they have a singular meaning. For example, מַיִם (“water”),¹ פָּנִים (“face”) and אֱלֹהִים (“God”). In such cases, these plural form nouns with singular meaning will behave like normal plural nouns and require adjectives and verbs connected to them to be in the plural.
That is, except for the noun אֱלֹהִים. This is the only noun with a plural form which usually (though not always) takes a singular adjective or verb. This fact alone doesn’t prove the doctrine of the Trinity, but it does fit perfectly with the reality that God is a unity of three persons!
Proper nouns and gentilics
Two other noun-related terms that will be helpful for you to know are “proper nouns” and “gentilic nouns.”
Proper nouns are those nouns which refer to specific people or places. For example, מֹשֶׁה (“Moses”) and יְרוּשָׁלִַם are proper nouns² whereas אִישׁ and אוֹר are not.
Gentilic nouns are those nouns that indicate an ethnic or national affiliation. Two examples would be מִצְרִי (“Egyptian”) and בֵּית הַלַּחְמִי (“Bethlehemite”).
Have a grammar headache from all the exceptions? The best cure for such things is worship, which we’ll do in song on the next step.