Lesson 9 | Stems
[5] Hiphil and Hophal
The third and final pair of stems is the hiphil / hophal pair, where hiphil is the active and hophal its passive counterpart. What distinguishes these two from the other five stems is the causal sense they usually bring to a root’s base meaning.
We’ve already illustrated this in the devotional for the lesson. You will recall, for example, that בּוֹא (“come”) in the hiphil carries the meaning “bring” (i.e. “cause to come”). The hophal is the passive counterpart to this, meaning “be brought.” Another good example is מוּת (“die”). The meaning becomes causal in the hiphil and hophal, giving the senses of “kill” and “be killed” respectively.
hiphil & hophal perfect for בּוֹא
| 1cs | הֵבֵאתִי | הֻבָאתִי | I brought / was brought |
| 1cp | הֵבֵאנוּ | we brought | |
| 2ms | הֵבֵאתָ | הֻבָאתָ | you [sir] brought / were brought |
| 2fs | הֵבֵאתְ | you [ma’am] brought | |
| 2mp | הֲבֵאתֶם | you all brought | |
| 2fp | |||
| 3ms | הֵבִיא | הוּבָא | he brought / was brought |
| 3fs | הֵבִיאָה | הוּבְאָה | she brought / was brought |
| 3cp | הֵבִיאוּ | הוּבְאוּ | they brought / were brought |
You will notice we have used בּוֹא for our paradigms even though it is a “hollow verb” with a ו as the second letter of its root. The reason we have done so is because it appears frequently in the hiphil (549x) and also in the hophal (24x)—something not true of any non-irregular verbs. Besides, the regular form is not too different from this hollow form.
Identifying features (hiphil):
- The he prefix with a chirik, e-class vowel, patach, cholam, or cholam-vav
- Third-person forms have a yod inserted between the second and third root letters
Identifying feature (hophal):
- A he prefix with a kubutz, shureq, or kamatz
Practice
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עָשִׂ֣יתָ
What is the root of עָשִׂ֣יתָ?
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Is עָשִׂ֣יתָ derived from a hollow verb?
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Does עָשִׂ֣יתָ’s root begin or end with a weak letter?
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What stem is עָשִׂ֣יתָ conjugated in?
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What is the person, gender, and number of עָשִׂ֣יתָ? (use this format: e.g. 1cs)
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Highlight and zigzag עָשִׂ֣יתָ in the passage above according to its aspect and stem.
In light of these things, עָשִׂ֣יתָ could be translated in the verse above as .
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הִגַּ֣דְתָּ
What is the root of הִגַּ֣דְתָּ?
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Is הִגַּ֣דְתָּ derived from a hollow verb?
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Does הִגַּ֣דְתָּ’s root begin or end with a weak letter?
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What stem is הִגַּ֣דְתָּ conjugated in?
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What is the person, gender, and number of הִגַּ֣דְתָּ? (use this format: e.g. 1cs)
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Highlight and zigzag הִגַּ֣דְתָּ in the passage above according to its aspect and stem.
In light of these things, הִגַּ֣דְתָּ could be translated in the verse above as .
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וְהִשְׁכַּמְתֶּ֖ם
What is the root of וְהִשְׁכַּמְתֶּ֖ם?
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Is וְהִשְׁכַּמְתֶּ֖ם derived from a hollow verb?
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Does וְהִשְׁכַּמְתֶּ֖ם’s root begin or end with a weak letter?
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What stem is וְהִשְׁכַּמְתֶּ֖ם conjugated in?
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What is the person, gender, and number of וְהִשְׁכַּמְתֶּ֖ם? (use this format: e.g. 1cs)
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Highlight and zigzag וְהִשְׁכַּמְתֶּ֖ם in the passage above according to its aspect and stem.
שָׁכַם — rise early (only appears in the hiphil stem)
In light of these things, וְהִשְׁכַּמְתֶּ֖ם could be translated in the passage above as .
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וַהְלַכְתֶּ֣ם
What is the root of וַהְלַכְתֶּ֣ם?
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Is וַהְלַכְתֶּ֣ם derived from a hollow verb?
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Does וַהְלַכְתֶּ֣ם’s root begin or end with a weak letter?
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What stem is וַהְלַכְתֶּ֣ם conjugated in?
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What is the person, gender, and number of וַהְלַכְתֶּ֣ם? (use this format: e.g. 1cs)
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Highlight and zigzag וַהְלַכְתֶּ֣ם in the passage above according to its aspect and stem.
In light of these things, וַהְלַכְתֶּ֣ם could be translated in the passage above as .
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הֽוּבְאוּ֮
What is the root of הֽוּבְאוּ֮?
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Is הֽוּבְאוּ֮ derived from a hollow verb?
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Does הֽוּבְאוּ֮’s root begin or end with a weak letter?
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What stem is הֽוּבְאוּ֮ conjugated in?
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What is the person, gender, and number of הֽוּבְאוּ֮? (use this format: e.g. 1cs)
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Highlight and zigzag הֽוּבְאוּ֮ in the passage above according to its aspect and stem.
In light of these things, הֽוּבְאוּ֮ could be translated in the verse above as .
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מֽוּבָאִ֑ים
What is the root of מֽוּבָאִ֑ים?
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Is מֽוּבָאִ֑ים derived from a hollow verb?
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Does מֽוּבָאִ֑ים’s root begin or end with a weak letter?
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What stem is מֽוּבָאִ֑ים conjugated in?
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What is the number and gender of מֽוּבָאִ֑ים? (use this format: e.g. ms)
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Highlight and zigzag מֽוּבָאִ֑ים in the passage above according to its aspect and stem.
In light of these things, מֽוּבָאִ֑ים could be translated in the verse above as .
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Hiphil perfect forms in the songs we’ve learned
Once again, the passive stem is far less common and has not appeared in any of the song we have learned to this point in the courses. There have, however, been two appearances of the hiphil perfect.
The he prefix with a chirik vowel, attached to the verbal root גדל (“become great”), is a giveaway that this is the hiphil stem. The yod between the second and third root letters, and the lack of a specific suffix ending, shows that this is a 3ms verb. In this context, we would translate הִגְדִּ֥יל together with the infinitive לַעֲשׂ֥וֹת as “he has magnified to do” or more simply “has done great things.”
הִגְדִּ֥יל יְ֝הוָ֗ה לַעֲשׂ֥וֹת עִם־אֵֽלֶּה — “Yahweh has done great things with us”