Adjectives Part 2: Functions

Adjectives Part 2

Functions

Interactive Learning Module

Adjectives

1. Introduction

  • This unit will explore the function of adjectives. [The previous module focused on their various grammatical forms.]
  • As in English, Hebrew adjectives have several usages:
    • Attributive – These adjectives directly modify a noun (e.g. "a good book").
    • Predicative – These are the predicate of a subject-predicate sentence (e.g. "He is good").
    • Substantive – Sometimes adjectives can function as a noun (e.g. the adjective "free" in "the land of the free").
    • Demonstrative – A small group of adjectives serve to answer the question, "which" (e.g. "this", "that", "these", "those").These words can either act as adjectives, directly modifying a noun (as in the phrase, "this girl"), or serve as demonstrative pronouns (as in the sentence, "This is the girl").
    • Comparative – In English, adjectives also can serve in a comparative role when suffixes like "er" or "est" are added. (e.g. "larger", "largest"). In Biblical Hebrew, this is accomplished via adding prepositions rather than changing the form of the adjective.
  • Each of the above points will be elaborated upon and explained in the coming slides.

2. Three Functions

  • Attributive – Adjectives can directly modify a noun, as in the phrase "אִישׁ עָשִׁיר" (a rich man) from Mishlei 28:11.
    • In such usage, the adjective must agree with the noun in number, gender and definiteness (i.e. either both the noun and the adjective take a definite article or both do not).This stands in contrast to English, where the word "the" is found only at the beginning of the phrase. Note also: the rules for the definite article apply to adjectives in the same way that they apply to nouns. Thus, the first letter of the adjective that follows the definite article will get a dagesh. Words with gutturals which cannot take a dagesh will have compensatory lengthening. [See discussion _]
      • Thus, one may say: "מֶלֶךְ טוֹב" (a good king) or: "הַמֶּלֶךְ הַטּוֹב" (the good king), but one cannot say: "מֶלֶךְ הַטּוֹב".
    • In contrast to English, in Biblical Hebrew attributive adjectives follow the noun.Thus, the correct form is "יַלְדָּה קְטַנָּה" (and not: קְטַנָּה יַלְדָּה).
  • Predicative – Adjectives can act as predicates in subject-predicate sentences, as in the sentence: "וְהָרָעָב כָּבֵד" (The famine was severe) from Bereshit 43:1.
    • In English, such adjectives connect to the noun with a state-of-being verb, but in Hebrew no verb is necessary.
    • In this usage, the adjective agrees with the noun in number and gender, but it does not agree in definiteness.
      • Thus, "כָבֵד הָרָעָב" means: "the famine is severe", while "הָרָעָב הַכָּבֵד" means: "the severe famine".
    • When used as predicates, it is more common for the adjective to precede the noun, but sometimes it can also follow it.
      • Thus Bereshit 47:4 reads, "כָבֵד הָרָעָב" (the more prevalent ordering), while Bereshit 43:1 reads, "וְהָרָעָב כָּבֵד" with both phrases meaning: "The famine is severe".
  • Substantive – Adjectives sometimes function as nouns, referring to something with the quality of the adjective. For example, the word "הַקָּדוֹשׁ" can refer to someone who is holy, being translated as "the holy one" (with the noun "one" simply being assumed by the text).
    • Contrast usage of the word "הַקָּדוֹשׁ" in the phrase "הָאֱלֹהִים הַקָּדוֹשׁ הַזֶּה" (this holy God) from Shemuel I 6:20, where it acts as a modifier, and its usage in the phrase "הוּא הַקָּדוֹשׁ" (He is the holy one) from Bemidbar 16:7 where it stands in for a noun.
  • In this usage, there might be no other noun in the sentence, and the substantive adjective will function as either the subject or object of the verb.
    • Thus, in the phrase "וְאַל יִמָּלֵט הַגִּבּוֹר" (the mighty one shall not escape) from Yirmeyahu 46:4 the word "הַגִּבּוֹר" serves as the subject of the verb "יִמָּלֵט".

3. Exercise: Identifying the Functions of the Adjective

  • Translate each of the phrases below and determine whether each of the bolded adjectives is being used in an attributive, predicative or substantive role. [Note whether or not it agrees in definiteness, whether it precedes or follows the noun, and whether a noun is otherwise lacking from the phrase.] Check your answers by clicking on the links to the verses and seeing the translations there.
  • Note: Proper names and possessive nouns are by definition definite and are not marked with a heh.

4. Exercise: Writing Adjective Phrases

  • Use the following lists of nouns and adjectives for the exercises below:
    • Nouns: איש, עיר, דבר, מלך, ילדה [If you are unsure of the gender of any of these, check them in the Concordance by typing the noun into the input box and clicking on the Dictionary tab.]
    • Adjectives: טוב, קטן, גדול, חכם, זקן
  • Create a variety of Hebrew adjective phrases where the adjective is used attributively (e.g. a good man, the good man, good men, the good men).
  • Then write several simple statements where the adjective is used predicatively (e.g. The man is good, the house is big etc.).
  • Finally, connect the adjectives above to a pronoun or a verb and create sentences in which they function substantively (e.g. the wise ones taught, he is the little one etc.).

5. Advanced Exercise: Adjective or Noun

  • Open the Mikraot Gedolot to Shemot 15:10. Translate the clause "צָלְלוּ כַּעוֹפֶרֶת בְּמַיִם אַדִּירִים". Where might there be ambiguity?
  • Compare Rashbam and Sforno on the verse. [To access Sforno, click on the "Show Additional Commentaries" button at the bottom of the verse and choose Sforno.] How would each commentator translate the clause?
  • What is the point of disagreement between the two? According to each, what word is being modified by the word "אַדִּירִים"?
  • Which is viewing the word "אַדִּירִים" as an attributive adjective, and which is reading it as a substantive adjective?
  • What are the advantages or disadvantages of each reading?

6. Demonstratives: Terms

  • Demonstratives are words like "this", "that", "these" and "those", which answer the "which" question by directly pointing to the noun being discussed. "This" and "these" are used when speaking of something nearby, while "that" and "those" are used when speaking of something more distant.
  • The Hebrew equivalents of the above are:
    • זֶה – this (masculine, singular)
    • זֹאת – this (feminine, singular)The synonyms "זֹה" or "זוֹ" rarely appear in Tanakh (most occurrences are in Kohelet), but "זוֹ" is the predominant form in Rabbinic Hebrew. In Modern Hebrew "זֹאת" and "זוֹ" are interchangeable.
    • אֵלֶּה – these (for both masculine and feminine plural)The synonym "אלו" never appears in Tanakh; its origin is in Rabbinic Hebrew. In Modern Hebrew the two words are interchangeable, both being used for either masculine or feminine.
    • הוא – that (masculine, singular)
    • הִיא – that (feminine, singular)
    • הֵם / הֵמָּה – those (masculine, plural)
    • הֵן / הֵנָּה – those (feminine, plural)
  • When found with a definite article, these words function attributively as demonstrative adjectives. In other words, they serve to directly modify a noun, as in the phrase "this book".
  • When found without the definite article, they function predicatively as demonstrative pronouns. In other words, they take the meaning "this [one]", "that [one]" etc., as in the sentence: "This [one] is the boy".
  • Both of these functions will be elaborated upon in the next slide.

7. Demonstrative Adjectives and Pronouns

  • Demonstrative Adjectives: In Hebrew, when demonstratives (this, that etc.) modify a noun, they function like other attributive adjectives. They follow the noun that they modify and agree with it in number, gender and definiteness.As demonstrative adjectives almost always refer to definite nouns, when functioning as modifiers, they almost always take the definite article heh. There is, though, at least one exception, the phrase: "גֶּפֶן זֹאת" in Tehillim 80:15.
    • Some examples: הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה (this day), הָאֲנָשִׁים הָהֵם (those men), הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה (these matters)
  • Exercise: Write the following in Biblical Hebrew:
    • a) This man (check yourself here)
    • b) These commandments (check yourself here)
  • If there are other adjectives modifying the noun in addition to the demonstrative, the demonstrative comes at the end of the phrase.
    • For example, Devarim 29:2 reads: וְהַמֹּפְתִים הַגְּדֹלִים הָהֵם (and those great wonders).Thus, in Hebrew the order is the opposite of that in English. In Hebrew, the order is: noun-adjective-demonstrative, while in English it is: demonstrative-adjective-noun, as seen in the example.
  • Exercise: Write the following in Biblical Hebrew:
    • a) This big fire (check yourself here)
    • b) This bad place (check yourself here)
  • Demonstrative Pronouns: When demonstratives are used without the definite article, they act as demonstrative pronouns, taking the meaning: "this one is...", "these are..." and the like. In such usage, they function in sentences like predicative adjectives, usually (but not always) appearing before the noun, and agreeing with it in number and gender, but not in definiteness.In such usage, the noun takes a definite article, but the demonstrative pronoun does not.
    • Some examples: "אֵלֶּה הַדְּבָרִים" (These are the words), "זֹאת הַתּוֹרָה" (This is the teaching), "זֶה קׇרְבַּן אַהֲרֹן" (This is the sacrifice of Aharon)
  • Exercise: Write the following in Biblical Hebrew:
    • a) This is my name (check yourself here.).
    • b) These are the commandments (check yourself here.).
  • As above, if there are attributive adjectives modifying the noun in addition to the demonstrative, the demonstrative will not interrupt the adjective phrase.

8. Comparative Function

  • Adjectives are sometime used to compare two things. In English we do this by adding suffixes to the adjective: either "er" (to mean: more than, as in the word: "bigger") or "est" (to mean: the most, as in the word: "biggest").
  • In Biblical Hebrew, though, comparisons are not formed by making suffixes to the adjective, but rather by adding the preposition "מִן" before the word which serves as the object of the comparison.
    • For example, the phrase "אֲחוֹתָהּ טוֹבָה מִמֶּנָּה" means: "her sister is better than her".In Rabbinic and Modern Hebrew one expresses comparison similarly, but with the additional word "יותר". In Rabbinic Hebrew one would say, "טובה אחותה יותר ממנה", while in Modern Hebrew one would instead say, "אחותה יותר טובה ממנה".
  • The various rules regarding use of the word "מִן" will be discussed in the module on prepositions.

9. Adjectives that Modify a Word Pair

  • We will close with a discussion of how adjectives function when they modify a word pair, thereby sometimes creating ambiguity in meaning.
  • When words are in the construct state [see discussion _] and form a word pair (like: בֵית יִשְׂרָאֵל, the house of Israel, or מַלְכֵי הָאָרֶץ, the kings of the land), the modifying adjective will not interrupt the pair but rather follow it. As such, the adjective might modify either word in the word pair.
  • Often, there is no ambiguity since the adjective must match the noun in gender and number.
    • See, for example, Nechemyah 5:1, "צַעֲקַת הָעָם... גְּדוֹלָה". As the adjective is feminine it cannot be modifying the masculine "הָעָם", but must be modifying the feminine "צעקה". Thus, this means: "the cry of the nation was great" and not: "the cry of the great nation".
  • Exercise:
    • The above phrase additionally cannot mean: "the great cry of the nation". Explain why.Note: If the second noun in a construct chain is definite, so is the first, even though it is not marked by a heh.
    • If one had wanted to say: "the cry of the great nation" or "the great cry of the nation", how would these be worded in Biblical Hebrew?
  • When both nouns of the word pair agree in number and gender, there can be ambiguity.
    • Thus, the phrase "יוֹם י"י הַגָּדוֹל וְהַנּוֹרָא" in Malakhi 3:23 can be translated as either: "the great and awesome day of Hashem" or "the day of the great and awesome Hashem".
  • Exercise:
    • What are two possible translations of the phrase: "שֶׁמֶן זַיִת זָךְ" in Shemot 27:20?
    • Check yourself by looking at the English translation with its accompanying note, or by comparing Ibn Ezra and Shadal.

10. Advanced Exercise: Ambiguous Scope

  • Bereshit 10:21 opens the genealogy list of Shem's descendants, by stating: "וּלְשֵׁם יֻלַּד גַּם הוּא אֲבִי כׇּל בְּנֵי עֵבֶר אֲחִי יֶפֶת הַגָּדוֹל".
  • The meaning of the phrase "אֲחִי יֶפֶת הַגָּדוֹל" is ambiguous. What two distinct translations can it sustain? Why can't one disambiguate based on grammatical clues?
  • Compare the explanations of Rashi and Ramban (ד"ה אחי יפת הגדול). According to each, does the adjective "הַגָּדוֹל" modify the word "אֲחִי" (and, thus, refer to Shem) or the word "יֶפֶת"?
  • How do the different readings impact your understanding of the birth order of Noach's sons? How does Rashi attempt to prove his reading from Bereshit 11:10?
  • What might have one concluded was the birth order based on the listing of Noach's sons in Bereshit 10:1 or based on the order of the families listed in this chapter (see 10:2, 10:7and 10:21?
  • What other meaning besides "oldest" can the word "הַגָּדוֹל" sustain? How would this impact the various possibilities?
  • To see how the dispute impacts one's understanding of the story of Noach's cursing of Canaan, see Cursing Canaan.

11. For Further Study