Hebrew Parsing deck

What is the FIRST thing to check when identifying a Biblical Hebrew verb stem?

Look for prefixes (הת, ה, נ)

You see the prefix הת at the beginning of a verb—what stem is it?

Hithpael (reflexive intensive)

What does the Hithpael stem generally indicate?

Reflexive or self-directed intensive action

You see a verb starting with הִ (hi-)—what stem should you suspect?

Hiphil (causative active)

What meaning does Hiphil usually convey?

Causative (“he caused to do”)

You see a verb starting with הָ / הֻ (ho/hu-)—what stem is it?

Hophal (causative passive)

What meaning does Hophal usually convey?

Passive causative (“was caused to be done”)

You see a verb beginning with נִ (ni-)—what stem is it?

Niphal (passive/reflexive)

What meaning does Niphal usually convey?

Passive or reflexive of Qal

If a verb has a dagesh (dot) in the middle root letter, what stems are possible?

Piel or Pual

How do you distinguish Piel from Pual?

Vowel pattern: Piel has “i”, Pual has “u”

What does the Piel stem generally indicate?

Intensive or repeated action

What does the Pual stem generally indicate?

Passive of intensive action

If there is NO prefix and NO dagesh, what stem is most likely?

Qal (simple active)

What does the Qal stem usually indicate?

Simple/basic action

What is the identification priority order?

Prefixes → Dagesh → Vowels

If you see both a prefix and a dagesh, which is more reliable?

The prefix

What stem corresponds to the pattern הִקְטִיל?

Hiphil

What stem corresponds to the pattern הֻקְטַל?

Hophal

What stem corresponds to the pattern נִקְטַל?

Niphal

What stem corresponds to the pattern קִטֵּל?

Piel

What stem corresponds to the pattern קֻטַּל?

Pual

What stem corresponds to the pattern הִתְקַטֵּל?

Hithpael

What stem corresponds to the pattern קָטַל?

Qal

What kind of action shift does Hiphil introduce compared to Qal?

Causation (making someone/something do the action)

What kind of voice shift does Niphal introduce compared to Qal?

Passive or reflexive

What kind of intensity shift does Piel introduce compared to Qal?

More intense or repeated action

Why can weak verbs make stem identification difficult?

They may lose root letters or change expected patterns

If a verb looks irregular, what should you still check first?

Prefixes

If no clear prefix is present, what is your next best clue?

Dagesh in the middle radical

If both prefix and dagesh are absent, what should you evaluate last?

Vowel pattern

What is the safest “default guess” stem?

Qal (if no other markers appear)