Hebrew word of the day · Core vocabulary

אֵיפֹהeifo

where

From the Israeli Hebrew Institute: native Israeli teachers, spoken Hebrew, and Dochi, the app that gives you one spoken task every weekday. How we teach

In a sentence

אֵיפֹה הַשֵּׁירוּתִים?

eifo hasherutim?

Where's the restroom?

The mistake English speakers make

Asking where the restroom is? Drop the word you think you need.

✗The one everyone says

אֵיפֹה יֵשׁ הַשֵּׁירוּתִים? (eifo yesh hasherutim?) An Israeli hears: are there restrooms at all in this place?

✓What Israelis say

אֵיפֹה הַשֵּׁירוּתִים? (eifo hasherutim?, where's the restroom?) That's the whole sentence. No verb needed.

Why

yesh asks if something exists somewhere. The restroom exists, you only want the direction.

Say it tonight

New neighbourhood, you want coffee: אֵיפֹה יֵשׁ כָּאן קָפֶה טוֹב? (eifo yesh kan kafe tov?, where's a good coffee here?)

The rule in one line

Direction: eifo plus the thing. Existence: eifo yesh plus the thing. Same word, two different questions.

Today's Hebrew challenge

Hebrew challenge #55

בָּא לִי קָפֶה

ba li kafe

What does it mean?

  • ACoffee came to me
  • BBring me a coffee, now
  • CI feel like a coffee

Answer in the comments on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok. The answer opens the next challenge's post, and appears here tomorrow.

Published 4 November 2026 by the Israeli Hebrew Institute. Every word, sentence and vowel point on this page was checked by a native Israeli teacher.