Hebrew word of the day · Street Hebrew and slang
יַאלְלָהyalla
come on / let's go
Say יַאלְלָה twice and you've just said "yeah, sure" to someone's face.
Hear it read by a native speaker
In a sentence
יַאלְלָה, מְאַחֲרִים!
yalla, me'akharim!
Come on, we're late!
How Israelis use yalla
יַאלְלָה
(yalla, come on / let's go). The word that moves an Israeli room.
At the door
Come on, we're late, sounds like this: יַאלְלָה, מְאַחֲרִים! (yalla, me'akharim)
✗Doubling it by accident
Someone tells you a story and you answer: יַאלְלָה יַאלְלָה (yalla yalla). They hear "yeah, sure".
✓One is enough
To push things forward, one is all you need: יַאלְלָה, בּוֹאוּ (yalla, bo'u, come on, let's go)
Why
Repeating a small word in speech turns it from a push into a brush-off. Same in many languages.
The phone ending
Israelis close calls with yalla bye. It's warm and normal, not a hang-up in anger.
Say it tonight
Everyone's slow at the door. One word does the whole job: יַאלְלָה, מְאַחֲרִים!
The mistake English speakers make
יַאלְלָה is the easy part. The word right after it is where people slip.
יַאלְלָה
(yalla, come on / let's go) It works alone, and it works right before a verb.
✗The report
יַאלְלָה, אֲנַחְנוּ הוֹלְכִים (yalla, anakhnu holkhim) An Israeli hears: we are leaving. Not an invitation.
✓The invitation
יַאלְלָה, נֵלֵךְ (yalla, nelekh, come on, let's go) Two words, and everyone gets up.
Why
Hebrew has no separate word for "let's". The future form of the verb does that job on its own.
One more shape
יַאלְלָה, נֵצֵא (yalla, netse, come on, let's head out) Same move, different verb.
Say it tonight
Everyone at the table, menus still closed: יַאלְלָה, נַתְחִיל (yalla, natkhil, come on, let's start)
Your turn
Which verb do you need after yalla this week? Write it in the comments and we'll shape it with you.
Three sentences you'll hear today
One word to end a call, start a night, move a taxi.
יַאלְלָה, נְדַבֵּר אַחַר כָּךְ.
yalla, nedaber akhar kakh.
Okay, we'll talk later.
on the phone, wrapping up
יַאלְלָה, זָזִים?
yalla, zazim?
Come on, shall we move?
at a bar, with friends
יַאלְלָה, תּוֹרִיד אוֹתִי פֹּה.
yalla, torid oti po.
Okay, drop me off here.
in a taxi, near the corner
Quick check: which one is right?
Telling a friend it's time to get moving
- Aיַאלְלָה, בּוֹא נֵלֵךְ! (yalla, bo nelekh)
- Bיַאלְלָה, לָלֶכֶת! (yalla, lalekhet)
- The answer: Aיַאלְלָה, בּוֹא נֵלֵךְ!
- WhyHere Israelis add a conjugated verb: bo nelekh (come on, let's go), not the infinitive.
The answer: A
יַאלְלָה, בּוֹא נֵלֵךְ!
Here Israelis add a conjugated verb: bo nelekh (come on, let's go), not the infinitive.
Today's Hebrew challenges
Hebrew challenge #13
תֵּכֶף חוֹזֵר
tekef khozer
What does it mean?
- AI'm returning an item
- BTurn around, please
- CBack in a minute
The answer
Ctekef means very soon and khozer means coming back, so it's the sign on a closed kiosk.
Hebrew challenge #14
מְדַבֵּר ___ טֶלֶפוֹן
medaber ___ telefon
Which word is missing?
- AA. עַל (al)
- BB. בַּ (ba)
- CC. עִם (im)
The answer
BHebrew puts you inside the phone, not on it: מְדַבֵּר בַּטֶּלֶפוֹן (medaber batelefon).
Published 24 September 2026 by the Israeli Hebrew Institute. Every word, sentence and vowel point on this page was checked by a native Israeli teacher.