B-Hebrew: The Biblical Hebrew Forum

I'm trying to understand how to use the interrogative particle in certain clauses. For example, how would you ask, "Is the cow in the field?"

I've considered the following:
ההפרה בשדה - sounds very wrong
האם הפרה בשדה
היש הפרה בשדה
הבשדה הפרה

I've not found any examples in the OT where such a construction is used. Can anyone help me out here?

I’d front the part that the question is focusing on and attach it there:
For sure, הֲהַפָּרָה בַּשָּׂדֶה feels weird, as does הֲיֵשׁ הַפָּרָה בַּשָּׂדֶה. I think the latter would be better expressed with הֲנִמְצָא. Once a thing is already established as existing, if feels weird to ask if it exists, which is the function of הֲיֵשׁ generally.

You should probably wait for Karl to answer, though. He has the most natural grasp of Hebrew of anyone on the forum (or, probably, of anyone alive today).

Jason Hare wrote: ↑Mon Nov 04, 2024 11:08 pm I think the latter would be better expressed with הֲנִמְצָא.

I like this suggestion.

Jason Hare wrote: ↑Mon Nov 04, 2024 11:08 pm Once a thing is already established as existing, if feels weird to ask if it exists, which is the function of הֲיֵשׁ generally.[/serif]

I'm not sure about this. In Exodus 17:7, we find היש יהוה בקרבנו. I believe the existence of God is not doubted over there, rather his existence "among us". Perhaps then here, we are also doubting the existence of the cow in the field.

Jason Hare wrote: ↑Mon Nov 04, 2024 11:23 pm But, with the name אַיָּל יָנִיב, I totally thought that you’d be a native speaker of Hebrew.

If only there were native speakers of "Biblical" Hebrew!

If only! But, BHSL (Biblical Hebrew as a Second Language) works for me. Glad to see you want to use the language actively.

When I first looked at this question, I found it somewhat jarring, so I decided to sleep on it.

In looking at the English sentence, “Is the cow in the field?”, we talk about a particular cow and particular field. The sentence standing alone doesn’t identify which cow, nor which field. We are left dangling. The particulars need to be known for a full understanding of the sentence.

Jason is right that starting the sentence with היש is to establish if something exists, in which case פרה should be indefinite היש פרה בשדה “Is there a cow in the field?”

What sounds most natural in Biblical Hebrew is to split the sentence into two, spoken by two people. The first asks the question “Where is the cow?” and the second “She is in the field.” איה הפרה followed by היא בשדה or slight variants on this pattern.

Again Jason is right, after we have established which cow, but we don’t know its location, after asking “Where is the cow?”, a follow up question “Is the cow in the field?” הבשדה הפרה or “Is she in the field?” ההיא בשדה

Karl W. Randolph.

Thanks Karl for your answer. I'm still not convinced though that היש can't be used with definite nouns. See my example above. An even clearer example can be found in Samuel, היש בזה הרואה. Extending this, we should be able to say, היש הרואה בשדה.

At any rate, this seems like a basic expression. I would assume there must be some examples of such a construction in the Bible, without having to resort to conjectures. Maybe there's a more indirect way of phrasing such a question?

Is the cow in the field? A bit of a moo point really, I don't think we should continue to milk the issue otherwise we are just regurgitating the same old stuff, so let's not chew on it for too long since the grass is most definitely greener on the other side - where there are no cows thank goodness.

Chris watts

ayalyaniv wrote: ↑Thu Nov 07, 2024 12:34 am Thanks Karl for your answer. I'm still not convinced though that היש can't be used with definite nouns. See my example above. An even clearer example can be found in Samuel, היש בזה הרואה. Extending this, we should be able to say, היש הרואה בשדה.

At any rate, this seems like a basic expression. I would assume there must be some examples of such a construction in the Bible, without having to resort to conjectures. Maybe there's a more indirect way of phrasing such a question?

I'm new to this forum. Is it possible to tag someone in my response?