# Chapter 27 — Biconsonantal / Geminate Disambiguation Drill

*BBH Chapters 25 & 27 · Niphal and Hiphil Weak Verbs*

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## Instructions

Each item presents a pointed Hebrew form from an attested OT passage. For each:

1. **Identify the stem** — Niphal or Hiphil.
2. **Parse** — conjugation, PGN.
3. **Identify the weak class** — Biconsonantal (II-י/ו) or Geminate (R2=R3).
4. **Give the root** and **translate** in context.

The vocalization of Biconsonantal and Geminate forms is often identical. The only reliable distinguisher is root knowledge: Biconsonantal roots have a hollow vowel letter (ו/י) as the medial; Geminate roots repeat the same consonant for R2 and R3.

An answer key is at the bottom.

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## Key Diagnostic

| Feature | Biconsonantal (II-י/ו) | Geminate (R2=R3) |
|---|---|---|
| Root structure | R1-ו/י-R3 (e.g. קוּם, שׁוּב) | R1-R2-R2 (e.g. סָבַב, שָׁלַל) |
| Niphal perfect 3ms | נָקִים (נָ + qamets) | נָסַב (נָ + qamets) — identical |
| Hiphil perfect 3ms | הֵקִים (הֵ + tsere) | הֵסֵב (הֵ + tsere) — identical |
| Hiphil imperfect 3ms | יָקִים (יָ + qamets) | יָסֵב (יָ + qamets) — identical |
| Hiphil imperative 2ms | הָקֵם (הָ + qamets) | הָסֵב (הָ + qamets) — identical |
| **Distinguisher** | Medial vowel letter ו/י visible in root | Dagesh forte in R2 when doubled |

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## Part A — Niphal: Biconsonantal vs. Geminate

| # | Form | Reference | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | נָכוֹן | Gen 41:32 | "the thing is \_\_\_\_ by God" |
| 2 | נָסַב | 1 Kgs 7:24 | "the gourds \_\_\_\_ it, ten to a cubit" |
| 3 | יִכּוֹן | Psa 93:2 | "your throne \_\_\_\_ from of old" |
| 4 | יִסֹּב | Num 21:4 | "they traveled around \_\_\_\_ Mount Edom" |
| 5 | הֵכּוֹן | Psa 57:8 | "my heart is \_\_\_\_, O God" |
| 6 | הֵסֹּב | Num 34:4 | "your border \_\_\_\_ from the south" |
| 7 | נָשׁוֹב | Lam 3:40 | "let us \_\_\_\_ and return to the LORD" |
| 8 | נָתֹם | 1 Sam 3:12 | "when I \_\_\_\_ what I have spoken against his house" |

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## Part B — Hiphil: Biconsonantal vs. Geminate

| # | Form | Reference | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9  | הֵקִים | Gen 6:18 | "I will \_\_\_\_ my covenant with you" |
| 10 | הֵסֵב | 2 Sam 2:22 | "\_\_\_\_ from following me" |
| 11 | יָקִים | Deut 18:15 | "the LORD your God will \_\_\_\_ up a prophet" |
| 12 | יָסֵב | Eccl 1:6 | "the wind \_\_\_\_ to the south" |
| 13 | הָקֵם | Deut 27:26 | "\'\_\_\_\_ the words of this law\'" |
| 14 | הָסֵב | 2 Sam 2:22 | "\_\_\_\_ from following me" |
| 15 | מֵקִים | 1 Sam 2:8 | "He \_\_\_\_ the poor from the dust" |
| 16 | מֵסֵב | Ezek 41:7 | "the structure surrounding the house \_\_\_\_ upward" |

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## Part C — Mixed: Stem and Class Both Unknown

| # | Form | Reference | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | נָמֹוג | Isa 14:31 | "all Philistia \_\_\_\_" |
| 18 | הֵמִיס | Josh 2:11 | "the LORD \_\_\_\_ our hearts" |
| 19 | יָרֻם | Isa 52:13 | "my servant shall be high and \_\_\_\_ up" |
| 20 | יָרֹם | Psa 99:2 | "great is the LORD, and \_\_\_\_ above all peoples" |
| 21 | הֵרִים | Gen 14:22 | "I have \_\_\_\_ my hand to the LORD" |
| 22 | הֵרַם | Lev 4:10 | "just as it is \_\_\_\_ from the ox of peace offerings" |
| 23 | יָשׁוֹב | Hos 14:8 | "they \_\_\_\_ in the shade" |
| 24 | יָשֹׁב | Lam 1:11 | "all her people \_\_\_\_ to find bread" |

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## Answer Key

### Part A — Niphal

| # | Form | Stem | Conj | PGN | Weak class | Root | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | נָכוֹן | Niphal | Perfect / Participle | 3ms / ms | Biconsonantal | כּוּן | is established / firm |
| 2 | נָסַב | Niphal | Perfect | 3ms | Geminate | סָבַב | encircled / went around |
| 3 | יִכּוֹן | Niphal | Imperfect | 3ms | Biconsonantal | כּוּן | is established |
| 4 | יִסֹּב | Niphal | Imperfect | 3ms | Geminate | סָבַב | went around |
| 5 | הֵכּוֹן | Niphal | Perfect | 3ms | Biconsonantal | כּוּן | is ready / prepared |
| 6 | הֵסֹּב | Niphal | Perfect | 3ms | Geminate | סָבַב | turned / went around |
| 7 | נָשׁוֹב | Niphal | Cohortative | 1cp | Biconsonantal | שׁוּב | let us return |
| 8 | נָתֹם | Niphal | Infinitive Construct | — | Geminate | תָּמַם | to be completed / finished |

> **Diagnostic — Part A:** Both Biconsonantal and Geminate Niphal use נָ (qamets) in the perfect/participle and יִ with dagesh in the imperfect. The dagesh in item 3 (יִכּוֹן) is from the Niphal pattern (not R2=R3), while in item 4 (יִסֹּב) the dagesh represents doubled R2=R3. Root knowledge is required to distinguish: כּוּן has medial ו; סָבַב has R2=R3=ב.

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### Part B — Hiphil

| # | Form | Stem | Conj | PGN | Weak class | Root | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9  | הֵקִים | Hiphil | Perfect | 3ms | Biconsonantal | קוּם | established |
| 10 | הֵסֵב | Hiphil | Perfect | 3ms | Geminate | סָבַב | turned aside |
| 11 | יָקִים | Hiphil | Imperfect | 3ms | Biconsonantal | קוּם | will raise up |
| 12 | יָסֵב | Hiphil | Imperfect | 3ms | Geminate | סָבַב | causes to go around |
| 13 | הָקֵם | Hiphil | Imperative | 2ms | Biconsonantal | קוּם | raise up! / confirm! |
| 14 | הָסֵב | Hiphil | Imperative | 2ms | Geminate | סָבַב | turn aside! |
| 15 | מֵקִים | Hiphil | Participle | ms | Biconsonantal | קוּם | one who raises up |
| 16 | מֵסֵב | Hiphil | Participle | ms | Geminate | סָבַב | going around / surrounding |

> **Diagnostic — Part B:** Hiphil Biconsonantal and Geminate forms are vocally identical: הֵ perfect, יָ imperfect, הָ imperative, מֵ participle. Items 9 (הֵקִים) and 10 (הֵסֵב) look different only because קוּם retains the medial ו vowel letter in the stem while סָבַב contracts. Distinguish by root: if the medial is a vowel letter, it is Biconsonantal; if the medial consonant is repeated, it is Geminate.

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### Part C — Mixed

| # | Form | Stem | Conj | PGN | Weak class | Root | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | נָמֹוג | Niphal | Perfect | 3ms | Biconsonantal | מוּג | melted / dissolved |
| 18 | הֵמִיס | Hiphil | Perfect | 3ms | Biconsonantal | מסס / מוּס | caused to melt |
| 19 | יָרֻם | Hiphil | Imperfect | 3ms | Biconsonantal | רוּם | will be exalted |
| 20 | יָרֹם | Niphal | Imperfect | 3ms | Biconsonantal | רוּם | is exalted / high |
| 21 | הֵרִים | Hiphil | Perfect | 3ms | Biconsonantal | רוּם | lifted up |
| 22 | הֵרַם | Niphal / Hophal | Perfect | 3ms | Biconsonantal | רוּם | was lifted off / removed |
| 23 | יָשׁוֹב | Niphal | Imperfect | 3ms | Biconsonantal | שׁוּב | will return / dwell |
| 24 | יָשֹׁב | Niphal | Imperfect | 3ms | Biconsonantal | שׁוּב | returned / went around |

> **Note on items 17–24:** Part C includes several Biconsonantal-only forms from roots not covered in Parts A–B (מוּג, רוּם, שׁוּב). This tests whether students can apply the Biconsonantal pattern to unfamiliar roots. No Geminate forms appear in Part C — reinforcing that Geminate roots are rarer in the Niphal/Hiphil corpus. The key challenge here is distinguishing stem (Niphal vs. Hiphil) when the class is the same.

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## Discussion Questions

1. Items 1 (נָכוֹן) and 2 (נָסַב) have the same prefix vowel (נָ, qamets) and nearly identical shapes. What is the only reliable way to know that נָכוֹן is Biconsonantal (root כּוּן) and נָסַב is Geminate (root סָבַב)?

2. Items 9 (הֵקִים) and 10 (הֵסֵב) both have הֵ prefix. One retains a medial vowel letter; the other shows a contracted stem. Describe precisely what the medial position of each form looks like and how that reflects the underlying root structure.

3. Items 11 (יָקִים) and 12 (יָסֵב) are both Hiphil imperfect 3ms. The prefix vowel (qamets under יָ) is identical. A student sees an unknown form יָדֵל. What question must they ask to determine whether it is Biconsonantal or Geminate, and what would each answer imply?

4. In Part C, items 19 (יָרֻם) and 20 (יָרֹם) look very similar and come from the same root (רוּם). What distinguishes them in stem and meaning? Which vowel under R2 is the deciding factor?

5. The plan file for this course states: "vocalization alone cannot distinguish Biconsonantal from Geminate in the Niphal and Hiphil." After working through this drill, do you agree? Are there any forms in this exercise where the vocalization itself rules out one class?
