# Chapter 28 — Stem-ID Drill (Strong Roots)

*BBH Chapter 28 · Hophal Strong Verbs*

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## Instructions

By Chapter 28 you have learned all four major stems: **Qal, Niphal, Hiphil, and Hophal**. This drill mixes 24 forms of strong roots (6 per stem), interleaved. For each item:

1. **Identify the stem** (Qal / Niphal / Hiphil / Hophal).
2. **Parse** the conjugation and PGN where applicable.
3. **Translate** the form.

The roots used are **קטל** (paradigm root), **שׁמר** (to keep/guard), **כבד** (to be heavy/honored), and **שׁמד** (to destroy).

The answer key is at the bottom.

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## Exercise Table

| # | Hebrew | Stem | Conjugation | PGN | Root | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | קָטַל | | | | | |
| 2 | הִקְטִיל | | | | | |
| 3 | נִקְטַל | | | | | |
| 4 | הָקְטַל | | | | | |
| 5 | שָׁמַר | | | | | |
| 6 | נִשְׁמַר | | | | | |
| 7 | יִשְׁמֹר | | | | | |
| 8 | יַשְׁמִיר | | | | | |
| 9 | יִשָּׁמֵר | | | | | |
| 10 | יָשְׁמַר | | | | | |
| 11 | וַיִּשְׁמֹר | | | | | |
| 12 | וַיַּשְׁמֵר | | | | | |
| 13 | וַיִּשָּׁמֵר | | | | | |
| 14 | וַיָּשְׁמַר | | | | | |
| 15 | שְׁמֹר | | | | | |
| 16 | הַשְׁמֵר | | | | | |
| 17 | הִשָּׁמֵר | | | | | |
| 18 | הָשְׁמֵר | | | | | |
| 19 | שָׁמוֹר | | | | | |
| 20 | הַשְׁמֵר | | | | | |
| 21 | הִשָּׁמֵר | | | | | |
| 22 | שֹׁמֵר | | | | | |
| 23 | מַשְׁמִיר | | | | | |
| 24 | הָשְׁמָר | | | | | |

> **Note:** Items 16 and 20 are identical in spelling (הַשְׁמֵר). In the strong root the Hiphil Imperative 2ms and Hiphil Infinitive Absolute are identical in form. Context disambiguates.

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## Answer Key

| # | Hebrew | Stem | Conjugation | PGN | Root | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | קָטַל | **Qal** | Perfect | 3ms | קטל | he killed |
| 2 | הִקְטִיל | **Hiphil** | Perfect | 3ms | קטל | he caused to kill |
| 3 | נִקְטַל | **Niphal** | Perfect | 3ms | קטל | he was killed |
| 4 | הָקְטַל | **Hophal** | Perfect | 3ms | קטל | he was caused to be killed |
| 5 | שָׁמַר | **Qal** | Perfect | 3ms | שׁמר | he kept / he guarded |
| 6 | נִשְׁמַר | **Niphal** | Perfect | 3ms | שׁמר | he was kept / he was guarded |
| 7 | יִשְׁמֹר | **Qal** | Imperfect | 3ms | שׁמר | he will keep / he keeps |
| 8 | יַשְׁמִיר | **Hiphil** | Imperfect | 3ms | שׁמר | he will cause to keep |
| 9 | יִשָּׁמֵר | **Niphal** | Imperfect | 3ms | שׁמר | he will be kept / he guards himself |
| 10 | יָשְׁמַר | **Hophal** | Imperfect | 3ms | שׁמר | he will be made to keep / he will be guarded |
| 11 | וַיִּשְׁמֹר | **Qal** | Wayyiqtol | 3ms | שׁמר | and he kept / and he guarded |
| 12 | וַיַּשְׁמֵר | **Hiphil** | Wayyiqtol | 3ms | שׁמר | and he caused to keep |
| 13 | וַיִּשָּׁמֵר | **Niphal** | Wayyiqtol | 3ms | שׁמר | and he was kept / and he kept himself |
| 14 | וַיָּשְׁמַר | **Hophal** | Wayyiqtol | 3ms | שׁמר | and he was made to keep / and he was guarded |
| 15 | שְׁמֹר | **Qal** | Imperative | 2ms | שׁמר | Keep! / Guard! |
| 16 | הַשְׁמֵר | **Hiphil** | Imperative | 2ms | שׁמר | Cause to keep! *(same spelling as #20)* |
| 17 | הִשָּׁמֵר | **Niphal** | Imperative | 2ms | שׁמר | Guard yourself! / Be on guard! |
| 18 | הָשְׁמֵר | **Hophal** | Infinitive Construct | — | שׁמר | to be made to keep / to be guarded *(Hophal has no Imperative; Inf. Construct used instead)* |
| 19 | שָׁמוֹר | **Qal** | Infinitive Absolute | — | שׁמר | keeping / indeed keeping |
| 20 | הַשְׁמֵר | **Hiphil** | Infinitive Absolute | — | שׁמר | causing to keep *(same spelling as #16: Hiphil Imp. 2ms and Inf. Abs. are identical in strong roots)* |
| 21 | הִשָּׁמֵר | **Niphal** | Infinitive Absolute | — | שׁמר | being kept / indeed guarding oneself |
| 22 | שֹׁמֵר | **Qal** | Participle | ms | שׁמר | one who keeps / guardian |
| 23 | מַשְׁמִיר | **Hiphil** | Participle | ms | שׁמר | one who causes to keep |
| 24 | הָשְׁמָר | **Hophal** | Participle | ms | שׁמר | one who is being kept / one who is guarded |

### Stem Identification Summary

| Stem | Identifying Features |
|---|---|
| **Qal** | No prefix vowel change; base root vowels (qamets-patach for Perfect; hiriq-holem for Imperfect) |
| **Niphal** | Prefix נִ in Perfect; assimilates in Imperfect/Wayyiqtol (יִשָּׁ); הִ prefix with dagesh in Imperative/Inf. Abs. |
| **Hiphil** | Prefix הִ in Perfect; a-class vowel under yiqtol prefix + chiriq in 2nd root position; הַ in Imperative/Inf. Abs. |
| **Hophal** | Prefix הָ with qamets-hatuf (o-class) in Perfect; o-class prefix vowel (יָ) in Imperfect; o-class prefix הָ in Inf. Construct/Participle |
