# Chapter 1 — Hebrew Letter Recognition Exercise

**Topic:** Hebrew Alphabet — Letter Identification

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**Instructions:** For each Hebrew letter shown, provide: (1) Letter Name, (2) Transliteration, (3) Sound, (4) Any special category (guttural / begadkephat / sofit form / normal).

Items 1–22 cover all standard letters in canonical order. Items 23–27 cover the five sofit (final) forms. Items 28–30 show three begadkephat letters with dagesh lene.

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## Part A — Standard Letters (1–22)

| # | Letter | Name | Transliteration | Sound | Special Category |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | א | | | | |
| 2 | ב | | | | |
| 3 | ג | | | | |
| 4 | ד | | | | |
| 5 | ה | | | | |
| 6 | ו | | | | |
| 7 | ז | | | | |
| 8 | ח | | | | |
| 9 | ט | | | | |
| 10 | י | | | | |
| 11 | כ | | | | |
| 12 | ל | | | | |
| 13 | מ | | | | |
| 14 | נ | | | | |
| 15 | ס | | | | |
| 16 | ע | | | | |
| 17 | פ | | | | |
| 18 | צ | | | | |
| 19 | ק | | | | |
| 20 | ר | | | | |
| 21 | שׁ | | | | |
| 22 | ת | | | | |

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## Part B — Final (Sofit) Forms (23–27)

| # | Letter | Name | Transliteration | Sound | Special Category |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | ך | | | | |
| 24 | ם | | | | |
| 25 | ן | | | | |
| 26 | ף | | | | |
| 27 | ץ | | | | |

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## Part C — Begadkephat Letters with Dagesh Lene (28–30)

| # | Letter | Name | Transliteration | Sound | Special Category |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 | בּ | | | | |
| 29 | כּ | | | | |
| 30 | פּ | | | | |

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## Answer Key

### Part A — Standard Letters

| # | Letter | Name | Transliteration | Sound | Special Category |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | א | Aleph | ʾ | Silent / glottal stop | Guttural; quiescent |
| 2 | ב | Beth | b / v | b (hard) or v (soft) | Begadkephat |
| 3 | ג | Gimel | g / gh | g (hard) or gh (soft) | Begadkephat |
| 4 | ד | Dalet | d / dh | d (hard) or dh (soft) | Begadkephat |
| 5 | ה | He | h | h | Guttural; often quiescent word-finally |
| 6 | ו | Waw | w | w (consonantal) | Also mater lectionis (vowel letter) |
| 7 | ז | Zayin | z | z | Normal |
| 8 | ח | Cheth | ḥ | ch as in German *Bach* | Guttural |
| 9 | ט | Teth | ṭ | emphatic t | Normal (emphatic) |
| 10 | י | Yod | y | y (consonantal) | Also mater lectionis (vowel letter) |
| 11 | כ | Kaph | k / kh | k (hard) or kh (soft) | Begadkephat; has sofit form |
| 12 | ל | Lamed | l | l | Normal |
| 13 | מ | Mem | m | m | Normal; has sofit form |
| 14 | נ | Nun | n | n | Normal; has sofit form |
| 15 | ס | Samech | s | s | Normal |
| 16 | ע | Ayin | ʿ | Silent / pharyngeal | Guttural |
| 17 | פ | Pe | p / f | p (hard) or f (soft) | Begadkephat; has sofit form |
| 18 | צ | Tsade | ṣ | emphatic ts | Normal (emphatic); has sofit form |
| 19 | ק | Qoph | q | q (uvular k) | Normal |
| 20 | ר | Resh | r | r (uvular) | Behaves like guttural in some contexts |
| 21 | שׁ | Shin | š | sh as in *sheep* | Normal (shin dot on right) |
| 22 | ת | Taw | t / th | t (hard) or th (soft) | Begadkephat |

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### Part B — Final (Sofit) Forms

| # | Letter | Name | Transliteration | Sound | Special Category |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | ך | Kaph sofit | k / kh | k (hard) or kh (soft) | Sofit form of כ (Kaph); occurs only word-finally |
| 24 | ם | Mem sofit | m | m | Sofit form of מ (Mem); occurs only word-finally |
| 25 | ן | Nun sofit | n | n | Sofit form of נ (Nun); occurs only word-finally |
| 26 | ף | Pe sofit | p / f | p (hard) or f (soft) | Sofit form of פ (Pe); occurs only word-finally |
| 27 | ץ | Tsade sofit | ṣ | emphatic ts | Sofit form of צ (Tsade); occurs only word-finally |

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### Part C — Begadkephat Letters with Dagesh Lene

| # | Letter | Name | Transliteration | Sound | Special Category |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 | בּ | Beth (with dagesh lene) | b | b as in *boy* — hard stop | Begadkephat — hard pronunciation indicated by dagesh lene |
| 29 | כּ | Kaph (with dagesh lene) | k | k as in *king* — hard stop | Begadkephat — hard pronunciation indicated by dagesh lene |
| 30 | פּ | Pe (with dagesh lene) | p | p as in *pan* — hard stop | Begadkephat — hard pronunciation indicated by dagesh lene |

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## Reflection Questions

1. **Sofit recognition:** You encounter the word מֶלְֶך at the end of a verse. The final letter looks unfamiliar. How do you identify it, and what does it tell you about the word structure?

2. **Guttural behavior preview:** Your textbook states that א and ע "cannot take Dagesh Forte." Based on what you know about the guttural letters, why do you think a guttural would resist doubling? How does this relate to their place of articulation?

3. **Consonant vs. vowel letter:** The letter ו appears in the middle of a word with a *shureq* (וּ) vowel marker. Is ו functioning as a consonant or as a mater lectionis in this position? What clue does the vowel dot give you?
