Today marks Hebrew Day 5781: Over the past few weeks, the Academy of the Hebrew Language has embarked on a project to select the most beloved Hebrew words in various categories - and here are the results.
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Favorite word: mother. In second place is love, and in third place is family.
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The word of the year, according to the public vote, is "matosh." In second and third place are "mask" and "isolation.".
The slang word you can't do without: sabba. In second and third place, come on and get it over with.
Favorite novelty: Tzahalulil (the sounds of "Kololu"). Followed by Hesketh (podcast) and Hammarut (hangover).
The rare favorite word: Orlogin. Followed by Shdema and Ashmurat.
Favorite word: mother
Word of the Year: Matosh
In the past year, many of us were privileged to get to know the matosh, a swab with a cotton tip that is used by medical and laboratory personnel to take samples. The word matosh (in plural: matoshim) was coined from the verb tash, meaning 'to rub.' The verb's origin is in the language of the Sages, and is close to tishtesh. The term matosh is documented in a list of medical terms published by the Language Council in 1939, and it is the opposite of the foreign term applicator, and today is a substitute for swab.
The slang word you can't live without: sabba
The common colloquial word "sababa" originates in Arabic, most likely from the word "sababa" (sababa), which means "strong love," "longing," and colloquially "excellent." Among Hebrew speakers today, its uses have expanded greatly, and among other things, it is a replacement for the old word "in order.".
Favorite novelty: Cheers
Tzahalulim are the sounds of joy that are customary at events and celebrations among the Eastern Orthodox (in Arabic: zar'arda, zar'arid). The word tzahalulim combines tzahallot - sounds of joy, with hilululim - a word from the Bible whose conventional meaning is a festival of joy and is close to the word hilulah that entered our language from Aramaic. The word tzahalulim even resembles in its sounds the sound "lu-lu-lu". The word tzahalulim was proposed to the Academy by musician Haim Uliel, and it was approved in 5761.
Favorite rare word: Orlogin
An orlogin is a clock, and under the influence of Hebrew writers, it is pictured in the minds of many as a large, ancient, and ornate pendulum clock. The word orlogin appears in the Sages: "What is this like? To a king who had an orlogin and would look at it and know what time of day it is," and in truth it is also a borrowed word, from the Greek word ὡρολόγιον (in Latin horologion, meaning 'timekeeper').
