Column #39. Contents of this weekly column are based on the sefer: EIM LAMIKRA HASHALEIM, by R' Nissan Sharoni, Ashdod, a guide to correct pronunciation of Hebrew, specifically in davening and Torah reading.
Here are some more “warnings” of common davening mispronunciations. We’re still in P’sukei D’Zimra.
The first Halleluyah after Ashrei: AL TIV-T’CHU VIN-DIVIM. The DAGESH dropped from the opening BET and the NUN is SH’VA NACHed. (Again, for some people, these are obvious. For others, there are years of “sloppy” pronunciation, of saying B’N’DIVIM - for example.)
SIVRO AL HASHEM ELOKAV - not SHIVRO.
This one is so obvious, but it’s included here because of the many people who say haSHO-mer E-mes. Wrong. It’s ha-sho-MEIR e-MET (or e- MES). Both words are MILRA.
Y’O-DEID, not YODEID. (In other words, don’t swallow the AYIN.)
Next Halleluyah: ZAMM’RA - DAGESH CHAZAK in the MEM and a SH’VA NA under it. The word is not ZAM-RA.
Slight pause between BONEI and YERUSHA- LAYIM, so the words don’t merge with the drop of a vowel or letter.
UM-CHA-BEISH (a SHIN, not a SIN). L’ATZTZ’ VO-TAM. DAGESH CHAZAK and SH’VA NA in and under the TZADI.
ZAMMM’RU (not ZAM-RU). So tempting. Be careful. And if you don’t think it makes a difference, listen to someone pronounce it correctly. It sounds beautiful. V’CHINOR.
SHABBB’CHI YERUSHALAYIM (pause) ET, so it shouldn’t sound like MET.
YASHSHEIV (emphasized SHIN) RUCHO...
LO A-sa CHEIN (not a-SA, as the word usually is pronounced, here the accent of a-SA is NASOG ACHOR and becomes MILEIL, A-sa.)
BAL, not BAAL.
Pause before saying the HALLELUYAH at the end of each of the chapters of P’sukei D’zimra. The word is not part of the sentence’s meaning, but a separate exclamation. HALLELYUYAH, by the way, ends in a MAPIK-HEI and therefore the final HEI should be sounded, just like the intial HEI.
There are several times we say HA-L’LUHU KOL and sometimes, CHOL. Davening from a Siddur will be helpful to spotting the different phrases.
Next Halleluyah: KO-CH’VEI (not KOCH-VEI).
V’CHOL pause L’U-MIM, so as not to swallow one of the LAMEDs.
V’CHOL SHO-f’tei A-retz. The word by itself is sho-F’TEI. Often mispronounced shof-TEI or SHOF-tei. Here, the accent is NASOG ACHOR, so the word is SHO and then f’tei, because of the SH’VA NA under the FEI and the fact that the SHIN with the CHOLAM is its own syllable.
Z’KEINIM pause IM.
KI NIS-GAV (not NIZ-GAV; you wouldn’t expect someone to read a SIN like a ZAYIN, but the GIMMEL brings it out. GIMMEL is voiced, SIN is voiceless; people tend to say two consecutive consonants as both voiced or both voiceless - NISKAV or NIZGAV. Neither is correct. The word is NIS-GAV).
HODO, not HODU. Common mistake.
Next Halleluyah: YA-L’ZU CHASIDIM... Not YA-A, because there is a SH’VA NACH under the AYIN, not the expected CHATAF-PATACH. And not YA-AL or YAL, because the SH’VA under the LAMED is a NA and belongs to the following syllable, L’ZU. Of course, the AYIN with the SH’VA NACH should be sounded, because the AYIN isn’t really a silent letter... but our Ashkenazi brethren say the AYIN silently (or is that, don’t say the AYIN not-silently). mtc

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