Contents of this weekly column are (mostly) 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.
Two items. Maybe three.

Here are three words that sound very much like each other and are easily confused. They will see. YIR-U. As when Avram said to Sarai on their way into Egypt. And when the Egyptians WILL SEE you... (B’reishit 12:12). CHIRIK under the YUD and the REISH with a SHVA NACH make up the first syllable, YIR. Then the ALEF with a SHURUK gives the second syllable, U. YIR-U. They will see.

Then there is YI-R’U, U, they will fear. As in T’hilim 33: 8. All (the people of) the earth WILL FEAR G-d... First syllable is YUD with a CHIRIK and YUD making the CHIRIK under the first YUD a CHIRIK MALEI. YI. Second syllable, REISH with a SHVA NACH and ALEF with a SHURUK. R’U. That makes YI-R’U. The difference between the two words is basically the SHVA under the REISH. As a NACH it puts the REISH as part of the first syllable and gives YIR-U. They will see. As a NA it puts the REISH with the second syllable and gives YI-R’U, they will fear.

And here’s another word. YUD with a SHVA NA, REISH, ALEF, SHURUK. Y’RU. One syllable word. Pronouonced as if the ALEF wasn’t there. Y’RU. It is TZIVUI tense. Command. (You shall) fear! As in Yehoshua 24:14. And now, fear G-d and serve him with sincerity and truth... Also, as in the first word of the last paragraph of Birkat HaMazon. Y’RU ET HESHEM...

Similarly, TIR-U and TI-R’U are different words with different meanings. You will see. You will fear. The differences in pronunciation are subtle. But they are important because the meaning of the words is at stake.

Next item. Ace TTriddler EB asked about the pronunciation of the word GIMMEL with a SEGOL followed by a YUD and then an ALEF. GEA. It occurs only once in Tanach. Yeshayahu 40:4.

Let’s back up and put the question into perspective. The word GEA, GIMMEL-YUD-ALEF, means valley. (At least once in Tanach, it is the name of a place, probably a valley named Valley, or something like that.) The word appears 15 times in Tanach as is, and another 21 times with a prefix, as in BAGAI, HAGAI, B’GEI, etc.

The word has two main forms, each with variant vowels. In the stand-alone form, valley, it is pronounced GAI (almost like the English word GUY). . Notice that the GIMMEL has a PATACH and the YUD has a SH’VA. The SH’VA is NACH and gives the YUD a sound that adds to the GA of the GIMMEL-PATACH to produce GAI. A couple of times the GIMMEL has a KAMATZ rather than a PATACH. The S’faradit pronunciation would be the same; Ashkenazis and Yemenite pronunciations would distinguish between the two forms. In both cases, however, the YUD is heard as it affects the sound of the GIMMEL’s vowel. This fits with DL’s comments last week for hearing a YUD that follows a PATACH or KAMATZ.

The other form of the word is GEI. This is the S’MICHUT (possessive?) form. The valley of. As in GEI HINOM. B’GEI TZALMAVET. And more. In this case, the YUD is not voweled with a SH’VA, nor is it heard. This too is consistent with DL from last week.

This leaves the one occurrence of GEA, the GIMMEL with a SEGOL. According to R’ Nissan Sharoni, the YUD would be sounded, making this word sound just like GEI (to the Ashkenazi ear), where the EI sound is made of a SEGOL followed by a YUD rather than by a TZEIREI on its own (where the YUD following it doesn’t add to the sound). R’ Nissan pointed out that for the non- Ashkenazi, the TZEIREI is almost as soft as a SEGOL, and the SEGOL followed by a YUD is hard, like the Ashkenazi TZEIREI. So because of the YUD, which isn’t pronounced following the TZEIREI but is sounded following the SEGOL, the sound of TZEIREI and SEGOL almost switch with this word. (I know that sounded confusing at best, or unintelligible at worst, but perhaps if you read it over a few times it will begin to make sense.)

Don’t think we’ve heard the last about this word. We’re expecting someone to come through with a source or two that has a different approach to the pronunciation of this word with its variant voweling. Stay tuned.
The “maybe” third item will hold for next week, IY”H (and B”N).<mtc>

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