HEBREW · STEP 20
Read sak
Distinguish sin from shin, then read sackcloth in a passage from Genesis.
Return to shin’s right-hand dot
Two familiar words prepare you for a small mark with an important job.
Read שֵׁם and שָׁם. Where is the upper dot, and what sound does it select?
shem, name; sham, there. The dot above the letter’s right side marks shin, read sh. Tsere and qamats beneath it supply the different vowels.
Meet sin’s left-hand dot
- שׁShin
- Right-hand dot: sh
- שׂSin
- Left-hand dot: s
The main letter shape is the same. Move the dot from the upper right to the upper left and its reading changes from sh to s. The left-dot reading is called sin, pronounced seen. That is the letter name; its consonant sound is s.
Left and right mean the physical sides you see on the page. Reading Hebrew from right to left does not reverse those sides.
Identify שׂ and שׁ. Which gives s, and which gives sh?
שׂ is sin, with the dot on the left: s. שׁ is shin, with the dot on the right: sh. Check the dot before adding the vowel.
Read the practice pairs שַׁ / שַׂ and שֵׁ / שֵׂ
sha / sa, then she / se. Within each pair the vowel stays the same; the upper dot changes the consonant. These are practice syllables.
Two ways to write an s sound
You already know samekh ס from kos. Sin שׂ gives the same s sound in our reading, but has a different written identity.
Compare ס and שׂ. May you swap them in a word because they sound alike?
No. Samekh and sin both give s in these examples, but Hebrew words keep their own spellings. Samekh has a closed outline; sin has the three-branched shape and left-side dot.
Keep this habit from qof and kaf: a shared sound does not erase a spelling difference.
Bring qof back
Read קוֹל and name its first letter. What sound will that letter give at the end of today’s new word?
kol, voice/sound, begins with qof. In our reading model qof gives k. It will also give k at the end of the new word; qof has no separate final shape.
Read sak
s + a + k = sak
Sack; sackcloth
- The upper left dot makes the first letter sin, s.
- Patah beneath it supplies a.
- Qof ends the word with k.
Read sak, one syllable. The noun can name a sack. In today’s passage it means sackcloth, coarse fabric worn as an expression of grief.
Cover the reading aid. Read שַׂק, count its syllables, and explain both marks on its first letter.
sak, one syllable. The upper left dot selects s. The patah below supplies a. The dot is not another vowel.
Repair “shak,” “sa-ka,” and an i vowel supposedly supplied by the upper dot.
- “Shak” misses the dot’s left-side position. Read s here.
- “Sa-ka” adds an unwritten vowel after qof. End with k.
- Hiriq, the i mark you know, sits below a letter. This upper dot distinguishes sin from shin; it supplies no i.
A word in Jacob’s grief
In Genesis 37, Yaakov, Jacob, sees Joseph’s coat and believes that his son has died. Verse 34 describes him putting on sackcloth and mourning. Mourning means expressing grief after a loss. Read the noun for the fabric worn in this scene.
שַׂק
Sackcloth.
What does sak name here? Does the passage establish that Joseph really died?
Sak names sackcloth, not a bag Jacob is carrying. Jacob believes Joseph has died, but the wider story tells us Joseph was taken to Egypt. Keep Jacob’s understanding distinct from what the narrator tells us.
The noun helps us recognize one detail in the story. Use the surrounding passage in translation to understand Jacob’s grief and Joseph’s continuing story.
Read across the new distinctions
Read each separate word and give its meaning. Find s written with sin and with samekh, and k written with qof and with dotted kaf.
- שַׂק
- שֵׁם
- כּוֹס
- קוֹל
- מֶלֶךְ
Check all five words and the repeated sounds
sak, sack/sackcloth; shem, name; kos, cup; kol, voice/sound; ME-lech, king.
- Sak begins with sin’s s; kos ends with samekh’s s.
- Sak ends with qof’s k; kol begins with qof’s k; kos begins with dotted kaf’s k.
- Shem begins with shin’s sh, while melech ends with undotted final kaf’s ch.
Recall, then choose the next review
Look away and recall sackcloth, shade, king. Write their pointed Hebrew forms if you can. Explain one feature of each before opening the answer.
Check your three words and choose one feature to practice again
שַׂק, sak: sin’s left dot and final qof. צֵל, tsel: joined ts and tsere. מֶלֶךְ, ME-lech: first stress, final kaf, and a silent final sheva.
If a feature needed help, cover that word and try it again. Recognizing which detail needs practice is a useful reading skill.
Tomorrow, begin with the mixed list in a different order. Then recall the three words from their meanings without looking. Keep the practice short enough to return to it carefully.
Explore the sources
Shin and sin, University of Texas at Austin (PDF) · Sak: form and meaning · Sak: sack and sackcloth · Genesis 37 in context
Keep the reading growing
You have met the 22 basic letter shapes, the five final forms, and the shin/sin distinction. Familiarity grows through returning to them in words. More vowel patterns, letter roles, grammar and connected reading still lie ahead.
Try mixed words in the cumulative reading workshop. Keep the quick reference nearby for a shape or mark you want to check.