Common irregular verbs הָלַךְ · לָקַח · נָתַן · הָיָה halakh · laqaḥ · natan · hayah
Four very frequent verbs — הָלַךְ (go) · לָקַח (take) · נָתַן (give) · הָיָה (be, become) — depart from the rules of their own class. They do not change at random: each borrows the rules of another weak class. וַיֵּלֶךְ behaves like an I-Yod verb, וַיִּקַּח like an I-Nun verb. This page shows the four one by one in words actually used in the Bible.
go · take · give · be (become)
Colour key blue = added at the front · orange = added at the end · purple = a mark inside (dot · doubled letter · changed vowel) · underline = the word this page is about
1Why these four are learned separately
A few very frequent Hebrew verbs depart from the rules of their own class. This page treats four of them — הָלַךְ (go, walk) · לָקַח (take) · נָתַן (give, set) · הָיָה (be, become). Genesis 1–2 alone has וַיְהִי (and it was) · וַיִּתֵּן (and he set) · וַיִּקַּח (and he took) · הַהֹלֵךְ (which flows).
“Irregular” does not mean the forms change at random. Each borrows the rules of another weak class: הָלַךְ behaves like an I-Yod verb, לָקַח like an I-Nun verb, נָתַן is an I-Nun verb whose final נ also merges, and הָיָה is a III-He verb with the guttural ה at the front. Know those rules and the forms fall into place.
2At a glance — the rule each one borrows
- הָלַךְ = like an I-Yod verbIn the Qal imperfect, wayyiqtol, imperative and infinitive construct the first ה vanishes and the prefix vowel is ֵ — וַיֵּלֶךְ (and he went, Gen 12:4). The perfect and participle are regular — הַהֹלֵךְ (2:14).
- לָקַח = like an I-Nun verbThe first ל merges into a dot in the next letter — וַיִּקַּח (and he took, 2:15). In the imperative the ל drops — קַח (6:21).
- נָתַן = both נs mergeThe first נ in the imperfect — וַיִּתֵּן (1:17); the last נ before “I, you, we” — נָתַתִּי (1:29).
- הָיָה = III-He + a guttural הShort form וַיְהִי (1:3), infinitive הֱיוֹת (2:18) — the first ה is a guttural, so it takes a hateph vowel (ֱ).
3Paradigm — the four side by side
The main Qal forms, each with its reading. Blue = prefix, purple = the dot of a merged letter, orange = ending.
| Form | הלך go | לקח take | נתן give | היה be |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| perfect (he) | הָלַךְ halakh | לָקַח laqaḥ | נָתַן natan | הָיָה hayah |
| perfect (I) | הָלַכְתִּי halakhti | לָקַחְתִּי laqaḥti | נָתַתִּי natatti | הָיִיתִי hayiti |
| imperfect (he) | יֵלֵךְ yelekh | יִקַּח yiqqaḥ | יִתֵּן yitten | יִהְיֶה yihyeh |
| wayyiqtol (and he) | וַיֵּלֶךְ vayyelekh | וַיִּקַּח vayyiqqaḥ | וַיִּתֵּן vayyitten | וַיְהִי vayhi |
| imperative (2ms) | לֵךְ lekh | קַח qaḥ | תֵּן ten | הֱיֵה heyeh |
| infinitive construct | לֶכֶת lekhet | קַחַת qaḥat | תֵּת tet | הֱיוֹת heyot |
| participle (ms) | הֹלֵךְ holekh | לֹקֵחַ loqeaḥ | נֹתֵן noten | — |
| Niphal perfect (he) | — | נִלְקַח nilqaḥ | נִתַּן nittan | — |
In the Niphal נִלְקַח the ל of לקח does not merge; only the Qal behaves like I-Nun. The Niphal of הלך and the participle and Niphal of היה are rare, so those cells are empty.
4הָלַךְ (go) — like an I-Yod verb
The root of הָלַךְ is ה-ל-ך, but in the Qal imperfect, wayyiqtol, imperative and infinitive construct it behaves as if the root were י-ל-ך. The first ה vanishes, the prefix vowel is ֵ (e), and the infinitive construct adds ת — exactly like וַיֵּשֶׁב שֵׁב שֶׁבֶת from the I-Yod verb יָשַׁב. Older lexicons (Strong’s numbers) even list these forms separately under ילך (3212).
In the perfect (הָלַךְ), participle (הֹלֵךְ) and Hithpael (הִתְהַלֵּךְ walk about), however, the first ה is plain. The ה disappears precisely in the forms where an I-Yod verb loses its first letter.
5הָלַךְ — real examples from the Bible
vayyelekh — and he went
Wayyiqtol: וַיֵּ (and he — vowel ֵ) + לֶךְ. No first ה; the same shape as the I-Yod וַיֵּשֶׁב (4:16). “Abram went, as YHWH had spoken to him.”
YLVAnd Abram went, as YHWH had spoken to him; and Lot went with him. And Abram was a son of five and seventy years when he went out from Haran.
lekh — go
Imperative (2ms): the first ה drops, leaving ל ך. The standard form is לֵךְ; here it is joined by maqqef (־) to the next word, and the vowel is ֶ (e). “Go from your land.”
YLVAnd YHWH said to Abram: "Go for yourself from your land, and from your kindred, and from your father's house, to the land that I will show you.
lalekhet — to go
לָ (to) + לֶכֶ + ת. The infinitive construct drops the first ה and adds ת, like לָשֶׁבֶת (13:6). “To go to the land of Canaan.”
YLVAnd Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran, his son's son, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, the woman (ishah) of Abram his son, and they went out with them from Ur of the Chaldeans, to go to the land of Canaan; and they came as far as Haran, and dwelt there.
telekh — you shall go
Qal imperfect (you): תֵ (you — vowel ֵ) + לֵךְ. “On your belly you shall go.”
YLVAnd YHWH God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all the cattle and above every living thing (chai) of the field; upon your belly you shall go, and dust (aphar) you shall eat all the days of your life (chai).
haholekh — which flows
הַ (the article, “which”) + the Qal participle הֹלֵךְ. In the participle the first ה stays. “Hiddekel — it flows east of Assyria.” The first הַ is the article; the next ה is the root letter.
YLVAnd the name of the third river is Hiddekel; it is the one going east of Asshur. And the fourth river, it is the Euphrates.
mithallekh — walking about
Hithpael participle: מִתְ (Hithpael participle prefix) + הַ (the root’s first ה) + לֵּ (middle letter doubled) + ךְ. In the Hithpael the ה does not disappear. “The voice of YHWH God walking about in the garden.”
YLVAnd they heard the voice of YHWH God walking about in the garden at the spirit (ruach) of the day; and Adam and his woman (ishah) hid themselves from the presence of YHWH God in the midst of the trees of the garden.
6לָקַח (take) — like an I-Nun verb
The first letter of לָקַח is ל, but in the Qal it behaves like the נ of an I-Nun verb. Standing with no vowel before the next letter it merges into a dot in ק (יִקַּח); in the imperative it drops (קַח); the infinitive construct drops the ל and adds ת (קַחַת). Note also the ַ (a) vowels: the last letter ח is a guttural.
In the perfect לָקַח, the participle לֹקֵחַ, and the Niphal נִלְקַח the ל is plain.
7לָקַח — real examples from the Bible
vayyiqqaḥ — and he took
Wayyiqtol: וַיִּ + קַּ (dot = merged ל) + ח. The ל of וַיִּלְקַח merged into ק, the same shape as the I-Nun וַיִּפַּח (2:7). “YHWH God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden.”
YLVAnd YHWH God took Adam and put him in the garden of Eden to work (avad) it and to keep it.
qaḥ — take
Imperative (2ms): the first ל drops, leaving ק ח — the same path as the I-Nun שָׂא (13:14). “Take for yourself of all food that is eaten.”
YLVAnd you, take for yourself of all food that is eaten, and gather it to yourself; and it shall be for you and for them for food."
laqaḥat — to receive
לָ (to) + קַחַ + ת. The infinitive construct drops the root ל and adds ת; the לָ in front is the preposition, not the root letter. “The ground opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood.”
YLVAnd now cursed are you from the ground (adamah), which has opened its mouth to take your brother's blood from your hand.
vayyiqḥu — and they took
Wayyiqtol (they): וַיִּ + קְ (sheva, no dot) + ח + וּ. The dot of a merged ל is often left out under a sheva (as in the I-Nun וַיִּשְׂאוּ 7:17). “They took wives for themselves of all whom they chose.”
YLVthe sons of God saw the daughters of man (adam), that they were good; and they took for themselves women (ishah) of all whom they chose.
luqoḥah — she was taken
Passive perfect (she): לֻ (“u”) + קֳח (hateph qamets ֳ) + ָה (she). In this passive form the ל remains. The OSHB morphology tags it Pual; some scholars take it as a Qal passive. “For she was taken out of man.”
YLVAnd Adam said, "This now is bone of my bones and flesh (basar) of my flesh (basar); for this one it shall be called Woman (ishah), because from Man (ish) this one was taken."
8נָתַן (give) — both the first and the last נ merge
נָתַן has נ at both ends. The first נ follows the I-Nun rule: it merges in the imperfect (יִתֵּן) and drops in the imperative and infinitive (תֵּן תֵּת). The last נ stands without a vowel before endings like “I” תִּי, “you” תָּ, “we” נוּ, and merges into them (נָתַתִּי · נָתַנּוּ).
Its imperfect vowel is also ֵ (e), unlike other I-Nun verbs (יִתֵּן), so it is learned separately as “irregular.” The infinitive construct תֵּת has lost its first נ, and its last נ has merged into the ת; of the three root letters only ת remains.
9נָתַן — real examples from the Bible
vayyitten — and he set
Wayyiqtol: וַיִּ + תֵּ (dot = the merged first נ) + ן (the last נ stays). The vowel ֵ is peculiar to this verb. “God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth.”
YLVAnd God set them in the firmament of the heavens, to give light upon the earth,
natatti — I have given
Qal perfect (I): נָתַ + תִּי. The last נ of נָתַנְתִּי merged into ת, giving a doubled תּ. This time the first נ stays and only the last merges. “I have given you every plant yielding seed.”
YLVAnd God said, "Behold, I have given to you every herb yielding seed which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for food.
venatannu — and we will give
Weqatal (we): וְ + נָתַ + נּוּ. The root’s last נ and the “we” ending נוּ meet and are written as one dotted (doubled) נ. “We will give our daughters to you.”
YLVthen we will give our daughters to you, and your daughters we will take to us, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people.
ten — give
Imperative (2ms): the first נ drops, leaving ת ן. The standard form is תֵּן; here it is joined by maqqef (־) and the vowel is ֶ. The king of Sodom says, “Give me the persons.”
YLVAnd the king of Sodom said to Abram, "Give me the soul (nephesh), and take the goods for yourself."
nittanu — (they) are given
Niphal perfect (they): נִ (Niphal) + תָּ (dot = the merged first root נ) + נ (last root letter) + וּ (they). The second נ of נִנְתָּנוּ merged; before the vowel ending וּ the last נ does not. “Into your hand they are given.”
YLVAnd the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every living thing (chai) of the earth, and upon every bird of the heavens, upon all that the ground (adamah) creeps with, and upon all the fish of the sea; into your hand they are given.
10הָיָה (be, become) — a III-He verb with a guttural ה
הָיָה is a III-He verb. Its perfect ָה, imperfect ֶה, infinitive וֹת, the ִי before “I” (הָיִיתִי), and the short forms (יְהִי וַיְהִי) all follow the rules on the “III-He verbs” page.
Added to this, the first letter ה is a guttural. Gutturals prefer a hateph vowel to a simple sheva, so the imperative הֱיֵה and infinitive הֱיוֹת have ֱ (a short “e”). When the conjunction וְ comes before it, it becomes וֶ (וֶהְיֵה 12:2).
It is among the most frequent verbs in the Old Testament, and its wayyiqtol וַיְהִי (and it was, and it came to pass) often opens a new scene in a narrative.
11הָיָה — real examples from the Bible
hayetah — it (she) was
Qal perfect (she): הָיְ + תָה (old feminine ת + ָה). The subject “the earth” is feminine. “The earth was formless and empty.”
YLVAnd the earth was formlessness and emptiness, and darkness was upon the face of the deep, and the spirit (ruach) of God was hovering upon the face of the waters.
vihi — and let it be
Conjunction וְ + יְהִי. When two shevas meet (וְ + יְ), the first becomes ִ (i) and the sheva of י disappears: וִיהִי (vihi). This is not a wayyiqtol (וַיְהִי) but “and let it be”: “let it divide the waters from the waters.”
YLVAnd God said, "Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide between waters and waters."
yihyeh — it shall be
Qal imperfect (he): יִ + הְ (here the guttural ה closes the syllable with a simple sheva) + יֶה. The long form with ֶה.
YLVAnd God said, "Behold, I have given to you every herb yielding seed which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for food.
heyot — to be
Infinitive construct: הֱ (the guttural ה with hateph segol ֱ) + י + וֹת. “It is not good for the man to be alone.”
YLVAnd YHWH God said, "It is not good for Adam to be alone; I will make him a helper as his counterpart."
veheyeh — and be
וֶ (conjunction) + the imperative הֱיֵה. Before הֱ with hateph segol, וְ becomes וֶ (ve), and the ה takes a simple sheva. “And be a blessing.”
YLVAnd I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you, and I will make your name great; and be a blessing.
12Other frequent forms — אָמַר (say) · אָכַל (eat)
These two verbs beginning with א are also very frequent. In the Qal imperfect and wayyiqtol the first א falls silent and the prefix vowel is ֹ (o). See “Guttural verbs” for details.
lemor — saying
לֵ (to) + the infinitive construct אמֹר. The א is silent, so the sheva of לְ lengthens to ֵ (e). It introduces a direct quotation.
YLVAnd God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let the birds multiply in the earth."
tokhel — you may eat
Qal imperfect (you): תֹּ (you — vowel ֹ) + א (silent) + כֵל. The usual form is תֹאכַל (2:17); this word ends the verse (pausal form), so its vowel is ֵ. With אָכֹל (infinitive absolute) before it: “you may freely eat.”
YLVAnd YHWH God commanded (tzivvah) Adam, saying, "Of every tree of the garden you shall surely eat,
13Easy to confuse
The root of וַיֵּלֶךְ is הלך, not ילך. Hebrew lexicons list these forms under הָלַךְ (only Strong’s numbering gives them a separate ילך, 3212). Check the lexical form in the word analysis.
The dot in וַיִּקַּח is not a Niphal. The letter after יִ has a dot, but only ק ח are visible; the missing letter is the first ל. A Niphal would dot the ל, as in יִלָּקַח.
וַיְהִי and וִיהִי. The first is a wayyiqtol (“and it was,” 1:3); the second is the conjunction וְ + jussive (“and let it be,” 1:6). A sheva after וַ (וַיְ) versus וִ (vi) tells them apart.
נָתַתִּי has two תs in one. One is the root ת, the other the ת of “I”; the last נ between them merged, so they are written as one doubled letter. נָתַתָּה (you gave, 3:12) is the same.