Maqqef מַקֵּף maqqef
The maqqef is a short raised stroke ־ between two words. Words joined by it are read as one word, in one breath. The first word therefore loses its own stress, and its vowel may shorten. Genesis 1–2 has 121 maqqefs. This page shows what a maqqef is and why אֵת becomes אֶת־ and כֹּל becomes כָּל־, using real words.
Usually explained as “the joiner, the binder.”
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
1What the maqqef is
The maqqef (Hebrew מַקֵּף) is a short horizontal stroke at the top of the line joining two words. In עַל־פְּנֵי (‘al-pene, “over the face of,” Gen 1:2) it joins עַל (over) and פְּנֵי (face, surface).
Words joined by a maqqef share one stress. The stress (and the accent sign) is on the last word only; the earlier word has none and is read leaning on the next, as part of it.
The maqqef does not change meaning; it is a reading mark. But it changes the vowels of the first word, so it explains why the same word appears in two shapes.
Genesis 1–2 has 121 maqqefs (counted in the OSHB text).
2Where the name comes from — מַקֵּף maqqef
מַקֵּף (maqqef) is usually explained as “the joiner, the binder” — named for what it does, binding two words into one reading.
It is often compared to a hyphen, but an English hyphen sits at mid-height, while the maqqef is drawn at the top of the letters.
3At a glance — three things the maqqef does
- 1. It joins wordsWords joined with ־ are read as one, in one breath — כִּי־טוֹב (ki-tov “that it was good,” Gen 1:4).
- 2. The first word loses its stressStress and accent are on the last word only. In כִּי־טוֹב the accent is on טוֹב alone.
- 3. So the first word’s vowel shortensAn unstressed closed syllable takes a short vowel — אֵת → אֶת־ · כֹּל → כָּל־ (kol).
4One word, two shapes — alone and with a maqqef
Counted one by one in the OSHB text of Genesis 1–2. Standing alone the word has a long vowel; joined by a maqqef, a short one. The changed vowel is purple.
| Word | Alone | With maqqef | In Gen 1–2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| object marker | אֵת (’et) — long ֵ | אֶת־ (’et) — short ֶ | alone 9× (all אֵת) · joined 25× (all אֶת־) — counting וְ forms |
| “all, every” | כֹּל (kol) — long ֹ | כָּל־ (kol) — short “o” (qamets ḥatuf) | alone 5× (all כֹּל) · joined 24× (all כָּל־) — counting forms with וְ לְ בְּ מִ in front |
| “over, on” | עַל | עַל־ | joined 15× — already short, no change |
| “that, because” | כִּי | כִּי־ | alone 4× · joined 6× — no change |
The ָ of כָּל־ is not “a” but a short “o,” because it stands in an unstressed closed syllable (qamets ḥatuf; see Syllables, stress and meteg). So כֹּל and כָּל־ are both read “kol.”
5Shortened vowels — words actually used in the Bible
Compare the vowel of the word before the maqqef with the same word standing alone.
’et — (direct object marker)
In 1:1, אֵת הַשָּׁמַיִם (the heavens), אֵת stands alone without a maqqef. It has its own stress and accent (merkha), so it keeps the long vowel ֵ (e).
YLVIn beginning (bereshit) God created the heavens and the earth.
’et-ha’or — the light (object)
אֶת (object marker) + ־ (maqqef) + הָאוֹר (the light). Joined by the maqqef, אֵת loses its stress, and the vowel of the closed syllable becomes the short ֶ (e). The accent (tifḥa) is on הָאוֹר only.
YLVAnd God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided between the light and between the darkness.
ulekhol — and to every …
וּ (and) + לְ (to) + כֹל (all). In 1:30, וּלְכֹל רוֹמֵשׂ (and to everything that creeps), it stands alone with its own accent (munah), so it has the long vowel ֹ (o).
YLVAnd to every living thing (chai) of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens, and to every thing that creeps upon the earth, in which is a living soul (nephesh), I have given every green herb for food"; and it was so.
kol-nefesh — every living creature
כָּל (all) + ־ (maqqef) + נֶפֶשׁ (living being). The maqqef takes the stress away and כֹּל becomes כָּל. This ָ is a short “o” in an unstressed closed syllable, so it is still read “kol.”
YLVAnd God created the great sea-creatures (tannin), and every living soul (nephesh) that creeps, with which the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind; and God saw that it was good.
6Why the vowel changes — step by step
- 1. The word aloneAlone, אֵת is a one-syllable word, and that syllable is the stressed one. A stressed syllable can keep the long ֵ even when closed.
- 2. Joined by a maqqefאֵת־הָאוֹר is read as one word, so only the final אוֹר keeps a stress. את is now unstressed.
- 3. Unstressed and closedAn unstressed closed syllable takes a short vowel: ֵ (long e) becomes ֶ (short e), ֹ (long o) becomes qamets ḥatuf ָ (short o).
- 4. Already short — no changeWords that already have a short vowel — עַל מִן אֶל כִּי — keep their shape with a maqqef.
7What it joins — real examples from the Bible
The maqqef mostly joins a short word — a preposition, the object marker, a negative, a conjunction, “all,” a short verb — to the next word.
‘al-pene — over the face of
The preposition עַל (over) + ־ + פְּנֵי (face, surface; construct “of”). It occurs twice in 1:2 (over the deep, over the waters). A short preposition leaning on the next word is the most common maqqef (15 times in Gen 1–2).
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.
ki-tov — that (it was) good
The conjunction כִּי (that) + ־ + טוֹב (good). Each time Genesis 1 says “saw … that it was good,” this maqqef appears. In 2:3, כִּי בוֹ שָׁבַת (because on it he rested), כִּי stands alone with its own accent.
YLVAnd God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided between the light and between the darkness.
vayehi-’or — and there was light
The wayyiqtol וַיְהִי (and there was) + ־ + אוֹר (light). A short verb can also be joined to the next word. וַיְהִי, having lost its stress, carries a meteg (וַֽ) that keeps its vowel.
YLVAnd God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.
mah-yyiqra-lo — what he would call it
מַה (what) + ־ + יִּקְרָא (he would call) + ־ + לוֹ (to it). Three words joined by two maqqefs, with the accent (atnaḥ) only on the last, לוֹ. The first letter after מַה, יּ, has a dot (dagesh) and is doubled — a common feature after a joined מַה.
YLVAnd YHWH God formed out of the ground (adamah) every living thing (chai) of the field and every bird of the heavens, and brought it to Adam to see what he would call it; and whatever Adam called it, the living soul (nephesh), that was its name.
’et-kol-pene-ha’adamah — the whole face of the ground
אֶת (object marker) + כָּל (all) + פְּנֵי (face, construct) + הָאֲדָמָה (the ground). The longest chain in Genesis 1–2: four words joined by three maqqefs. Both אֶת and כָּל are in their short-vowel forms.
YLVAnd a mist went up from the earth and watered all the face of the ground (adamah).
8Maqqef and accents — one accent for the joined words
The accents of the biblical text (see Accents) are placed one per word. Words joined by a maqqef count as one word for the accents. So כִּי־טוֹב has a single accent, on טוֹב, and מַה־יִּקְרָא־לוֹ (2:19) a single one, on לוֹ.
A longer first word may receive a meteg instead, which keeps its vowel. In עֵֽץ־הַגָּן (2:16, “the tree of the garden”), עֵץ is joined by a maqqef but carries a meteg and keeps its long ֵ (e). So a maqqef does not always shorten the vowel; it depends on the word.
9Easy to confuse
The maqqef and the paseq are opposites. The maqqef ־ is a raised horizontal stroke meaning “read on together”; the paseq ׀ is a vertical stroke between words meaning “pause briefly” (1:5 אֱלֹהִים ׀ לָאוֹר).
A construct (“of”) does not always have a maqqef. רְקִיעַ הַשָּׁמָיִם (the expanse of the heavens, 1:20) is a construct without one; and the maqqef also joins words that are not constructs (כִּי אֶת לֹא). It shows reading units, not grammatical relations.
Do not read כָּל־ as “kal.” Before a maqqef כָּל is always “kol” (qamets ḥatuf in an unstressed closed syllable).
In word-by-word analysis the maqqef is not a word. עַל־פְּנֵי is analysed as two words, עַל and פְּנֵי.