Syllables, stress and meteg הֲבָרָה havarah
Hebrew words are read in syllables. Knowing the syllables tells you why a vowel is long or short, whether a sheva is sounded, and whether a qamets is read “a” or “o.” Every word also has one stressed syllable, and the biblical text marks it with an accent sign. This page shows all three — syllables, stress, meteg — one by one, with words from Genesis 1–2.
הֲבָרָה (havarah) is the Hebrew grammatical term for “syllable.” Stress is טַעַם (ta‘am); the meteg is מֶתֶג (meteg, “bridle”).
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 syllables and stress are
A syllable (Hebrew הֲבָרָה havarah) is one unit of sound. בָּרָא (bara, Gen 1:1 “created”) has two: בָּ (ba) and רָא (ra).
Stress (Hebrew טַעַם ta‘am) is the syllable read with force. Most Hebrew words are stressed on the last syllable; some on the next-to-last. In the biblical text an accent sign stands on the stressed syllable, so you can see where it falls.
The meteg (Hebrew מֶתֶג) is a small vertical stroke under a letter beside its vowel. It says “read this vowel fully; do not swallow it,” marking a secondary stress. It is also called ga‘ya (גַּעְיָא).
2Where the names come from — milra‘, mil‘el, meteg
The names for stress position are Aramaic. Stress on the last syllable is מִלְרַע (milra‘, “from below”); on the next-to-last, מִלְעֵיל (mil‘el, “from above”). The end of the word is thought of as “below.”
מֶתֶג (meteg) means “bridle.” As a bridle checks a horse, it makes the reader pause on the vowel and keep its sound. גַּעְיָא (ga‘ya), “raising the voice,” is another name.
English grammars speak of ultima stress, penultimate stress, and the meteg.
3At a glance — five rules of the syllable
- 1. A syllable begins with a consonantEvery syllable begins with one consonant; none begins with a vowel (one exception: the conjunction וּ “and” — וּבֵין (uven, Gen 1:4)).
- 2. Open and closedEnding in a vowel it is open (בָּ ba); ending in a consonant it is closed (שִׁית shit).
- 3. Unstressed open = long vowelAn unstressed open syllable usually has a long vowel (ָ a · ֵ e · ֹ o); an unstressed closed syllable has a short one (ַ a · ֶ e · ִ i).
- 4. A vocal sheva is a half syllableA vocal sheva (ְ, a short “e”) cannot stand as its own syllable; it leans on the next — בְּרֵא (bere).
- 5. Stress: last or next-to-lastStress falls on the last syllable (milra‘) most often, otherwise on the next-to-last (mil‘el) — never earlier. An accent sign marks it.
4Dividing syllables — words from Genesis 1
Words from Genesis 1 divided into syllables. Purple is the stressed syllable, confirmed by the accent sign on that syllable in the OSHB text.
| Word (ch:v) | Syllables | Reading | Stress |
|---|---|---|---|
| בָּרָא (1:1) | בָּ + רָא | ba-RA | last (milra‘) |
| בְּרֵאשִׁית (1:1) | בְּ (half) + רֵא + שִׁית | be-re’-SHIT | last |
| אֱלֹהִים (1:1) | אֱ (half) + לֹ + הִים | ’e-lo-HIM | last |
| הַשָּׁמַיִם (1:1) | הַשּׁ + שָׁ + מַ + יִם | hash-sha-MA-yim | next-to-last (mil‘el) |
| הָאָרֶץ (1:1) | הָ + אָ + רֶץ | ha-’A-rets | next-to-last |
| מְרַחֶפֶת (1:2) | מְ (half) + רַ + חֶ + פֶת | me-ra-ḤE-fet | next-to-last |
| יִשְׁרְצוּ (1:20) | יִשְׁ + רְ (half) + צוּ | yish-re-TSU | last |
“(half)” is a half syllable with a vocal sheva or ḥatef vowel, leaning on the next syllable. A letter with a doubling dot (dagesh), as in הַשּׁ, is sounded twice: it closes the syllable before (hash) and opens the next (sha).
5Open, closed, sheva — real examples from the Bible
See whether each syllable ends in a vowel or a consonant, and whether a sheva closes or opens a syllable. Purple marks the stressed syllable.
bara — (he) created
בָּ (ba) + רָא (ra). Both are open syllables, ending in a vowel; the final א is silent and does not close the syllable. בָּ is unstressed and open, so it has the long vowel ָ (a). In the OSHB text the accent (munah) sits under ר, showing stress on the last syllable.
YLVIn beginning (bereshit) God created the heavens and the earth.
bere’shit — in the beginning
בְּ (be — a vocal sheva, a half syllable) + רֵא (re — open; the א is silent) + שִׁית (shit — a closed syllable, ending in the consonant ת, stressed). A sheva at the start of a word is always vocal. The accent (tifḥa) is under שׁ.
YLVIn beginning (bereshit) God created the heavens and the earth.
yishretsu — let (them) swarm
Two shevas in a row. The sheva of יִשְׁ (yish) closes the syllable after the short vowel ִ (silent); the sheva of רְ (re) opens the next one (vocal). Rule: when two shevas stand side by side inside a word, the first is silent and the second vocal.
YLVAnd God said, "Let the waters swarm with swarms, a living soul (nephesh); and let birds fly above the earth upon the face of the firmament of the heavens."
vayyavdel — and (he) separated
וַיּ (vay) + יַּבְ (yav) + דֵּל (del). The dot (dagesh) in יּ means י is sounded twice: the first closes וַ, the second opens the next syllable, so the short ַ of וַ stands in a closed syllable. The sheva of בְ closes its syllable (silent).
YLVAnd God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided between the light and between the darkness.
6Where the stress falls — last (milra‘) or next-to-last (mil‘el)
Last-syllable stress (milra‘ מִלְרַע) is the default: בָּרָא (ba-RA), אֱלֹהִים (’elo-HIM), בְּרֵאשִׁית (bere’-SHIT) all carry the accent on the last syllable.
Next-to-last stress (mil‘el מִלְעֵיל) belongs to set groups of words: (1) segolate nouns — אֶרֶץ (’E-rets “earth”), חֹשֶׁךְ (ḤO-shekh “darkness,” 1:2), בֹּקֶר (BO-qer “morning”); (2) words ending in ַיִם — מַיִם (MA-yim “water,” 1:6), שָׁמַיִם (sha-MA-yim “heavens”); (3) feminine participles in ֶת — מְרַחֶפֶת (me-ra-ḤE-fet, 1:2); (4) words with an unstressed final ָה, like לַיְלָה (LAY-lah “night,” 1:5).
Where the stress falls can even separate meanings, so the biblical text puts an accent sign on the stressed syllable of nearly every word (see Accents).
7Stress position — real examples from the Bible
Even the same word can shift its stress depending on what follows. Purple is the stressed syllable, where the accent stands in the OSHB text.
veha’arets — and the earth
וְ (and) + הָ (the article) + אָ (’a) + רֶץ (rets). In 1:2 the revia‘ accent (a single dot) stands over א, so the stress is on the next-to-last syllable (mil‘el). אֶרֶץ is a segolate noun, always stressed on the first syllable.
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.
qara — (he) called
קָרָא (he called) is normally stressed on its last syllable רָא (in 1:10, קָרָא יַמִּים, the accent is under ר). But in 1:5, קָרָא לָיְלָה, the accent (munah) has moved to the first letter ק. The next word לָיְלָה (LAY-lah) is stressed on its first syllable, so the stress of the first word steps back one syllable to keep two stresses from colliding. This is נְסוֹג אָחוֹר (nesog aḥor, “drawing back”).
YLVAnd God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, day one.
qara — (he) called
In 1:10 the same word keeps its stress in place, on the last syllable רָא. The next word יַמִּים (yam-MIM) is stressed on its last syllable, so there is a syllable between the two stresses and no need to draw back. Compare 1:5.
YLVAnd God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering of the waters he called Seas; and God saw that it was good.
8Why vowels reduce — moving away from the stress
Stress governs vowel length. When something is added to the end of a word, or a word leans on the next and loses its own stress, a vowel far from the stress reduces to sheva.
- 1. Just before the stressAn open syllable right before the stress keeps its long vowel — the רָ of רָקִיעַ (ra-QI-a‘ “expanse,” 1:6).
- 2. Two syllables beforeAn open syllable two syllables before the stress reduces its vowel to sheva.
- 3. When the word growsAdd the plural ending וֹת to מָאוֹר (ma-’OR “light,” 1:16): the stress moves to וֹת, מָ is now two syllables away and becomes מְ → מְאֹרֹת (me-’o-ROT, 1:14).
- 4. In the constructA construct (“… of”) leans on the next word and weakens its own stress, so רָקִיעַ (1:6) as “the expanse of” becomes רְקִיעַ (reqia‘, 1:20).
9Reduced vowels — words actually used in the Bible
raqia‘ — an expanse
The absolute form. רָ (ra) is the open syllable just before the stress קִי (qi), so it keeps the long vowel ָ. The final ַ (a) is the “furtive pataḥ” (see below).
YLVAnd God said, "Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide between waters and waters."
reqia‘ — the expanse (of the heavens)
Used in the construct in רְקִיעַ הַשָּׁמָיִם (the expanse of the heavens). It leans on the next word, so its first vowel ָ (a) is reduced to sheva, רְ (re). Compare רָקִיעַ in 1:6.
YLVAnd God said, "Let the waters swarm with swarms, a living soul (nephesh); and let birds fly above the earth upon the face of the firmament of the heavens."
me’orot — lights
The מָ (ma) of the singular הַמָּאוֹר (the light, 1:16) becomes מְ (me) in the plural מְאֹרֹת. The plural ending ֹת (ot) moves the stress to the end, leaving מָ two syllables before it.
YLVAnd God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens, to divide between the day and between the night; and let them be for signs (ot) and for appointed times (moadim), and for days and years;
10The meteg ֽ — “keep this vowel”
The meteg is a small vertical stroke under a letter, to the left of its vowel (הָֽ). It gives the syllable a secondary stress so the vowel is read clearly rather than swallowed like a sheva. It often stands by a long vowel two syllables before the stress, or in the syllable right before a ḥatef vowel (ֲ ֱ).
Examples: הָֽאָדָם (ha’a-DAM, Gen 2:7 “the man”) — the meteg is on the ָ of the article הָ. לַֽעֲבֹד (la‘a-VOD, 2:5 “to work”) — on לַ, before the ḥatef pataḥ ֲ. וַֽיְהִי (vayehi, 1:3 “and there was”) — on וַ, before a sheva.
The meteg is most useful in telling whether a qamets ָ is read “a” or “o.” The same sign ָ in an unstressed closed syllable is a short “o” (qamets ḥatuf קָמֵץ חָטוּף). A ָ with a meteg is a long “a” in an open syllable.
11Qamets “a” and qamets ḥatuf “o” — real examples from the Bible
Divide the syllables: a ָ in an unstressed closed syllable is “o.”
le’okhlah — for food
לְ (for) + אָכְ (’okh) + לָה (lah). אָכְ is closed by a silent sheva and unstressed, so its ָ is not “a” but a short “o” (qamets ḥatuf). The stress is on the last syllable לָה.
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.
’akholkha — (in the day) you eat
אֲ (’a — a ḥatef, half syllable) + כָלְ (khol — closed, unstressed) + ךָ (kha, “your”). The ָ of כָלְ stands in an unstressed closed syllable, so it is “o.” The infinitive אֱכֹל (eating) with “your” has its ֹ shortened to a short “o.”
YLVbut of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it, for in the day you eat of it you shall surely die."
ha’adam — the man
הָֽ (the article with a meteg) + אָ (’a) + דָם (dam, stressed). הָ is an open syllable with a meteg, so it is read clearly as a long “a.” Compare the “o” in the two words above.
YLVAnd YHWH God formed Adam of dust (aphar) from the ground (adamah), and breathed into his nostrils the breath (neshamah) of life, and Adam became a living soul (nephesh).
12Easy to confuse
The meteg and the silluq look the same — a small vertical stroke under the letter (ֽ). On the stressed syllable of the last word of a verse, right before the verse-end mark ׃ (sof pasuq), it is the silluq (the accent that closes the verse); anywhere else it is a meteg. The stroke in הָאָֽרֶץ׃ (1:1) is the silluq.
An accent does not always sit on the stressed syllable. Some accents go on the very last letter of the word (pashta, zarqa, segolta, telisha qetannah) or the very first (telisha gedolah, yetiv), whatever the stress. When the stress is on the next-to-last syllable and pashta is needed, a second one is written on the stressed syllable — תֹ֨הוּ֙ (TO-hu, 1:2 “formless”) has the slanting stroke above both ת and the final ו.
The furtive pataḥ (פַּתַח גְּנוּבָה pataḥ genuvah) is not a new syllable. A ַ under a final ח, ע or הּ is read before that letter as a slight “a” — רָקִיעַ (ra-QI-a‘, 1:6), רוּחַ (RU-aḥ, 1:2). The stress stays on the syllable before it.