Weqatal וְקָטַל weqatal
The weqatal is the mirror partner of the wayyiqtol. Where the wayyiqtol (“וַ + prefix form”) carries past events forward, the weqatal (“וְ + suffix form,” the perfect) carries forward what will be done or must be done. It looks exactly like a perfect, but with וְ in front and following an imperfect or command it means “and will” or “and do.” This page takes the structure apart and shows it in real chains from Genesis.
the “and he will kill” form of the model קטל. As with the wayyiqtol, traditional Hebrew grammar calls this וְ וָו הַהִפּוּךְ (“the turning waw”).
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 weqatal is
The weqatal is a perfect with the conjunction וְ fixed directly to it, continuing an imperfect, imperative or jussive: “and (he) will …,” “and do ….”
By the OSHB morphology it occurs 5,688 times in the Old Testament, 164 in Genesis. It is especially frequent in law (“you shall …”) and prophecy (“in that day … will …”).
English grammars call it the weqatal or the waw-consecutive perfect.
2Where the name comes from — וְקָטַל weqatal
Add וְ (we) to the perfect קָטַל (qatal) of the model קטל and you get וְקָטַל (weqatal), and that sound is the name.
“Waw-consecutive” has the same reason as for the wayyiqtol: it tells the next action following on the previous one. Older grammars thought this וְ turns a past perfect into a future, and called it “waw conversive.”
3At a glance — how to recognize the weqatal
- (1) וְ fixed to the verbThe ordinary conjunction וְ (we) — not וַ + dot as in the wayyiqtol, and no doubling dot in the next letter.
- (2) A perfect after it“Who” is at the end — תָּ you · תִּי I · וּ they. There is no י ת א נ in front.
- (3) An imperfect, imperative or jussive before itIf the first verb of the chain is “will / do! / let …,” the weqatal after it takes over that meaning — 2:24 יַעֲזָב … וְדָבַק … וְהָיוּ (shall leave … cleave … become).
4Paradigm — Qal weqatal
The Qal weqatal of the model קטל. After וְ (blue) it is exactly the perfect table, and the ending (orange) tells “who.”
| Who | Qal weqatal | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| he | וְקָטַל | weqatal | and he will kill |
| she | וְקָטְלָה | weqatelah | and she will kill |
| you (m) | וְקָטַלְתָּ | weqatalta | and you shall kill |
| you (f) | וְקָטַלְתְּ | weqatalt | and you (f) shall kill |
| I | וְקָטַלְתִּי | weqatalti | and I will kill |
| they | וְקָטְלוּ | weqatelu | and they will kill |
| you (m pl) | וּקְטַלְתֶּם | uqetaltem | and you (pl) shall kill |
| you (f pl) | וּקְטַלְתֶּן | uqetalten | and you (f pl) shall kill |
| we | וְקָטַלְנוּ | weqatalnu | and we will kill |
In the two “you (pl)” rows קְ begins with sheva, so the conjunction becomes וּ (u): two shevas cannot stand together at the start of a word (see “The vowel of the waw” below).
5Real examples from the Bible — וְ + perfect
Find the blue וְ and the orange ending, and look at which verb comes before.
wedavaq — and he shall cleave
וְ (and) + the perfect דָבַק (he clung; no ending = “he”). As a bare perfect it would be “clung,” but continuing the imperfect יַעֲזָב (shall leave) just before, it means “shall cleave.”
YLVTherefore a man (ish) shall leave his father and his mother and cleave to his woman (ishah), and they shall become one flesh (basar).
wehayu — and they shall become
וְ + הָיוּ (they were/became, ending וּ). Two weqatals follow each other in one verse — “shall leave (imperfect) … cleave (weqatal) … become one flesh (weqatal).”
YLVTherefore a man (ish) shall leave his father and his mother and cleave to his woman (ishah), and they shall become one flesh (basar).
wehayu — and let them be
The same וְהָיוּ, but here it continues the jussive יְהִי (let there be), so “and let them be” (a command). The first verb of the chain sets the weqatal’s meaning.
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;
we’akhalta — and you shall eat
וְ + the perfect אָכַלְתָּ (you ate, ending תָּ). The same form as אָכָלְתָּ in 3:11 (“have you eaten?”, perfect), but with וְ, following the imperfect תַּצְמִיחַ (it shall sprout), it means “you shall eat.”
YLVAnd thorns and thistles it shall sprout for you, and you shall eat the herb of the field.
wezakharti — and I will remember
וְ + the perfect זָכַרְתִּי (I remembered, ending תִּי). In the rainbow covenant it continues the “when …” of the previous verse and tells what God will do; YLV renders “I will remember.”
YLVthat I will remember my covenant (berit) which is between me and you and every living soul (nephesh) of all flesh (basar); and the waters shall not again become a flood to destroy all flesh (basar).
weqarata — and you shall call
וְ + the perfect קָרָאתָ (you called). After יֹלֶדֶת (is bearing, a participle): “and you shall call his name Isaac” — God tells Abraham what he is to do. The א is silent, so ת has no dot.
YLVAnd God said, "Truly, Sarah your wife (ishah) is bearing you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac; and I will establish my covenant (berit) with him for an everlasting covenant (berit) for his seed after him.
6Joined in chains — the first verb sets time and mood
A weqatal does not stand alone; it forms a chain that continues the verb before it. If the first verb is “will,” the rest are “will”; if the first is “do!”, the rest are “do!”.
Imperfect → weqatal: 2:24 יַעֲזָב (shall leave) → וְדָבַק (cleave) → וְהָיוּ (become). 3:22 פֶּן יִשְׁלַח (lest he put forth) → וְלָקַח (and take) → וְאָכַל (and eat) → וָחַי (and live).
“In the day …” → weqatal: 3:5 בְּיוֹם אֲכָלְכֶם (in the day you eat) → וְנִפְקְחוּ (shall be opened, Niphal) → וִהְיִיתֶם (and you shall be).
Jussive → weqatal: 1:14 יְהִי מְאֹרֹת (let there be lights) → וְהָיוּ לְאֹתֹת (and let them be for signs).
Repeated action in a past story: 2:6 וְאֵד יַעֲלֶה (imperfect) → וְהִשְׁקָה (weqatal, Hiphil). YLV renders “went up … and watered,” and many grammars explain it as repeated past action (“used to go up and water”). The weqatal continues the ongoing action of the imperfect before it.
7Why it means “will” — the mirror of the wayyiqtol
- Wayyiqtolוַ + the prefix form (looks like an imperfect) → carries past events: “and … did.”
- Weqatalוְ + the suffix form (looks like a perfect) → carries future action and commands: “and … will / and do.”
- SoThe two are opposite partners. Older grammars said “the waw turns the tense around”; modern grammars describe “וְ + perfect” as a fixed construction that takes over the time and mood of the chain’s first verb. Either way, you read it the same: look at the verb before it and continue its meaning.
- StressMany grammars note that in the weqatal of “I” and “you (m)” the stress often moves to the last syllable (תִּי תָּ). The words on this page are shown without accents, so that mark is not visible here.
8When the waw changes its vowel — וּ וָ וִ וַ
The conjunction וְ changes its vowel according to the next letter (see the conjunction waw page). Whatever its shape, if the verb is a perfect it is a weqatal.
uvata — and you shall come
Before ב (one of the lip sounds ב מ פ) וְ becomes וּ (u). After it, the perfect בָּאתָ (you came; a hollow verb). Following “I will establish my covenant”: “and you shall come into the ark.”
YLVBut I will establish my covenant (berit) with you; and you shall come into the ark, you and your sons and your woman (ishah) and the women (ishah) of your sons with you.
vaḥay — and live
Before a stressed one-syllable word at the end of a clause, וְ becomes וָ (va, qamets). After it, the perfect חַי (he lived). The last link of the chain begun by פֶּן יִשְׁלַח (lest he put forth).
YLVAnd YHWH God said, "Behold, Adam has become like one of us, to know good and evil; and now, lest he put forth his hand and take also of the tree of life (chai), and eat, and live forever—"
vihyitem — and you shall be
וְ has become וִ (vi). After it, the perfect הֱיִיתֶם (you were, ending תֶם). Following בְּיוֹם אֲכָלְכֶם (in the day you eat): “you shall be like ….” This is the grammar of the serpent’s words.
YLVfor God knows that in the day you eat of it, then your eyes shall be opened, and you shall be like God, knowing good and evil."
vahaqimoti — and I will establish
Before hateph patah (ֲ) וְ becomes וַ (va). It is וַ, but there is no dot in the next letter, and what follows is the Hiphil perfect הֲקִמֹתִי (I established, ending תִי) — a weqatal, not a wayyiqtol.
YLVAnd I will establish my covenant (berit) with you, and all flesh (basar) shall not be cut off any more by the waters of the flood; and there shall not be a flood any more to destroy the earth."
9Easy to confuse
Telling it from the wayyiqtol — wayyiqtol: וַ + a prefix (י ת א נ) with a dot in it → “did.” Weqatal: וְ (or וּ וָ וִ וַ) + the suffix form → “will.” The key is whether “who” is at the front or at the end.
A perfect after a waw on another word is not a weqatal. In 1:2 וְהָאָרֶץ הָיְתָה (“and the earth was”) וְ is on “the earth,” and הָיְתָה is a plain perfect — the background of past events.
Not every וְ + perfect is a weqatal. OSHB analyzes some places, such as 2:10 וְהָיָה, separately as “conjunction + perfect.” Look at the verb before it and at whether the passage is about the past or the future.
Do not translate it as a past. Rendering וְאָכַלְתָּ (3:18) “and you ate” is wrong. It has the same form as אָכָלְתָּ (3:11, have you eaten?), but with וְ and its chain it means “you shall eat.”
10Where this appears in Genesis 1–2
All 5 places, found from the OSHB morphology. Tap one to go to that word’s notes.