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מִבְרֶשֶׁת שִׁנַּיִם

A tooth is a שֵׁן (listen and repeat), while teeth are שִׁנַּיִם (listen and repeat) (a double form, even though many teeth are spoken of, not just two).A brush is a מִבְרֶשֶׁת (listen and repeat), though when the word was created in the 19th century, it may have been intended to be מִבְרָשָׁה (listen and repeat) (Wiktionary).

In any case, a toothbrush is a מִבְרֶשֶׁת שִׁנַּיִם (listen and repeat).

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Likewise, an electric toothbrush is a מִבְרֶשֶׁת שִׁנַּיִם חַשְׁמָלִית listen.

The root of the word מברשת is ב.ר.שׁ (b.r.sh), which looks like a proper Hebrew/Semitic root. But looking into it a bit, my suspicion was confirmed that the root ב.ר.שׁ actually comes from the English brush (also Wiktionary).


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Ami Steinberger is founder and director of Ulpan La-Inyan.