August 28, 2026 Categories: Ktzat Ivrit
How to Say "Beg Persistently" in Hebrew
To beg, in Hebrew, is לְהִתְחַנֵּן 
.
But there's a certain type of begging that doesn't let up. To beg in such a manner is לְהַפְצִיר .
This word is used, albeit in a different verb form, in Biblical Hebrew, in contexts where the speaker is imploring someone to accept a favor.
An example from the Torah portion read last week:
קַח נָא אֶת בִּרְכָתִי אֲשֶׁר הֻבָאת לָךְ, כִּי חַנַּנִי אֱלֹהִים וְכִי יֶשׁ-לִי כֹל; וַיִּפְצַר בּוֹ, וַיִּקָּח. (בְּרֵאשִׁית ל"ג:י"א) Please take my gift (literally, blessing) that is brought to you, for G-d has graced me and has given me everything; and he begged him, and he took. (Genesis 33:11)And an example in Modern-Hebrew usage:
מַנְהִיגִים רַבִּים מַפְצִירִים בְּרֹאשׁ הַמֶּמְשָׁלָה לֹא לְהַתְקִיף. Many leaders are begging the prime minister persistently not to attack.להפציר, in its modern usage, is an active-causative הִפְעִיל verb. In its Biblical-Hebrew usage, it's an active-simple פָּעַל verb.
Visit the Ktzat Ivrit blog.
