Hebrew is a root language. This means that almost every word is built from a set of consonants called a root. Usually these are three letters, sometimes two or four. The root sets the basic meaning, and the system of formants (including binyans and vowels) turns it into verbs, nouns, adjectives and other parts of speech.
Determining the root is a key skill. It allows you to see the relationship between words and guess the meaning of even an unfamiliar form. This is why analyzing the main roots in Hebrew is the basis of vocabulary literacy. The ability to work with the root helps not to cram words one by one, but to collect them from blocks. This is the systemic thinking on which the entire root Hebrew language is based.
To train this skill, it is important to regularly work with single-root forms and notice how the root behaves in different contexts. This is how an “internal dictionary” is gradually formed, in which the roots of Hebrew words are grouped by meaning, and not by alphabet.
