For autodidact students of Yiddish, the third word is "and," and in Yiddish "and" is און (un). It is the most frequent conjunction in the language, and it is also one of the easiest words in the course, since it has only one form. It has no gender, no case and no plural, and it never changes. English "and" is the same, so the difficulty is not in the word but in the places where Yiddish asks for something different around it: the order of the words that follow it, the verb that agrees with a subject joined by it, the way it builds numbers such as "twenty-five," and the habit of repeating it for effect.
The word is a cognate of German und: Wiktionary derives it from Middle High German unt. A learner who knows German will recognise it at once, but the lesson sets out what the word does in Yiddish.
און joins things of the same kind. It joins two nouns (ברױט און קעז, broyt un kez, "bread and cheese"), two pronouns (איך און דו, ikh un du, "I and you"), two adjectives (גוט און שײן, gut un sheyn, "good and beautiful"), two verbs (ער קומט און זאָגט, er kumt un zogt, "he comes and says"), two whole clauses (די מאַמע קאָכט און דער טאַטע לײענט, "mother cooks and father reads") and two numbers (דרײַ און דרײַסיק, dray un draysik, "three and thirty," that is, thirty-three). It can also stand at the head of a sentence and tie it to the one before, as in און װאָס נאָך? (un vos nokh), "and what else?"
Yiddish has other joining words, which later lessons teach in full: אָדער (oder), "or," which gives a choice, and אָבער (ober), "but," which you have met already in Lessons 1 and 2. און is the one that only adds.
Script note: און is three letters, read from right to left: א (alef, here a silent carrier for the vowel), ו (vov, the vowel u) and the final form ן (final nun, n). Its twin on the page is אין (in), "in," from Lesson 1, spelled א (alef), י (yud, the vowel i) and ן (final nun). The two words differ by a single letter, ו or י, and a learner reading quickly mixes them up. Look at the middle letter: ו is straight and tall, י is a small hook at the top of the line. In some dialects the two words also sound alike, since the vowel of און is said closer to the vowel of אין (see Section E); the context shows which one is meant. The vov, ו, has two other jobs in Yiddish, which you have seen: doubled it is װ (v), and joined with a yud it is ױ (oy). Here it is a single ו, and it is u.
Key Takeaways: - און (un): "and," a conjunction; it never changes its form - It joins nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, clauses and numbers - After און the sentence goes on in ordinary order: subject first, verb second (און איך בין דאָ) - Two subjects joined by און take a plural verb: איך און דו זענען דאָ - In a list the last two items are joined by און, and the others are separated by commas: ברױט, קעז און פּוטער - In numbers the units come first: דרײַ און דרײַסיק, "33"; פֿינף און צוואַנציק, "25" - Repeated, און shows that something goes on: שטאַרקער און שטאַרקער, "stronger and stronger" - Do not confuse און, "and," with אין, "in"
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3.1a זי she איז is שײן beautiful און and קלוג clever
3.1b zi (zee) she iz (iz) be.3SG sheyn (shayn) beautiful un (oon) and klug (kloog) clever
3.2a ברױט bread און and קעז cheese
3.2b broyt (broyt) bread un (oon) and kez (kez) cheese
3.3a דער the טיש table איז is גרױס big און and נײַ new
3.3b der (dair) the-M.NOM tish (tish) table.M iz (iz) be.3SG groys (groyss) big un (oon) and nay (nigh) new
3.4a איך I און and דו you זענען are דאָ here
3.4b ikh (ikh) I un (oon) and du (doo) you.SG zenen (ZEH-nen) be.1PL do (doh) here
3.5a דאָס the קינד child עסט eats ברױט bread און and קעז cheese
3.5b dos (doss) the-N.NOM kind (kint) child.N est (est) eat.3SG broyt (broyt) bread.N un (oon) and kez (kez) cheese.M
3.6a די the מאַמע mother און and דער the טאַטע father זענען are אין in דער the שטוב room
3.6b di (dee) the-F.NOM mame (MAH-meh) mother.F un (oon) and der (dair) the-M.NOM tate (TAH-teh) father.M zenen (ZEH-nen) be.3PL in (in) in der (dair) the-F.DAT shtub (shtoob) room.F
3.7a דער the הונט dog און and די the קאַץ cat זיצן sit אונטער under דעם the טיש table
3.7b der (dair) the-M.NOM hunt (hoont) dog.M un (oon) and di (dee) the-F.NOM kats (kats) cat.F zitsn (ZIT-sn) sit.3PL unter (OON-ter) under dem (dem) the-M.DAT tish (tish) table.M
3.8a דער the מאַן man קומט comes און and זאָגט says גוט good מאָרגן morning
3.8b der (dair) the-M.NOM man (mahn) man.M kumt (koomt) come.3SG un (oon) and zogt (zogt) say.3SG gut (goot) good morgn (MOR-gn) morning
3.9a די the קינדער children לײענען read און and דער the טאַטע father שרײַבט writes
3.9b di (dee) the-PL.NOM kinder (KIN-der) children.PL leynen (LAY-nen) read.3PL un (oon) and der (dair) the-M.NOM tate (TAH-teh) father.M shraybt (shrighpt) write.3SG
3.10a איך I װיל want טײ tea און and ברױט bread מיט with פּוטער butter
3.10b ikh (ikh) I vil (vil) want.1SG tey (tay) tea un (oon) and broyt (broyt) bread mit (mit) with puter (POO-ter) butter
3.11a אַ a גרױסער big הונט dog און and אַ a קלײנע small קאַץ cat זענען are אין in דער the קיך kitchen
3.11b a (ah) a groyser (GROY-ser) big-M.NOM hunt (hoont) dog.M un (oon) and a (ah) a kleyne (KLAY-neh) small-F.NOM kats (kats) cat.F zenen (ZEH-nen) be.3PL in (in) in der (dair) the-F.DAT kikh (kikh) kitchen.F
3.12a דער the טאַטע father איז is צוריקגעקומען come-back און and ער he האָט has ברױט bread געגעסן eaten
3.12b der (dair) the-M.NOM tate (TAH-teh) father.M iz (iz) be.3SG tsurikgekumen (tsoo-RIK-geh-KOO-men) back-come.PTCP un (oon) and er (er) he hot (hot) have.3SG broyt (broyt) bread.N gegesn (geh-GEH-sn) eat.PTCP
3.13a און and מיר we זענען are אַלע all ברידער brothers
3.13b un (oon) and mir (meer) we zenen (ZEH-nen) be.1PL ale (AH-leh) all brider (BRI-der) brothers.PL
3.14a די the מאַמע mother איז is דרײַ three און and דרײַסיק thirty יאָר years אַלט old
3.14b di (dee) the-F.NOM mame (MAH-meh) mother.F iz (iz) be.3SG dray (drigh) three un (oon) and draysik (DRIGH-sik) thirty yor (yor) years alt (alt) old
3.15a דער the װינט wind װערט becomes שטאַרקער stronger און and שטאַרקער stronger
3.15b der (dair) the-M.NOM vint (vint) wind.M vert (vert) become.3SG shtarker (SHTAR-ker) strong-COMP un (oon) and shtarker (SHTAR-ker) strong-COMP
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3.1 זי איז שײן און קלוג. (zi iz sheyn un klug) "She is beautiful and clever." 3.2 ברױט און קעז. (broyt un kez) "Bread and cheese." 3.3 דער טיש איז גרױס און נײַ. (der tish iz groys un nay) "The table is big and new." 3.4 איך און דו זענען דאָ. (ikh un du zenen do) "You and I are here." 3.5 דאָס קינד עסט ברױט און קעז. (dos kind est broyt un kez) "The child is eating bread and cheese." 3.6 די מאַמע און דער טאַטע זענען אין דער שטוב. (di mame un der tate zenen in der shtub) "Mother and father are in the room." 3.7 דער הונט און די קאַץ זיצן אונטער דעם טיש. (der hunt un di kats zitsn unter dem tish) "The dog and the cat are sitting under the table." 3.8 דער מאַן קומט און זאָגט גוט מאָרגן. (der man kumt un zogt gut morgn) "The man comes and says good morning." 3.9 די קינדער לײענען און דער טאַטע שרײַבט. (di kinder leynen un der tate shraybt) "The children are reading and father is writing." 3.10 איך װיל טײ און ברױט מיט פּוטער. (ikh vil tey un broyt mit puter) "I want tea and bread and butter." 3.11 אַ גרױסער הונט און אַ קלײנע קאַץ זענען אין דער קיך. (a groyser hunt un a kleyne kats zenen in der kikh) "A big dog and a small cat are in the kitchen." 3.12 דער טאַטע איז צוריקגעקומען און ער האָט ברױט געגעסן. (der tate iz tsurikgekumen un er hot broyt gegesn) "Father has come back and has eaten some bread." 3.13 און מיר זענען אַלע ברידער. (un mir zenen ale brider) "And we are all brothers." 3.14 די מאַמע איז דרײַ און דרײַסיק יאָר אַלט. (di mame iz dray un draysik yor alt) "Mother is thirty-three years old." 3.15 דער װינט װערט שטאַרקער און שטאַרקער. (der vint vert shtarker un shtarker) "The wind is getting stronger and stronger."
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3.1 זי איז שײן און קלוג. 3.2 ברױט און קעז. 3.3 דער טיש איז גרױס און נײַ. 3.4 איך און דו זענען דאָ. 3.5 דאָס קינד עסט ברױט און קעז. 3.6 די מאַמע און דער טאַטע זענען אין דער שטוב. 3.7 דער הונט און די קאַץ זיצן אונטער דעם טיש. 3.8 דער מאַן קומט און זאָגט גוט מאָרגן. 3.9 די קינדער לײענען און דער טאַטע שרײַבט. 3.10 איך װיל טײ און ברױט מיט פּוטער. 3.11 אַ גרױסער הונט און אַ קלײנע קאַץ זענען אין דער קיך. 3.12 דער טאַטע איז צוריקגעקומען און ער האָט ברױט געגעסן. 3.13 און מיר זענען אַלע ברידער. 3.14 די מאַמע איז דרײַ און דרײַסיק יאָר אַלט. 3.15 דער װינט װערט שטאַרקער און שטאַרקער.
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These are the grammar rules for און (un), "and."
One form. און does not change for gender, number or case. It is a conjunction, a word that joins, and it carries no ending. It is always written און in the standard spelling of the YIVO. Some older books, and some texts that imitate German, write אונד (und) or the short אונ׳; the course does not use them.
What it joins. The words joined are of the same kind, and each is in the form it would have taken if it stood alone: - nouns: ברױט און קעז (3.2), "bread and cheese" - pronouns: איך און דו (3.4), "I and you" - adjectives: זי איז שײן און קלוג (3.1), דער טיש איז גרױס און נײַ (3.3). As Lesson 2 said, an adjective after זײַן takes no ending, and so two of them with און after the verb take none either - verbs: ער קומט און זאָגט (3.8) - whole clauses: די קינדער לײענען און דער טאַטע שרײַבט (3.9); דער טאַטע איז צוריקגעקומען און ער האָט ברױט געגעסן (3.12) - numbers: דרײַ און דרײַסיק (3.14)
Word order: the zero position. און stands outside the word order of the clause it begins, as אָבער did in Lessons 1 and 2. What follows it goes in the ordinary order of a statement: the subject first, and the finite verb as the second element. So in the second half of 3.9 the order is און דער טאַטע שרײַבט, "and father writes," with the subject before the verb. The verb must not be put straight after און (see Common Mistakes). A sentence may also begin with און, tying it to what came before: און מיר זענען אַלע ברידער (3.13), "and we are all brothers."
Agreement. Two subjects joined by און are plural, and the verb is in the plural: איך און דו זענען דאָ (3.4), די מאַמע און דער טאַטע זענען אין דער שטוב (3.6), דער הונט און די קאַץ זיצן (3.7). This is the rule of Lesson 2 (2.30). Notice 3.4: "I and you" together are "we," and the verb is זענען, the form of מיר. In 3.7 the verb is זיצן (zitsn), "sit," the third person plural, which has the same form as the infinitive.
Leaving out the subject. When two verbs have the same subject, Yiddish may name it once and leave it out the second time: ער קומט און זאָגט (3.8), "he comes and says," where English "he comes and he says" would also do. When the second clause has its own subject, or when the speaker wants to put weight on it, the subject is named again: און ער האָט ברױט געגעסן (3.12).
Lists. In a list of three or more, the items are separated by commas and the last two are joined by און: ברױט, קעז און פּוטער. There is no comma in front of און. A speaker who wants the list to sound long can put און between every pair, and then there are no commas at all: ברױט און קעז און פּוטער און טײ. The phrase און אַזױ װײַטער (un azoy vayter), "and so on," is the Yiddish "et cetera," and is the usual way to end a list that could go on.
Numbers. Yiddish builds the numbers from 21 to 99 as German does, with the units first: the unit, און, then the ten. So 21 is אײן און צוואַנציק (eyn un tsvantsik), "one and twenty"; 25 is פֿינף און צוואַנציק (finf un tsvantsik), "five and twenty" (3.27); 33 is דרײַ און דרײַסיק (dray un draysik), "three and thirty" (3.14). The tens used in this lesson are צוואַנציק (tsvantsik), 20, and דרײַסיק (draysik), 30. English "twenty-five" has the ten first.
Repeating a word. To say that something goes on and on, or increases, Yiddish repeats the word with און between: דער װינט װערט שטאַרקער און שטאַרקער (3.15), "the wind is getting stronger and stronger." The same is done with a verb to show that an action continues: דער װינט האָט געבלאָזן און געבלאָזן, "the wind blew and blew." The verb װערן, "to become," which Lesson 2 mentioned, is the verb of change; the ending -ער of שטאַרקער makes the comparative, "stronger."
Where "and" is not און. און adds words and clauses. "Also" is the adverb אױך, as in 2.20: איז דער זיידע אױך דאָרט? "But" is אָבער. Neither is a form of און, and און is never the preposition אין, "in."
Common Mistakes: - Writing אין for און, or the reverse. אין is "in," און is "and." One has a yud and the other a vov - Putting the verb right after און, as in \*און זענען מיר אַלע ברידער. The subject comes first: און מיר זענען אַלע ברידער - Using a singular verb with two subjects: \*איך און דו איז דאָ. The verb is זענען - Putting the ten before the unit in numbers: \*דרײַסיק און דרײַ. The unit comes first: דרײַ און דרײַסיק - Putting a comma before the last און of a list: \*ברױט, קעז, און פּוטער. In the style of this course there is none - Adding an ending to two adjectives after "be": \*דער טיש איז גרױסער און נײַער. They have none - Using the German spelling אונד, or the short אונ׳, in modern standard writing
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און is the third word of the frequency list this course follows, and a grammar of Yiddish calls it the most frequent conjunction; you will see it on nearly every line of Yiddish you read. A sentence that begins with און, like Beyle's און דער קעז? in the market scene below, is ordinary speech: it ties what is said to what was said before.
The word has the history that its form hints at. Wiktionary derives it from Middle High German unt, and so it is cognate with German und. The vowel is not the same in every dialect. In the standard pronunciation of the YIVO, which is based on the Northeastern dialect, it is a short /ʊ/; Wiktionary gives [ɪ] for the Mideastern dialects and [ɨ] for the Southeastern. In a Mideastern speaker the word is therefore close to אין, "in," and the context is what keeps the two apart. The older spelling אונד, with the final -ד, belongs to the period when some writers of Yiddish made it look more like German (the "Daytshmerish" style); the standard spelling is און.
The set phrase און אַזױ װײַטער (un azoy vayter), "and so on," is the Yiddish "et cetera," and is used much as English uses it.
The proverb in Section F is a very well-known one, and it has און in the middle: a short half, and then a second short half that answers the first.
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דער מענטש טראַכט און גאָט לאַכט (Der mentsh trakht un got lakht), a traditional Yiddish proverb
This is a folk saying with no known author, and one of the best known Yiddish proverbs; it is quoted in English as "Man plans and God laughs." The wording was checked in two places: a published list of Yiddish proverbs used for a Yiddish course (it is item 20 there, in transliteration), and the Wiktionary entries for טראַכטן (trakhtn), "to think," and לאַכן (lakhn), "to laugh," which both quote the saying in this spelling. The line is a traditional saying and not a quotation from one printed book, so the text here is in standard spelling and is not a facsimile of any one source.
דער מענטש טראַכט און גאָט לאַכט.
F-A: Interlinear
F.1a דער the מענטש person טראַכט thinks
F.1b der (dair) the-M.NOM mentsh (mentsh) person.M trakht (trahkht) think.3SG
F.2a און and גאָט God לאַכט laughs
F.2b un (oon) and got (got) God.M lakht (lahkht) laugh.3SG
F-B: Original and Translation
דער מענטש טראַכט און גאָט לאַכט.
"Man thinks, and God laughs." (Translation: Latinum Institute.) The word מענטש (mentsh) means "a person, a human being," and not only "a man"; the saying is about everyone. The verb טראַכטן means "to think"; English renders it here as "to plan," which gives the usual form, "Man plans and God laughs."
F-C: Original
דער מענטש טראַכט און גאָט לאַכט.
F-D: Grammar and Literary Commentary
The proverb has two clauses of three words each (the second begins with און), each with its own subject and its own verb in the third person singular, טראַכט and לאַכט. The two halves are of the same weight and shape, and the rhyme of the verbs, trakht and lakht, binds them together. This is what און does best: it sets two statements side by side, and leaves the reader to feel their contrast. Here the "and" is in fact nearer to "but": man thinks, and God laughs. Yiddish does not need אָבער, since the contrast is plain from the sentences themselves.
The word order is that of Section D. After און the subject גאָט stands first and the verb לאַכט follows, as in 3.9 and 3.12. The first clause has the article דער before the masculine noun, nominative, and the second clause has the name גאָט with no article, since "God" is used as a name. The two verbs do not need an auxiliary: Yiddish uses the present tense for a general truth, as English does.
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Beyle is buying food at the market from Leyzer, a seller she knows. The dialogue shows און joining nouns in a list, adjectives and numbers, standing at the head of a question, and closing the bargain.
3.16a בײלע Beyle גוט good מאָרגן morning לײזער Leyzer װאָס what האָסט have דו you הײַנט today
3.16b beyle (BAY-leh) Beyle gut (goot) good morgn (MOR-gn) morning leyzer (LAY-zer) Leyzer vos (vos) what host (host) have.2SG du (doo) you.SG haynt (haynt) today
3.17a לײזער Leyzer גוט good מאָרגן morning בײלע Beyle איך I האָב have ברױט bread קעז cheese און and פּוטער butter
3.17b leyzer (LAY-zer) Leyzer gut (goot) good morgn (MOR-gn) morning beyle (BAY-leh) Beyle ikh (ikh) I hob (hob) have.1SG broyt (broyt) bread.N kez (kez) cheese.M un (oon) and puter (POO-ter) butter
3.18a בײלע Beyle איז is דאָס the ברױט bread פֿריש fresh
3.18b beyle (BAY-leh) Beyle iz (iz) be.3SG dos (doss) the-N.NOM broyt (broyt) bread.N frish (frish) fresh
3.19a לײזער Leyzer יאָ yes דאָס the ברױט bread איז is פֿריש fresh און and װאַרעם warm
3.19b leyzer (LAY-zer) Leyzer yo (yoh) yes dos (doss) the-N.NOM broyt (broyt) bread.N iz (iz) be.3SG frish (frish) fresh un (oon) and varem (VAH-rem) warm
3.20a בײלע Beyle און and דער the קעז cheese
3.20b beyle (BAY-leh) Beyle un (oon) and der (dair) the-M.NOM kez (kez) cheese.M
3.21a לײזער Leyzer דער the קעז cheese איז is גוט good און and נישט not טײַער expensive
3.21b leyzer (LAY-zer) Leyzer der (dair) the-M.NOM kez (kez) cheese.M iz (iz) be.3SG gut (goot) good un (oon) and nisht (nisht) not tayer (TIGH-er) expensive
3.22a בײלע Beyle גוט good איך I װיל want דאָס the ברױט bread און and דעם the קעז cheese
3.22b beyle (BAY-leh) Beyle gut (goot) good ikh (ikh) I vil (vil) want.1SG dos (doss) the-N.ACC broyt (broyt) bread.N un (oon) and dem (dem) the-M.ACC kez (kez) cheese.M
3.23a לײזער Leyzer און and װאָס what נאָך else
3.23b leyzer (LAY-zer) Leyzer un (oon) and vos (vos) what nokh (nokh) else
3.24a בײלע Beyle איך I װיל want אױך also טײ tea צוקער sugar און and עפּל apples
3.24b beyle (BAY-leh) Beyle ikh (ikh) I vil (vil) want.1SG oykh (oykh) also tey (tay) tea tsuker (TSOO-ker) sugar un (oon) and epl (EP-l) apples
3.25a לײזער Leyzer די the עפּל apples זענען are זיס sweet און and רױט red
3.25b leyzer (LAY-zer) Leyzer di (dee) the-PL.NOM epl (EP-l) apples zenen (ZEH-nen) be.3PL zis (zis) sweet un (oon) and royt (royt) red
3.26a בײלע Beyle װי how פֿיל much קאָסט costs דאָס that אַלץ all
3.26b beyle (BAY-leh) Beyle vi (vee) how fil (fil) much kost (kost) cost.3SG dos (doss) that alts (alts) all
3.27a לײזער Leyzer דאָס that אַלץ all קאָסט costs פֿינף five און and צוואַנציק twenty גראָשן groshn
3.27b leyzer (LAY-zer) Leyzer dos (doss) that alts (alts) all kost (kost) cost.3SG finf (finf) five un (oon) and tsvantsik (TSVAN-tsik) twenty groshn (GROH-shn) groshn.PL
3.28a בײלע Beyle דאָס that איז is צו too טײַער expensive לײזער Leyzer
3.28b beyle (BAY-leh) Beyle dos (doss) that iz (iz) be.3SG tsu (tsoo) too tayer (TIGH-er) expensive leyzer (LAY-zer) Leyzer
3.29a לײזער Leyzer גוט good צוואַנציק twenty גראָשן groshn און and דאָס that איז is אַלץ all
3.29b leyzer (LAY-zer) Leyzer gut (goot) good tsvantsik (TSVAN-tsik) twenty groshn (GROH-shn) groshn.PL un (oon) and dos (doss) that iz (iz) be.3SG alts (alts) all
3.30a בײלע Beyle אַ a דאַנק thanks לײזער Leyzer און and זײַ be געזונט well
3.30b beyle (BAY-leh) Beyle a (ah) a dank (dahnk) thanks leyzer (LAY-zer) Leyzer un (oon) and zay (zigh) be.IMP.SG gezunt (geh-ZOONT) well
3.16 בײלע: גוט מאָרגן, לײזער. װאָס האָסט דו הײַנט? (beyle: gut morgn, leyzer. vos host du haynt?) "Beyle: Good morning, Leyzer. What have you got today?" 3.17 לײזער: גוט מאָרגן, בײלע. איך האָב ברױט, קעז און פּוטער. (leyzer: gut morgn, beyle. ikh hob broyt, kez un puter) "Leyzer: Good morning, Beyle. I have bread, cheese and butter." 3.18 בײלע: איז דאָס ברױט פֿריש? (beyle: iz dos broyt frish?) "Beyle: Is the bread fresh?" 3.19 לײזער: יאָ, דאָס ברױט איז פֿריש און װאַרעם. (leyzer: yo, dos broyt iz frish un varem) "Leyzer: Yes, the bread is fresh and warm." 3.20 בײלע: און דער קעז? (beyle: un der kez?) "Beyle: And the cheese?" 3.21 לײזער: דער קעז איז גוט און נישט טײַער. (leyzer: der kez iz gut un nisht tayer) "Leyzer: The cheese is good and not expensive." 3.22 בײלע: גוט, איך װיל דאָס ברױט און דעם קעז. (beyle: gut, ikh vil dos broyt un dem kez) "Beyle: Good, I want the bread and the cheese." 3.23 לײזער: און װאָס נאָך? (leyzer: un vos nokh?) "Leyzer: And what else?" 3.24 בײלע: איך װיל אױך טײ, צוקער און עפּל. (beyle: ikh vil oykh tey, tsuker un epl) "Beyle: I also want tea, sugar and apples." 3.25 לײזער: די עפּל זענען זיס און רױט. (leyzer: di epl zenen zis un royt) "Leyzer: The apples are sweet and red." 3.26 בײלע: װי פֿיל קאָסט דאָס אַלץ? (beyle: vi fil kost dos alts?) "Beyle: How much does it all cost?" 3.27 לײזער: דאָס אַלץ קאָסט פֿינף און צוואַנציק גראָשן. (leyzer: dos alts kost finf un tsvantsik groshn) "Leyzer: All of it costs twenty-five groshn." 3.28 בײלע: דאָס איז צו טײַער, לײזער. (beyle: dos iz tsu tayer, leyzer) "Beyle: That is too expensive, Leyzer." 3.29 לײזער: גוט, צוואַנציק גראָשן, און דאָס איז אַלץ. (leyzer: gut, tsvantsik groshn, un dos iz alts) "Leyzer: All right, twenty groshn, and that is all." 3.30 בײלע: אַ דאַנק, לײזער, און זײַ געזונט! (beyle: a dank, leyzer, un zay gezunt!) "Beyle: Thank you, Leyzer, and goodbye!"
3.16 בײלע: גוט מאָרגן, לײזער. װאָס האָסט דו הײַנט? 3.17 לײזער: גוט מאָרגן, בײלע. איך האָב ברױט, קעז און פּוטער. 3.18 בײלע: איז דאָס ברױט פֿריש? 3.19 לײזער: יאָ, דאָס ברױט איז פֿריש און װאַרעם. 3.20 בײלע: און דער קעז? 3.21 לײזער: דער קעז איז גוט און נישט טײַער. 3.22 בײלע: גוט, איך װיל דאָס ברױט און דעם קעז. 3.23 לײזער: און װאָס נאָך? 3.24 בײלע: איך װיל אױך טײ, צוקער און עפּל. 3.25 לײזער: די עפּל זענען זיס און רױט. 3.26 בײלע: װי פֿיל קאָסט דאָס אַלץ? 3.27 לײזער: דאָס אַלץ קאָסט פֿינף און צוואַנציק גראָשן. 3.28 בײלע: דאָס איז צו טײַער, לײזער. 3.29 לײזער: גוט, צוואַנציק גראָשן, און דאָס איז אַלץ. 3.30 בײלע: אַ דאַנק, לײזער, און זײַ געזונט!
A list (3.17, 3.24). ברױט, קעז און פּוטער: the three nouns are separated by commas, and און stands before the last, with no comma in front of it. The same is done in Beyle's order, טײ, צוקער און עפּל. After the verb האָב or װיל the nouns are in the form they would have alone; with no article, the case is not seen.
Two adjectives (3.19, 3.21, 3.25). פֿריש און װאַרעם, גוט און נישט טײַער, זיס און רױט: two adjectives after איז or זענען, both without an ending, joined by און. In 3.21 the second member is a phrase, נישט טײַער, "not expensive," with the negative before the adjective, as in Lesson 2 (נישט קאַלט). Note 3.25: the subject די עפּל is plural, and so the verb is זענען, and the adjectives still have no ending.
Sentences that begin with און (3.20, 3.23). Beyle's און דער קעז? has no verb. It means "and what about the cheese?" and the verb is understood from the sentence before. Leyzer's און װאָס נאָך? is "and what more?," the question a seller asks when the buyer has stopped. In both, און joins the new question to the talk that went before it. The question word װאָס stands first after it, and the rest follows.
Two objects (3.22). איך װיל דאָס ברױט און דעם קעז: the nouns after װיל are the object, in the accusative. The neuter דאָס does not change, and the masculine דער becomes דעם, as in Lesson 1. Each noun keeps the article that belongs to it.
Numbers (3.27, 3.29). פֿינף און צוואַנציק גראָשן, "five and twenty groshn," is 25, with the unit first. In 3.29 the number is a round one, צוואַנציק גראָשן, and has no און of its own; the און in that line joins two clauses: גוט, צוואַנציק גראָשן, און דאָס איז אַלץ. The word גראָשן (groshn) is a plural noun for small coins.
How much (3.26). װי פֿיל, "how much," is written as two words. The verb קאָסט, "costs," is the third person singular, and the subject is דאָס אַלץ, "that, all of it," which is a singular thing.
"Too" (3.28). צו before an adjective is "too": צו טײַער, "too expensive." It is the same word as the preposition צו, "to," of Lesson 1, and the context shows which is meant.
Farewell (3.30). אַ דאַנק is "thanks," and זײַ געזונט is the imperative of Lesson 2, said to one person. און joins the two wishes: thanks, and goodbye.
Names (3.16–3.30). The name which opens a line is the speaker, with a colon, as in Lesson 2. A name inside the line (3.16, 3.17, 3.28, 3.30) is the person spoken to.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
The respellings follow the Standard Yiddish pronunciation of the YIVO tradition, as in Lessons 1 and 2, and the transliteration is the YIVO romanisation.
און (un) — IPA: /ʊn/ — A short vowel, as in English "put" or "book," and then n. In the Mideastern dialects it is [ɪn] and in the Southeastern [ɨn]. It is not stressed in a sentence. אין (in) — IPA: /ɪn/ — The look-alike of Lesson 1: a short i, as in "in." Against it און has the vowel of "put." דרײַ (dray) — IPA: /draɪ/ — The ײַ (ay) is as in English "nigh," as in זײַן and נײַ. דרײַסיק (draysik) — IPA: /ˈdraɪsɪk/ — Stress on the first syllable. צוואַנציק (tsvantsik) — IPA: /ˈtsvantsɪk/ — The first sound is ts, as in "cats," and the stress is on the first syllable. פֿינף (finf) — IPA: /fɪnf/ — The letter פֿ (fey, with a bar) is f, and the vowel is a short i. מענטש (mentsh) — IPA: /mɛntʃ/ — The ending -tsh is as English "ch" in "much," after n. טראַכט (trakht) and לאַכט (lakht) — IPA: /traxt/, /laxt/ — The כ is kh, the sound of Scottish "loch" and of German "ach." They rhyme. גאָט (got) — IPA: /ɡɔt/ — The אָ (o) is the vowel of British "dog." קעז (kez) — IPA: /kɛz/ — The vowel of "bed," and a voiced z. פֿריש (frish) — IPA: /frɪʃ/ — A short i, and the final sh. טײַער (tayer) — IPA: /ˈtaɪər/ — Two syllables, with the stress on the first: TIGH-er. קאָסט (kost) — IPA: /kɔst/ — The vowel of British "dog." שרײַבט (shraybt) — IPA: /ʃraɪpt/ — In speech the b before the t is said as p. קומט (kumt) — IPA: /kʊmt/ — The same vowel as in און. Vowel letters: ו is u, װ is v, ױ is oy /ɔɪ/, ײ is ey /ɛɪ/, ײַ is ay /aɪ/, י is i, ע is e /ɛ/, אַ is a /a/, אָ is o /ɔ/. The letters ן (final nun), ם (final mem), ך (final khof) and ף (final fey) are used only at the end of a word.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
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Course Index: [latinum.substack.com/p/index](https://latinum.substack.com/p/index)