Meet Mem

The thirteenth letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Mem makes a plain [m] sound, as in “mother.” It is one of the five letters with a final form: at the end of a word, Mem is written as Mem Sofit (ם), a closed shape with the same [m] sound.

Mem Hebrew Letter (מ): Sound, Final Mem & Practice

What you’ll learn

Recognize Mem: מ, and its final form, ם.
Hear its [m] sound, as in “mother.”
Read Mem in real words like מַיִם (water) and לֶחֶם (bread).

How Mem sounds

Mem (מ) is the thirteenth letter of the Hebrew alphabet. It is a consonant, pronounced like the [m] in the English word 'mother.' Mem is one of five Hebrew letters that have a final form, known as Mem Sofit (ם).

Mem’s final form

Mem Sofit

Mem Sofit (ם) is the final form of Mem (מ). In ordinary modern Hebrew writing, use מ at the beginning or in the middle of a word and ם at the end. The shape changes, but both forms have the same [m] sound.

ם · Final Mem: Mem closed at the bottom into a square shape, used at the end of a word.

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Mem in real words

Read four words with Mem and Mem Sofit aloud. The Latin transcriptions are reading aids, not IPA; hyphens separate syllables.

Words to Practice:

מַיִם

mayim

water

The Hebrew word מַיִם [mayim] means 'water'. It has three letters: Mem (מ), Yud (י), and Mem Sofit (ם). Patah under the first Mem represents [a], giving [ma]. Yud represents [y], like the y in 'yes', and the hirik beneath it represents [i], like the vowel in English 'see'; no special vowel length is required. Final Mem adds [m]. Read the word in two syllables, [ma-yim], with the stress on the first syllable; the final [m] is not a separate syllable.

מַה

what

The Hebrew word מַה [ma] means 'what'. It consists of Mem (מ) and Hey (ה). Patah under Mem represents [a], giving [ma]. Hey at the end of the word has no separate [h] sound here. Read the whole word as one syllable: [ma].

לַמָּה

lama

why

The Hebrew word לַמָּה [lama] means 'why'. It consists of Lamed (ל), Mem (מ), and Hey (ה). Patah under Lamed represents [a], giving [la]. Kamatz under Mem also represents [a] here, giving [ma]. The dagesh in Mem does not require a doubled [m] in this modern reading, and Hey at the end of the word has no separate [h] sound here. Read [la-ma] in two syllables, with the stress on the first.

לֶחֶם

lekhem

bread

The Hebrew word לֶחֶם [lekhem] means 'bread'. It has three letters: Lamed (ל), Chet (ח), and Mem Sofit (ם). Each Segol represents [e]. Lamed gives [l], and Chet, written [ch] in the Chet lesson, gives the sound written kh here, similar to the ch in German 'Bach' or Scottish 'loch'. In the common modern pronunciation taught here, kh represents one consonant, not [k] followed by [h]. Final Mem adds [m]. Read the word in two syllables, [le-khem], with the stress on the first; the final [m] is not a separate syllable.

Conclusions

Today, you’ve learned another letter of the Hebrew alphabet: the elegant letter Mem (מ). As always, you’ve expanded your vocabulary with new examples. Remember, this letter also has a final form—Mem Sofit (ם). For the exercises, also review אָבַד [a-vad], 'he/it was lost', with the stress on the second syllable. To reinforce your understanding, let’s dive into some exercises!

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