What world are you living in?? איפה אתה חי

!A'm Israel Chai

Or:

What world are you living in??

לגוּר וְלִחְיוֹת

Today we are going to talk about the verb “to live” and how we use it in Hebrew:

The verb “to live” in Hebrew, splits in two verbs:

1. לַגוּר

2. לִחיות 

לַגוּר: The Physical Location of your home

The verb לַגוּר means to be living in a place (name: Tel Aviv, Ha’Tikva, Israel, etc.), a location (near the mall, by the river, etc.) or a type of place (a house, apartment, caravan, etc.).

Example:

I live in Tel aviv - אֲנִי גָּר בְּתֵל אָבִיב

I live in Rothschild ave. אֲנִי גָּר בִּשְׂדֵרוֹת רוֹטְשִׁילְד

I live behind the pizza place - אֲנִי גָּר מֵאֲחוֹרֵי הַפִּיצָה

לִחְיוֹת: Customs, Living Conditions & Lifestyle

The verb לחיות relates directly to the word “life”, חיים, and as such, it means, first of all, to be alive.

Example:

עַם יִשְׂרָאֵל חַי! A'm Israel Chai

The verb לחיות also means “to live in a place”, however, as opposed to לַגוּר, it puts the emphasis on the lifestyle, rather than the physical location.

Example:

I live in a quiet place - אֲנִי חַי בְּמָקוֹם שָׁקֵט

I can live with that - אֲנִי יָכוֹל לִחְיוֹת עִם זֶה

He is living on the edge - הוּא חַי עַל הַקָּצֶה

What world are you living in??אֵיפֹה אַתָּה חַי

Key Takeaway:

The verb לגור is being used in the context of the specific physical location of your home.

The verb לחיות is being used in the context of a lifestyle, costumes and behaviour in the place you live in.

Therefore, the answer to the question “where do you live”, is the verb לַגוּר:

איפה אתה גר?

אני גר בחיפה

For a google sheet table with expressions and examples, click here