לְדַבֵּ֣ר

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 לְדַבֵּ֣ר

   le-da-BER

   to speak
2. phraseyour reading level🔊 לְדַבֵּ֣ר יְהוּדִ֑ית

   le-da-BER ye-hu-DIT

   to speak Judahite
3. clause🔊 וּבְנֵיהֶ֗ם חֲצִי֙ מְדַבֵּ֣ר אַשְׁדּוֹדִ֔ית וְאֵינָ֥ם מַכִּירִ֖ים לְדַבֵּ֣ר יְהוּדִ֑ית

   u-ve-ne-HEM kha-TSI me-da-BER ash-do-DIT ve-e-NAM ma-ki-RIM le-da-BER ye-hu-DIT

   and their sons half of speaking Ashdodite and they were not recognizing or knowing to speak Judahite
4. sentence🔊 וּבְנֵיהֶ֗ם חֲצִי֙ מְדַבֵּ֣ר אַשְׁדּוֹדִ֔ית וְאֵינָ֥ם מַכִּירִ֖ים לְדַבֵּ֣ר יְהוּדִ֑ית וְכִלְשׁ֖וֹן עַ֥ם וָעָֽם׃

   u-ve-ne-HEM kha-TSI me-da-BER ash-do-DIT ve-e-NAM ma-ki-RIM le-da-BER ye-hu-DIT ve-khil-SHON AM va-AM

   and their sons half of speaking Ashdodite and they were not recognizing or knowing to speak Judahite but according to the tongue of a people and a people

Exegesis

The negative circumstantial clause uses ve-einam + makirim + ledabber yehudit {וְאֵינָם מַכִּירִים לְדַבֵּר יְהוּדִית | wə-ʾê-nām ma-kkî-rîm lə-ḏab-bēr yə-ḥu-ḏît} ‘and they are not able to speak Judean’, where the Hifil participle conveys ability and the infinitive functions as its complement.