1. Derived Verb Forms
So far we have studied the simple Hebrew verb, or the Qal form. The action of a Qal verb is simple or basic, without nuance.
For example: שָׁבַר is a third masculine singular Qal form of the root שׁבר (to break) and translates as the simple action “he broke.”
Hebrew has six other verb forms in addition to Qal. The six other verb forms change the simple action of the verb to a more nuanced, complex action. In addition to simple action, we can have intensive action or causative action.

2. Derived Verb Forms
Consider the following examples of simple, intensive, and causative action:
simple action:
The man broke the vase.
intensive action:
The man shattered the vase.
causative action:
The man caused the vase to break.
Simple action is direct and conveys the most basic meaning of the verb.
Intensive action conveys an intensification of the meaning of the verb. In our example, “break” becomes “shatter.”
Causative action is less direct. The man was the cause of the vase breaking but he did not necessarily perform the actual action of breaking the vase.
In addition to the three types of action, verb forms may convey active, passive, or reflexive meaning. This meaning relates to how the subject and action of a verb relate. Consider the following examples of active, passive, and reflexive meaning:
active relationship:
The king commanded the army.
passive relationship:
The king was commanded by the army.
reflexive relationship:
The king commanded himself.

3. Derived Verb Forms יִכְתּׁב כָתַב תִּכְתּׁב כָתְבָה כָתַבְתָּ
First, let’s review…..
PNG
Qal
Imperfect
3ms
יִכְתּׁב
he will write
3fs
תִּכְתּׁב
she will write
2ms
you will write
2fs
תִּכְתְּבִי
1cs
אֶכְתּׁב
I will write
3mp
יִכְתְּבוּ
they will write
3fp
תִּכְתּׁבְנָה
2mp
תִּכְתְּבוּ
2fp
1cp
נִכְתּׁב
we will write
PNG
Qal
Perfect
3ms
כָתַב
he wrote
3fs
כָתְבָה
she wrote
2ms
כָתַבְתָּ
you wrote
2fs
כָתַבְתְּ
1cs
כָתַבְתִּי
I wrote
3cp
כָתְבוּ
they wrote
2mp
כְתַבְתֶּם
2fp
כְתַבְתֶּן
1cp
כָתַבְנוּ
we wrote

4. Derived Verb Forms תִּכְתּׁב כְּתׁב תִּכְתְּבִי כִּתְבִי תִּכְתְּבוּ
Imperfect vs. Imperative…..
PNG
Imperfect
Imperative
2ms
תִּכְתּׁב
you will write
כְּתׁב
(you) write!
2fs
תִּכְתְּבִי
you will write
כִּתְבִי
2mp
תִּכְתְּבוּ
כִּתְבוּ
2fp
תִּכְתּׁבְנָה
כְּתׁבְנָה

5. Derived Verb Forms כֹּתֵב כֹּתֶבֶת כֹּתְבִים כֹּתְבוֹת כָּתוּב
Active and Passive Participle…..
PNG
Qal
Active Participle ms
כֹּתֵב
writing fs
כֹּתֶבֶת mp
כֹּתְבִים fp
כֹּתְבוֹת
Passive Participle
כָּתוּב
written
כְּתוּבָה
כְּתוּבִים
כְּתוּבוֹת

6. Meaning of the Niphal
A Niphal has four possible meanings: incomplete passive, middle, reflexive, and resultative.
Incomplete passive
Passive means the action occurs to the subject instead of by the subject. For example: “the man was heard” is passive, while “the man heard” is active. Incomplete means the agent performing the action of the verb is missing. In our previous example, “the man was heard,” we are not told who heard the man. Our information about the verb’s action is incomplete.
Virtually all Niphal verbs in the Hebrew Bible with a passive meaning do not specify the agent performing the action on the subject. Consider the following examples.
Active (Qal)
Incomplete Passive (Niphal)
The man heard.
The man was heard.
We saw.
We were seen.
The people helped.
The people were helped.

7. Meaning of the Niphal Active (Qal) Middle (Niphal) He broke the vase.
Niphal verbs with a middle meaning are active in nature; however, the active action occurs to the subject instead of by the subject.
Active (Qal)
Middle (Niphal)
He broke the vase.
The vase broke.
She opened the door.
The door opened.
He started the car.
The car started.
Reflexive
Reflexive verbs have a specified object that reflects back to the subject. For example:
Active (Qal)
Reflexive (Niphal)
The man heard.
The man heard himself.
We saw.
We saw ourselves.
The people helped.
The people helped themselves.
Resultative
As the name suggests, the resultative meaning demonstrates a result. Another indicator of resultative meaning is the need for a “to be” verb such as is or are. The resultative meaning is stative, describing the state of the subject. Often the Resultative Niphal is in Participle form. Resultative describes the state of the subject as a result of some previous verb action, actual or implied. For example:
Active (Qal)
Reflexive (Niphal)
He broke the vase.
The vase is broken.
She opened the door.
The door is open.
They found him.
He is found.

8. Niphal: The Concept of Nun-Assimilation
In English, many words have been changed as we reconcile meaning with pronunciation.
For example: Just as inaccurate means “not accurate”
inmovable “not movable”
Because “inmoveable” is difficult to pronounce, it eventually became “immovable”.
The “n” disappeared and the “m” doubled.
Other examples: inlegal - illegal
inrelevant - irrelevant
Some words did not change because they were easy to pronounce:
For example: Inexperienced, incorrect, infamous, ineffective

9. Niphal: The Concept of Nun-Assimilation
Hebrew does the same thing—we call it “Nun-Assimilation”
For example: (to fall) נָפַל would be יִנְפֹּל (he will fall) in the 3ms imperfect
But, that’s hard to pronounce—try it!
So instead, the nun drops off and the next consonant is doubled (In other words, the nun has assimilated into the pe.) and we have (he will fall) יִפֹּל for the 3ms imperfect.
יִנְפֹל becomes יִפֹּל

10. The Niphal Perfect קָטַל נִקְטַל קָטְלָה נִקְטְלָה קָטַלְתָּ
PNG
Qal
Niphal
3ms
קָטַל
he killed
נִקְטַל
he was killed
3fs
קָטְלָה
she killed
נִקְטְלָה
she was killed
2ms
קָטַלְתָּ
you killed
נִקְטַלְתָּ
you were killed
2fs
קָטַלְתְּ
נִקְטַלְתְּ
1cs
קָטַלְתִּי
I killed
נִקְטַלְְתִּי
I was killed
3cp
קָטְלוּ
they killed
נִקְטְלוּ
they were killed
2mp
קְטַלְתֶּם
נִקְטַלְתֶּם
2fp
קְטַלְתֶּן
נִקְטַלְתֶּן
1cp
קָטַלְנוּ
we killed
נִקְטְתַלְנוּ
we were killed
The perfect endings that help you identify the person, number, and gender of the Qal perfect verb are also the same for Niphal.
All Niphal perfect forms have a prefixed nun.
The presence of the nun prefix and the perfect suffixes make identification of a Niphal perfect straightforward.
Note the differences in the vowels of the Qal and Niphal. The qamets beneath the first root consonant of the Niphal reduces to a shewa. Otherwise, the vowels of Qal and Niphal are the same.
To summarize, the diagnostic features of the Niphal perfect are:
Nun prefix
Hireq vowel frequently beneath the nun prefix
Patakh vowel beneath the second root consonant

11. The Niphal Imperfect יִקְטּׁל יִקָּטֵל תִּקְטּׁל תִּקָּטֵל תִּקְטְּלִי
PNG
Qal
Niphal
3ms
יִקְטּׁל
he will kill
יִקָּטֵל
he will be killed
3fs
תִּקְטּׁל
she will kill
תִּקָּטֵל
she will be killed
2ms
you will kill
you will be killed
2fs
תִּקְטְּלִי
תִּקָּטְלִי
1cs
אֶקְטּׁל
I will kill
אֶקָּטֵל
I will be killed
3mp
יִקְטְּלוּ
they will kill
יִקָּטְלוּ
they will be killed
3fp
תִּקְטּׁלְנָה
תִּקָּטַלְנָה
2mp
תִּקְטְּלוּ
תִּקָּטְלוּ
2fp
1cp
נִקְטּׁל
we will kill
נִקָּטֵל
we will be killed
The four prefixes א, נ, ת, and י are consistent for all imperfect verbs, whether they are regular/strong or irregular verbs.
The nun is present in all forms of the Niphal either as a visible nun or as a dagesh in the first root consonant unless a guttural or resh prevents the existence of a dagesh. The nun assimilates only when a prefix is added to the verb.
A hireq vowel is beneath most Niphal imperfect prefixes except 1cs, which is a segol.
A qamets is beneath many of the first root consonant of all Niphal imperfects.
Note the differences between Qal 1cp and Niphal 1cp. Both have a nun prefix but the vowels of the second root consonant should allow you to distinguish between the two forms.
To summarize, the diagnostic features of the Niphal imperfect are:
1. Assimilated nun manifested as a dagesh in the first root consonant
2. Hireq vowel beneath the imperfect prefix
3. Qametz vowel beneath the first root consonant

12. The Niphal Imperative and Infinitives
As with Qal, the Niphal imperative forms retain the imperfect suffixes.
Qal
Niphal
Imperative
קְּטׁל
(you) kill!
הִקָּטֵל
be killed! (ms)
קִּטְלִי
הִקּטְלִי
be killed! (fs)
קִּטְלוּ
הִקָּטְלוּ
be killed! (mp)
קְּטׁלְנָה
הִקָּטַלְנָה
be killed! (fp)
Inf. Construct
killing
being killed
Inf. Absolute
קָטוֹל
to kill
נִקְטוֹל Type I
to be killed
הִקָּטוֹל Type II
As with the Qal ms imperative and infinitive construct, the Niphal ms imperative is identical to the Niphal infinitive construct.
Unlike the Qal, the Niphal infinitive absolute has two forms. The first form has a nun prefix, while the second form also has a he prefix, forcing the nun to assimilate into the first root consonant as a dagesh. Also note the difference in the first root consonant vowel.
The Niphal infinitive absolute maintains the same diagnostic characteristic of the Qal infinitive absolute with the second root consonant’s full holem vowel.

13. The Niphal Imperative and Infinitives
Qal
Niphal
Imperative
קְּטׁל
(you) kill!
הִקָּטֵל
be killed! (ms)
קִּטְלִי
הִקָּטְלִי
be killed! (fs)
קִּטְלוּ
הִקָּטְלוּ
be killed! (mp)
קְּטׁלְנָה
הִקָּטַלְנָה
be killed! (fp)
Inf. Construct
killing
being killed
Inf. Absolute
קָטוֹל
to kill
נִקְטוֹל Type I
to be killed
הִקָּטוֹל Type II
The diagnostic features of the Niphal infinitive absolute are:
Type I
Nun prefix
Hireq vowel beneath the nun prefix
Second root consonant has a full holem vowel
Type II
He prefix
Hireq vowel beneath the he prefix
Assimilated nun manifested as a dagesh in the first root consonant
Qametz vowel beneath the first root consonant
To summarize, the diagnostic features of the Niphal imperative and infinitive construct are:
He prefix
Hireq vowel beneath the he prefix
Assimilated nun manifested as a dagesh in the first root consonant
Qametz vowel beneath the first root consonant

14. The Niphal Participle קָטוּל נִקְטָּל קְטוּלָה נִקְטָּלָה קְטוּלִים
PNG
Qal
Niphal
Passive Participle ms
קָטוּל
killing
נִקְטָּל
being killed fs
קְטוּלָה
נִקְטָּלָה mp
קְטוּלִים
נִקְטָּלִים fp
קְטוּלוֹת
נִקְטָּלוֹת
To summarize, the diagnostic features of the Niphal participle are:
Nun prefix
Hireq vowel beneath the nun prefix
Qamets vowel beneath the second root consonant
The Niphal does not have an active participle form. This is consistent with the passive meaning of the Niphal verb form.
The Niphal passive participle has a nun prefix with a hireq vowel.
The characteristic suffixes should help you identify the verb as a participle. The nun prefix should help you identify the verb as a Niphal participle.
The Niphal participle has a qamets vowel beneath the second root consonant.
The Niphal masculine singular participle (נִקְטָּל) is most commonly confused with the Niphal 3ms perfect form (נִקְטַל). The only difference is the vowel beneath the second root consonant. Familiarize yourself with these two forms so as to avoid confusion.

15. The Niphal Diagnostic Characteristics - Review
The diagnostic features of the Niphal perfect are:
Nun prefix
Hireq vowel beneath the nun prefix
Patakh vowel beneath the second root consonant
The diagnostic features of the Niphal infinitive absolute are:
Type I
Nun prefix
Hireq vowel beneath the nun prefix
Second root consonant has a full holem vowel
Type II
He prefix
Hireq vowel beneath the he prefix
Assimilated nun manifested as a dagesh in the first root consonant
Qametz vowel beneath the first root consonant
The diagnostic features of the Niphal imperfect are:
Assimilated nun manifested as a dagesh in the first root consonant
Hireq vowel beneath the imperfect prefix
Qametz vowel beneath the first root consonant
The diagnostic features of the Niphal imperative and infinitive construct are:
He prefix
Hireq vowel beneath the he prefix
Assimilated nun manifested as a dagesh in the first root consonant
Qametz vowel beneath the first root consonant
The diagnostic features of the Niphal participle are:
Nun prefix
Hireq vowel beneath the nun prefix
Qamets vowel beneath the second root consonant

16. The Niphal - I and III-Guttural (handout)
For I-guttural, notice the tsere beneath the imperfect, imperative, and infinitive construct forms where the Niphal standard has a hireq. Also notice that the I-guttural is missing a dagesh in the first root consonant. Both of these I-guttural traits are a result of compensatory lengthening.
Tip: When you see a tsere beneath the prefix of any verb, check to see if the first root consonant is a guttural. A tsere beneath a verb prefix is usually the result of compensatory lengthening caused by a I-guttural. Once recognized, the standard verb form can be reconstructed to identify the verb.
For the I-guttural and III-guttural imperfect, imperative, and infinitive construct, notice the qamets beneath the second root consonant. This qamets is not impacted by the I-guttural and is one of the diagnostic features studied previously in this lesson for Niphal imperfect, imperative, and infinitive construct verbs.
For the I-guttural perfect and participle, notice the segol vowel beneath the prefixed nun and the khatef segol beneath the first root consonant. This vowel pattern is characteristic of the I-guttural Niphal.
For the I-guttural and III-guttural perfect, notice the presence of the patakh beneath the second root consonant. The patakh is one of the diagnostic features studied previously in this lesson for Niphal perfect verbs.
For the III-gutturals, the replacement of the standard tsere beneath the second root consonant with a patakh is the only change from the standard Niphal. The presence of each of the other diagnostic traits will help you categorize a III-guttural as a Niphal despite the second root guttural vowel change.

17. The Niphal – I-Nun and I-Yod (handout)
The nun in the perfect, participle, and one of the infinitive absolutes is the nun prefix of the Niphal form. The first root consonant nun has been assimilated into the second root consonant and appears as a dagesh. For example: נִצַּל or נִצַּלְתָּ
The other forms (imperfect, imperative, infinitive construct, and one form of the infinitive absolute) retain the first root consonant nun. The Niphal nun prefix is assimilated into first root consonant and appears as a dagesh. For example: יִנָּצֵל or תִּנָּצַלְנָה
I-Yod
Originally most I-yod verbs were I-vav. The I-yod reverts to a I-vav in almost all conjugations of the Niphal. For example: (3ms perfect) נוֹשַׁב
The Niphal prefixed nun assimilates into the first root consonant in the imperfect, imperative, infinitive construct, and infinitive absolute conjugations and appears as a dagesh. For example: תִּוָּשַׁבְנָה

18. The Niphal – III Aleph and III He (handout)
In the perfect 3ms and participles, the second root consonant vowel lengthens to a qamets instead of the standard patakh. For example: (3ms perfect) נִמְצָא
In the second person and first person perfect, the second root consonant is a tsere instead of a patakh. For example: (2ms perfect) נִמְצֵאתָ
Overall the changes are minor to III-aleph Niphal verbs. Most diagnostic features remain, such as the presence of the prefixed nun, actual or assimilated. Identification can still be achieved through recognition of diagnostic features.
III-He
In the perfect, the second root consonant is either a qamets (3ms) or tsere yod instead of the standard patakh. For example (2ms perfect) נִבְנֵיתָ or (3ms perfect) נִבְנָה
It is important to recognize the loss of the III-he in those conjugations with a suffix. Recall lessons 12 and 31 of the Lambdin textbook, where we studied Qal III-he verbs and learned the effects of a suffix on the III-he.

19. The Niphal נִבְנָה נִקְטַל נִבְנְתָה נִקְטְלָה נִבְנֵיתָ נִקְטַלְתָּ
Review III-he characteristics….
standard
III-he
Perfect
3ms
נִקְטַל
נִבְנָה
3fs
נִקְטְלָה
נִבְנְתָה
2ms
נִקְטַלְתָּ
נִבְנֵיתָ
2fs
נִקְטַלְתְּ
נִבְנֵיתְ
1cs
נִקְטַלְְתִּי
נִבְנֵיתִי
3cp
נִקְטְלוּ
נִבְנוּ
2mp
נִקְטַלְתֶּם
נִבְנֵיתֶם
2fp
נִקְטַלְתֶּן
נִבְנֵיתֶן
1cp
נקטְתַלְנוּ
נִבְנֵינוּ