Same letters, different words הספר ספר ספרים Hebrew is usually written without vowels, so the same letters can often be read as different words. Native speakers work it out from context. Here are the possible readings of each word in this sentence. The word הספר can be: ha-sefer = the book ha-sapar = the barber The word ספר can be: sefer = book sapar = barber safar = counted The word ספרים can be: sfarim = books saparim = barbers Can you guess what the whole sentence means? Write your guess in the comments, then check the answer below. Answer: הַסַּפָּר סָפַר סְפָרִים ha-sapar safar sfarim "The barber counted books." It can't be "the book counted," because books can't count. It could technically be "the barber counted barbers," but that's a strange thing to do, so context points to books. In real life, when context isn't enough, books tend to add the vowel marks (nikud) to just the confusing word, so the reader doesn't get stuck.