Hebrew Slang for the Workplace

So you got a job in Israel, mazal tov! That’s very exciting for you. You’re going to hear a lot of new Hebrew slang words around the office, as well as official work phrases and jargon. It’s important to understand what your coworkers are saying — whether it’s during a meeting or even at lunch.

Kadima, let’s go through some of the most popular Hebrew slang and phrases for the workplace! 

*Note: The “kh” combination signifies the throat clearing sound.

ראש גדול Rosh ga’dol (noun)

This translates literally to “big head.” Someone with a “rosh gadol” is someone who thinks outside the box and goes above and beyond to solve a problem. They view projects as opportunities, and not as chores.

להגדיל ראש Le’hag’dil rosh  = Literally, “to enlarge your head.”

Here’s how to say it in imperative, or command form:

תגדילי ראש Tag’dil’i rosh (when speaking to a woman)
תגדיל ראש Tag’dil rosh (when speaking to a man)

If you can’t figure out how to solve a problem, your coworker might tell you to “le’hag’dil rosh” to suggest that you get creative with the solutions. Or maybe your manager will tell you to “le’hag’dil rosh” if they want you to go all out on a project.

ראש קטן Rosh ka’tan (noun)

Literally, “small head.” This is someone who does only what they’re told, in the exact way they’re told to do it. They don’t invest too much time or energy on a task, and they don’t strive to be creative. The attitude here is more, “get it done, get paid, and get out.”   

להגדיל ראש Le’hak’tin rosh = Literally, “to shrink your head.”

Here’s how to say it in imperative, or command form:

תקטיני ראש Tak’tin’i rosh (when talking to a woman)
תקטין ראש Tak’tin rosh (when talking to a man)

If you’re focusing too much time on one small task that doesn’t need to be done in any kind of fancy way, or you’re spending too much energy on something with no reward, or maybe there isn’t enough time, budget, or even appreciation for a project, your coworkers might tell you to “shrink your head;” meaning, just get it done and don’t waste too much time on it.

מילואים Mi’lu’im  

This is military reserve duty, which your coworkers will be on and off from.

יום חופש Yom kho’fesh

Literally, “a free day.” This is what we call a vacation day in English.

חופשה Khuf’sha

Vacation

So, what’s the difference between “khofesh” and “khufsha”? 

“Khofesh” has the connotation of freedom, while “khufsha” means vacation.

And here’s another similar word: 

נופש No’fesh

A leisurely, recreational vacation. This could be spent at a resort or lounging at a hotel. This is easy to remember because “nof” means “scenic view”, as in, “what a beautiful view!” So this is the kind of vacation where you’re relaxing somewhere beautiful!

Kha’lad חל”ד 

Now that we understand that “khofesh” literally means “freedom,” we can see how it’s used in other phrases. When we want to say “leave” in Hebrew, as in “maternity leave,” we’ll use that word “khofesh,” because we’re free from work. 

But first we need to conjugate it. The phrase “maternity leave” has two components – “maternity,” and “leave,” and “maternity” is describing the type of leave the person is taking. It is the leave of maternity.

To say the “leave of” in Hebrew, we turn “khofesh” into “khufshat.”

Khufshat leida = Literally, “birth leave,” and is used as “maternity leave” or “paternity leave.” However, “paternity leave” can also be “khufshat avhot”, which means literally “fathers’ leave.”

Since “khufshat leida” is a mouthful, we tend to abbreviate it to “khalad.”

יום מחלה Yom ma’kha’la

Sick day.

חופשת מחלה Khuf’shat ma’kha’la

Sick leave.

חצי כוח Khetzi ko’akh

Half-assed, half clutch.

מצ’קמק Me’chuk’mak

This also means crappy and half-assed. It could also mean sloppy and terrible.

מצטיין Mitz’ta’yen

This means “excellent” or “outstanding.”

The plural is “mitz’tay’nim.” 

עובדים מצטיינים Ov’dim mitz’tay’nim = outstanding employees.

You’ll hear this word at university too, for example:

ציונים מצטיינים Tzi’yu’nim mitz’tay’nim = Excellent grades
סטודנטים מצטיינים stu’den’tim mitz’tay’nim = Outstanding students

Salary & Related phrases

There are two ways to say “salary” — “mas’ko’ret,” and “sa’khar.

משכורת Maskoret = Salary

שכר Sa’khar = Wage

תלוש משכורת Tlush mas’ko’ret = Pay stub or pay slip
This is often shortened to just “tlush.”

תלוש Tlush = Slip, stub

שכר מינימום S’khar mi’ni’mum = Minimum wage

שכר ברוטו Sa’khar bruto = Gross salary. This is your salary before taxes.

שכר נטו Sa’khar neto = Net salary. This is your salary after taxes. 

דחוף Da’khuf

Urgent, or even emergency

חפיפה Kha’fi’fa

Khafifa literally means “overlap”. However, in the context of the workplace, it’s used to refer to the training that a person leaving a role will provide to a new person taking on the role. 

This is probably because it’s the period where the new person and old person overlap!

פידבקים Feed’be’ckim 

In Hebrew, “feedback” is a count noun, which means you pluralize it when you want to say that you got more than one suggestion or review of your work. 

תפור עלייך Ta’fur a’lay’kh 

A tailor-made position. This means that you’re the exact fit for the role.

קידום Kidum

A promotion or advancement.

That’s it for now. I hope this helps you as you embark on your new career journey! Let us know if there are any more Hebrew slang words you’d like to learn, or if you learned something new and want to share. Good luck!! We’re so excited for you!!