Towards Better Davening and Torah Reading

SH'VAs are not all the same (more)

Sh’mot 25:2 - ...from every man whose heart motivates him, (you shall take My portion.) The word YIDVENU has the same root and meaning of N’DAVA, a voluntary contribution.

Notice the DAGESH CHAZAK in the DALET and the SH’VA under it, which is a SH’VA NA. The DALET is emphasized and is shared by the first syllable YID and the second syllable D’VEN (the final syllable also shares a letter with the second one, the NUN, because it too has a DAGESH CHAZAK. In this kind of case, the syllables must fuse with each other, so that it does not sound like there are two DALETs or two NUNs.

Now, here’s the point. If the DALET is not stressed, it wouldn’t be the end of the world. But if - because of not stressing it, the SH’VA comes out as a SH’VA NACH, the meaning of the word is changed. YID-VENNU LIBO would mean, his heart is in pain (not with the generosity of his heart). But wait! YID-VENNU would be spelled with a VAV, not a VET (BET without a DAGESH). So what’s the problem? The problem is that we (most of us) do not distinguish between a VET and a VAV. They both sound like the first letter of Violin. People who pronounce a VAV like the letter W (in which case we’d be calling the 6th letter of the ALEF-BET as WAW), would say YID-WENNU for the heartache meaning and the two words would not be confused by the non-emphasis of the DALET. Actually, they’d pronounce the DALET differently too, as TH in “the”. YIDD’VENNU vs. YITH-WENNU. But we who pronounce a DALET and THALET the same, and a VAV like a VET, at least should get the SH’VA NA right.

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