Chapter 32 — Qal–Piel–Pual Contrast Drill (Strong Roots)

BBH Chapter 32 · Pual Strong Verbs

Each triplet shows the same root in Qal, Piel, and Pual. For each form: (1) identify the stem, (2) parse fully, (3) translate.

StemR1 vowel (Perfect 3ms)R2Function
QalVariable (patach/tsere/holem)No extra dageshSimple active
PielHiriq (קִ) or tsere (קֵ)Dagesh ForteIntensive active
PualQibbuts (קֻ) or holem (קֹ) if R2 is gutturalDagesh FortePassive of Piel
Key distinction: Piel and Pual both have dagesh forte in R2 — the R1 vowel is the tell. Hiriq/tsere = Piel (active). Qibbuts/holem = Pual (passive).
Triplet 1 — Root: ברך
#FormStemConjugationPGNTranslation
1בָּרַךְ
Qal · Perfect · 3ms · "he knelt" — qamets under ב (Qal perfect 3ms); rare usage; root primarily used in Piel
2בֵּרַךְ
Piel · Perfect · 3ms · "he blessed" — tsere under ב (Piel stem vowel); ר rejects dagesh → compensatory lengthening to tsere
3בֹּרַךְ
Pual · Perfect · 3ms · "he was blessed" — holem under ב; ר rejects dagesh forte; holem is lengthening of qibbuts in guttural context
Triplet 2 — Root: שׁלח
#FormStemConjugationPGNTranslation
4שָׁלַח
Qal · Perfect · 3ms · "he sent" — qamets under שׁ; patach under ל; no dagesh in ל
5שִׁלַּח
Piel · Perfect · 3ms · "he sent away / released" — hiriq under שׁ + dagesh forte in ל; Piel often adds nuance of releasing/dismissing
6שֻׁלַּח
Pual · Perfect · 3ms · "he was sent away" — qibbuts under שׁ + dagesh forte in ל; identical to Piel except R1 vowel
Triplet 3 — Root: דבר
#FormStemConjugationPGNTranslation
7דָּבַר
Qal · Perfect · 3ms · "he spoke" (rare) — qamets under ד; no dagesh in ב; the root is dominated by Piel in actual usage
8דִּבֶּר
Piel · Perfect · 3ms · "he spoke" — hiriq under ד + dagesh in ב + tsere theme vowel; standard Piel perfect 3ms pattern
9דֻּבַּר
Pual · Perfect · 3ms · "it was spoken" — qibbuts under ד + dagesh in ב + patach theme vowel
Triplet 4 — Root: כבד
#FormStemConjugationPGNTranslation
10כָּבֵד
Qal · Perfect · 3ms · "he was heavy / was honored" — stative verb; tsere theme vowel; no dagesh in ב
11כִּבֵּד
Piel · Perfect · 3ms · "he honored" — hiriq under כ + dagesh forte in ב + tsere; factitive (to treat/make as weighty)
12כֻּבַּד
Pual · Perfect · 3ms · "he was honored" — qibbuts under כ + dagesh forte in ב + patach; passive of Piel
Triplet 5 — Root: ספר
#FormStemConjugationPGNTranslation
13סָפַר
Qal · Perfect · 3ms · "he counted" — qamets under ס; no dagesh in פ; simple action of counting/numbering
14סִפֵּר
Piel · Perfect · 3ms · "he recounted / told" — hiriq under ס + dagesh forte in פ + tsere; intensive/iterative sense
15סֻפַּר
Pual · Perfect · 3ms · "it was told / recounted" — qibbuts under ס + dagesh forte in פ + patach; systematic: qamets (Qal) → hiriq (Piel) → qibbuts (Pual)