Hebrew for Developers: Tech Vocabulary and Coding Terms
"ืืงืื ืฉืื ื ืืคื ืขื ืืคื ืื," my Israeli tech lead said, looking at my pull request.
I panicked. "The code... fell? On the... faces?"
He burst out laughing. "No, no! It means your code is terrible. Like, really bad. ืขื ืืคื ืื is 'awful.'"
"Oh." I stared at my screen, mortified. "So you're sayingโ"
"Yeah, you need to ืจืคืงืืจ ืืช ืื." (refactor it)
"Refactor... what?" My brain was short-circuiting. Was "ืจืคืงืืจ" even Hebrew?
Welcome to coding in Israel, where English tech terms get Hebraized into verbs ("ืืืคืืื" - to deploy), where standup meetings happen in rapid-fire Hebrew, and where your tech lead will tell you your code sucks without sugar-coating itโbut then immediately help you fix it.
Israel is the "Startup Nation" for a reasonโthere are more engineers per capita here than almost anywhere else. But here's what nobody warns you about: you can't just code in English and hope for the best. Daily communication happens in Hebrew, and you WILL hear gems like "ืืฉ ืืื ืงืจืืื ืืคืจืืืงืฉื" (there's a critical bug in production) shouted across the office.
This is your survival guide.
Quick Start
New to Hebrew? Begin with business Hebrew basics before diving into tech-specific terms.
Why Tech Hebrew Matters
Israel's Tech Scene
By the numbers:
- ๐ 6,000+ startups active in Israel
- ๐ฐ $25+ billion in annual VC investments
- ๐ข 350+ R&D centers of global companies
- ๐จโ๐ป 15% of workforce in tech
Major tech hubs:
- Tel Aviv - Startups, fintech, cybersecurity
- Jerusalem - Enterprise software, biotech
- Haifa - Hardware, semiconductors
- Be'er Sheva - Cybersecurity
Language in Israeli Tech Companies
The reality:
- ๐ง Internal communication: Often in Hebrew
- ๐ฌ Daily standups: Mix of Hebrew and English
- ๐ Documentation: Usually English
- ๐ฃ๏ธ Social interactions: Hebrew dominates
- ๐ค Career advancement: Hebrew helps significantly
Why learn tech Hebrew:
- Better team integration
- Understanding company culture
- Career opportunities
- Networking at events
- Making Israeli friends
Core Programming Vocabulary
General Terms
ืชืื ืืช (Tikhnut) - Programming
ืืชืื ืช/ืช (Metakhen/Metakhenet) - Programmer
ืงืื (Kod) - Code
ืงืืืฅ (Kovetz) - File
ืชืืื ื (Tokhna) - Software
ืืืืจื (Chomra) - Hardware
ืคืืชืื (Pitu'ach) - Development
ืืคืชื/ืช (Mefate'ach/Mefate'achat) - Developer
Programming Actions
ืืืชืื ืงืื (Lichtov kod) - To write code
ืืจืืฅ (Larutz) - To run
ืืงืืคื (Lekampel) - To compile
ืืืืืื (Lehadbig) - To debug
ืืืกื (Letastet) - To test
ืืืคืืื (Ledeploy) - To deploy
ืืขืืื (Le'adken) - To update
ืืืืืง (Limchok) - To delete
ืืชืงื (Letaken) - To fix
ืืฉืคืจ (Leshaper) - To improve
Code Quality
ืืื (Bug) - Bug
ืชืงืื (Takala) - Error/Issue
ืฉืืืื (Shgi'a) - Error
ืงืจืืกื (Krisa) - Crash
ืืขืื (Be'aya) - Problem
ืคืชืจืื (Pitaron) - Solution
ืชืืงืื (Tikun) - Fix
ืืืคืืืืืืฆืื (Optimizatzya) - Optimization
ืจืคืงืืืจืื ื (Refactoring) - Refactoring
Development Methodologies
Agile & Scrum
ืื'ืืื (Agile) - Agile
ืกืงืจืื (Scrum) - Scrum
ืกืคืจืื ื (Sprint) - Sprint
ืกืื ืืืค (Standup) - Standup meeting
ืจืืจื (Retro) - Retrospective
ืืงืืื (Backlog) - Backlog
ืกืืืจื (Story) - User story
ืืืกืง (Task) - Task
ืืื ืืืจื (Burndown) - Burndown chart
Agile Phrases
.ืื ืขืฉืืช ืืชืืื
(Ma asita etmol?) - What did you do yesterday?
.ืื ืืชื ืขืืฉื ืืืื
(Ma ata oseh hayom?) - What are you doing today?
?ืืฉ ืืืืงืจืื
(Yesh blokerim?) - Are there blockers?
.ืืกืืืจื ืืืืช ื ืขืฉืืช
(Hastory hazot na'aset) - This story is being done
.ืื ืื ื ืืืืืจื ืืื ืืืื ืื
(Anachnu me'achorei lu'ach hazmanim) - We're behind schedule
.ืฆืจืื ืืกืืื ืืช ืืกืคืจืื ื
(Tzarich lesayem et hasprint) - Need to finish the sprint
Web Development
Front-End
ืคืจืื ื-ืื ื (Front-end) - Front-end
ืืืฉืง ืืฉืชืืฉ (Memshak mishtamesh) - User interface (UI)
ืืืืืืช ืืฉืชืืฉ (Chavayat mishtamesh) - User experience (UX)
ืจืกืคืื ืกืืื (Responsive) - Responsive
ืืฃ (Daf) - Page
ืืคืชืืจ (Kaftor) - Button
ืชืคืจืื (Tafrit) - Menu
ืคืืจื (Form) - Form
ืืื (Tab) - Tab
Front-End Frameworks
ืจืืืงื (React) - React
ืืืื (Vue) - Vue
ืื ืืืืจ (Angular) - Angular
ืงืืืคืื ื ืื (Komponenta) - Component
ืกืืืื (State) - State
ืคืจืืคืก (Props) - Props
ืืืง (Hook) - Hook
ืจื ืืืจ (Render) - Render
Back-End
ืืง-ืื ื (Back-end) - Back-end
ืฉืจืช (Sheret) - Server
ืืกื ื ืชืื ืื (Masad netunim) - Database
API (API) - API
ืื ืืคืืื ื (Endpoint) - Endpoint
ืืืชื ืืืงืฆืื (Authentikatzya) - Authentication
ืืจืฉืืืช (Harsha'ot) - Permissions/Authorization
Mobile Development
Mobile Terms
ืคืืชืื ืืืืืื (Pitu'ach mobile) - Mobile development
ืืคืืืงืฆืื (Aplikatzya) - App/Application
ืืค (App) - App (short form)
ืื ืืจืืืื (Android) - Android
iOS (iOS) - iOS
ืจืืืงื ื ืืืืื (React Native) - React Native
ืคืืืืจ (Flutter) - Flutter
Mobile-Specific
ืืกื (Masach) - Screen
ื ืืืืคืืงืฆืื (Notifikatzya) - Notification
ืคืืฉ ื ืืืืคืืงืฆืื (Push notifikatzya) - Push notification
ืืืจืื (Horada) - Download
ืืขืืื (Ha'ala) - Upload
ืขืืืื (Idkun) - Update
ืืจืกื (Gersa) - Version
DevOps & Infrastructure
Core DevOps
ืืืืืคืก (DevOps) - DevOps
CI/CD (CI/CD) - CI/CD
ืคืืืคืืืื (Pipeline) - Pipeline
ืืคืืื (Deploy) - Deployment
ืจืืืืืืื (Rollout) - Rollout
ืจืืืืง (Rollback) - Rollback
ืงืื ืืืื ืจ (Container) - Container
ืืืงืจ (Docker) - Docker
ืงืืืจื ืืืก (Kubernetes) - Kubernetes
Cloud & Infrastructure
ืขื ื (Anan) - Cloud
AWS (AWS) - AWS
ืืืืจ (Azure) - Azure
GCP (GCP) - Google Cloud Platform
ืฉืจืช (Sheret) - Server
ืกืืืจื' (Storage) - Storage
ืจืฉืช (Reshet) - Network
ืืืืื (Avtacha) - Security
ืกืงืืื (Scale) - To scale
Database & Data
Database Terms
ืืกื ื ืชืื ืื (Masad netunim) - Database
ืืืื (Tabla) - Table
ืฉืื (Sdรฉ) - Field
ืจืฉืืื (Reshuma) - Record
ืฉืืืืชื (She'ilta) - Query
ืืื ืืงืก (Index) - Index
ืืคืชื ืจืืฉื (Mafte'ach rashi) - Primary key
ืืคืชื ืืจ (Mafte'ach zar) - Foreign key
ืืจื ืืงืฆืื (Tranzaktzya) - Transaction
SQL & NoSQL
SQL (SQL) - SQL
ื ืืกืงืืืื (NoSQL) - NoSQL
ืืื ืื (Mongo) - MongoDB
ืคืืกืืืจืก (Postgres) - PostgreSQL
ืจืืืก (Redis) - Redis
Version Control & Git
Git Basics
ืืื (Git) - Git
ืืืืืื (GitHub) - GitHub
ืืืืืื (GitLab) - GitLab
ืจืืคื (Repo) - Repository
ืืจื ืฅ' (Branch) - Branch
ืงืืืื (Commit) - Commit
ืคืืฉ (Push) - Push
ืคืื (Pull) - Pull
ืืจื' (Merge) - Merge
ืงืื ืคืืืงื (Conflict) - Conflict
Common Git Phrases
.ืื ื ืคืืฉืจ ืืช ืืฉืื ืืืื
(Ani posher et hashinuyim) - I'm pushing the changes
.ืชืขืฉื ืคืื ืืืืืกืืจ
(Ta'ase pull mehamaster) - Do a pull from master
.ืืฉ ืงืื ืคืืืงื ืืืจื'
(Yesh conflict bamerge) - There's a merge conflict
.ืื ื ืืืฆืจ ืืจื ืฅ' ืืืฉ
(Ani yotzer branch chadash) - I'm creating a new branch
?ืขืฉืืช ืงืืืื
(Asita commit?) - Did you commit?
Testing & QA
Testing Types
ืืืืงืืช (Bedikot) - Tests/Testing
ืืื ืื ืืกื (Unit test) - Unit test
ืืื ืืืจืฆืื (Integratzya) - Integration test
E2E (E2E) - End-to-end test
ืืืืืืฆืื (Otomatzya) - Automation
QA (QA) - Quality Assurance
Testing Phrases
?ืืงืื ืขืืจ ืืช ืืืกืืื
(Hakod avar et hatestim?) - Did the code pass the tests?
.ืืืกืืื ื ืืคืืื
(Hatestim noflim) - The tests are failing
.ืฆืจืื ืืืชืื ืืกืืื
(Tzarich lichtov testim) - Need to write tests
.ืืืืกืื ืืื 80%
(Hakisui hu 80%) - The coverage is 80%
Security & Cybersecurity
Security Terms
ืืืืืช ืืืืข (Avtachat meida) - Information security
ืืืืืช ืกืืืืจ (Avtachat cyber) - Cybersecurity
ืืืงืจ (Hacker) - Hacker
ืคืจืืฆื (Pritsa) - Breach/Hack
ืืฆืคื ื (Hatzfana) - Encryption
ืืืชื ืืืงืฆืื (Authentikatzya) - Authentication
ืืจืฉืืืช (Harsha'ot) - Permissions
ืืืืช ืืฉ (Chomat esh) - Firewall
ืคืืืขืืช (Pgi'ut) - Vulnerability
Meetings & Communication
Daily Standup
?ืื ืขืฉืืช ืืชืืื
(Ma asita etmol?) - What did you do yesterday?
.ืกืืืืชื ืืช ืืคืืฆ'ืจ
(Siyamti et haficher) - I finished the feature
.ืขืืืชื ืขื ืืืื
(Avadti al habug) - I worked on the bug
?ืื ืืฉ ืื ืืืืื
(Ma yesh lecha lehayom?) - What do you have for today?
.ืื ื ืืชืืื ืืช ืืกืืืจื ืืืืฉื
(Ani etchil et hastory hachadasha) - I'll start the new story
?ืืฉ ืืขืืืช
(Yesh be'ayot?) - Any problems?
.ืืื ืืืืงืจืื
(Ein blokerim) - No blockers
Code Review
?ืืคืฉืจ ืืขืฉืืช ืงืื ืจืืืืื
(Efshar la'asot code review?) - Can you do a code review?
.ืฉืืืชื PR
(Shalachti PR) - I sent a PR (pull request)
?ืชืกืชืื ืขื ืืงืื ืฉืื
(Tistakel al hakod sheli?) - Can you look at my code?
.ืืฉ ืืื ืืขืจืืช
(Yesh kama he'arot) - There are some comments
.ืืคืจืื ืืช ืื
(Aprov et ze) - I'll approve this
.ืฆืจืื ืืชืงื ืืช ืื
(Tzarich letaken et ze) - This needs to be fixed
Technical Discussions
?ืืื ืืชื ืขืืฉื ืืช ืื
(Eich ata oseh et ze?) - How are you doing this?
.ืื ืื ืืขืืื
(Ze lo ya'avod) - This won't work
.ืืฉ ืืจื ืืืชืจ ืืืื
(Yesh derech yoter tova) - There's a better way
?ืื ืืืจืืืืงืืืจื
(Ma ha'architektura?) - What's the architecture?
.ืฆืจืื ืืืฉืื ืขื ืกืงืืื
(Tzarich lachshov al scale) - Need to think about scale
?ืื ืืชืืื ืืคืจืืืงืฉื
(Ze mat'im leproduction?) - Is this production-ready?
Product & Features
Product Terms
ืืืฆืจ (Motzar) - Product
ืคืืฆ'ืจ (Ficher) - Feature
ืืจืืฉื (Drisha) - Requirement
ืกืคืง (Spec) - Specification
ืืืืจ ืกืืืจื (User story) - User story
MVP (MVP) - Minimum viable product
ืจืืืืืค (Roadmap) - Roadmap
ืจืืื (Release) - Release
Product Discussions
?ืื ืืืจืืฉืืช
(Ma hadrishot?) - What are the requirements?
.ืืืืฆืจ ืื ืืืื
(Hamotzar lo muchan) - The product isn't ready
?ืืชื ืืจืืื
(Matai harelease?) - When's the release?
.ืฆืจืื ืขืื ืคืืฆ'ืจืื
(Tzarich od ficherim) - Need more features
.ืื ืื ืืกืงืืค
(Ze lo bascope) - This is out of scope
Israeli Tech Culture
Work Style
Israeli tech companies are known for:
- ๐ฃ๏ธ Directness - "ืื ืื ืืื" (This isn't good) is normal feedback
- ๐ Fast pace - Quick decisions, rapid iterations
- ๐ก Innovation - Encouraged to think outside the box
- ๐ค Flat hierarchy - Everyone's opinion matters
- โก Chutzpah - Boldness and risk-taking valued
Communication Style
What to expect:
Direct feedback:
"ืื ืื ืขืืื" (Ze lo oved) - This doesn't work
"ืืฉ ืืจื ืืืชืจ ืืืื" (Yesh derech yoter tova) - There's a better way
Interruptions are normal:
"ืจืืข, ืจืืข..." (Rega, rega...) - Wait, wait...
Challenging authority:
"ืื ื ืื ืืกืืื" (Ani lo maskim) - I disagree
Quick decisions:
"ืืืืื, ืืื ื ืขืฉื" (Yalla, bo na'aseh) - Let's go, let's do it
Tech Events & Networking
Event Vocabulary
ืื ืก (Kenes) - Conference
ืืืืืค (Meetup) - Meetup
ืืืงืชืื (Hackathon) - Hackathon
ืืื ืืื (Demo day) - Demo day
ื ืืืืจืงืื ื (Networking) - Networking
ืคืื ื (Panel) - Panel discussion
Networking Phrases
?ืขื ืื ืืชื ืขืืื
(Al ma ata oved?) - What are you working on?
.ืื ื ืขืืื/ืช ื...
(Ani oved/ovedet be...) - I work at...
.ืื ื ืืคืชื/ืช ืคืื-ืกืืืง
(Ani mefate'ach/mefate'achat full-stack) - I'm a full-stack developer
?ืจืืฆื ืืืืืืฃ ืืจืืืกื ืืืงืืจ
(Rotze lehachlif kartis bisur?) - Want to exchange business cards?
.ื ืฉืื ืืงืื ืงื"ื
(Nismach lekabel CV) - We'd be happy to get your resume
Job Search & Interviews
Job Titles
ืืคืชื/ืช (Mefate'ach/Mefate'achat) - Developer
ืืคืชื/ืช ืคืื-ืกืืืง (Full-stack mefate'ach/mefate'achat) - Full-stack developer
ืืคืชื/ืช ืคืจืื ื-ืื ื (Front-end mefate'ach/mefate'achat) - Front-end developer
ืืคืชื/ืช ืืง-ืื ื (Back-end mefate'ach/mefate'achat) - Back-end developer
ืืจืืืืงื/ืืช (Architekt/Architekted) - Architect
Tech Lead (Tech lead) - Tech lead
CTO (CTO) - CTO
Interview Phrases
?ืกืคืจ/ื ืื ืขื ืขืฆืื
(Saper/Sapri li al atzmecha/atzmech) - Tell me about yourself
?ืื ืื ืืกืืื ืฉืื
(Ma hanisayon shelcha/shelach?) - What's your experience?
?ืืื ืืืืช ืคืืชืจ/ืช ืืช ืืืขืื ืืืืช
(Eich hayita poter/poteret et habe'aya hazot?) - How would you solve this problem?
?ืื ืืืื ืืืืืืืช ืฉืืชื ืืืืจ
(Ma hateknologiyot she'ata makir?) - What technologies do you know?
?ืืชื ืืคืฉืจ ืืืชืืื
(Matai efshar lehatchil?) - When can you start?
Common Abbreviations
Israeli Tech Acronyms
ืจ"ืฆ (RaTz) - ืจืฅ (Runs/Running)
ืขื"ื (Adach) - ืขื ืืื (Approximately/About)
ืืก"ื (BeSeDe) - ืืกืืจ ืืืืจ (Totally fine)
ืื "ื (KaNaL) - ืื "ื (Ditto/Same)
Tech Slang & Informal
Casual Tech Talk
ืืืคืืื (Ledeploy) - To deploy (Hebrew verb from English)
ืืืืื (Ledabig) - To debug
ืืจืืคืงืืจ (Lerefakter) - To refactor
ืืืืงืจ (Ledoker) - To dockerize
ืืคืืฉืจ (Lefusher) - To push (code)
ืืคืืื (Lefolel) - To pull (code)
Problem Descriptions
.ืื ืฉืืืจ
(Ze shavur) - It's broken
.ืื ืื ืจืฅ
(Ze lo ratz) - It doesn't run
.ืื ืงืืจืก ืื
(Ze kores li) - It's crashing on me
.ืืฉ ืืื ืืืืจืฃ
(Yesh bug metoraf) - There's a crazy bug
.ืืงืื ืืืืก
(Hakod meva'es) - The code sucks
.ืื ืกืคืืื
(Ze spageti) - It's spaghetti (code)
Your Tech Hebrew Learning Plan
Week 1-2: Foundation
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Learn 50 core tech terms
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Practice daily standup phrases
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Study your company's tech stack in Hebrew
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Join Hebrew tech communities
Week 3-4: Workplace Integration
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Participate in Hebrew meetings
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Use Hebrew in Slack/Teams
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Read Hebrew tech documentation
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Ask colleagues to correct you
Week 5-8: Full Integration
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Lead standup in Hebrew
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Do code reviews in Hebrew
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Attend Hebrew tech meetups
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Contribute to Hebrew discussions
Resources for Tech Hebrew
Online Resources
Hebrew Tech Communities:
- Facebook groups: "Israeli Tech Community"
- LinkedIn groups: Hebrew tech groups
- Reddit: r/programming (Hebrew posts)
- Dev.to Hebrew articles
Tech News in Hebrew:
- Geektime (ืืืงืืืื)
- Ynet Tech (ynet ืืื ืืืืืื)
- TheMarker Tech (ืื ืืจืงืจ ืืง)
- Calcalist Tech (ืืืืืืกื ืืง)
FAQs
Q: Do Israeli tech companies work in Hebrew or English?
A: Mix of both. Code and documentation usually in English, daily communication often in Hebrew.
Q: Can I work in Israeli tech without Hebrew?
A: Yes, especially in international companies, but Hebrew helps significantly for integration and career growth.
Q: How long to learn tech Hebrew?
A: With general Hebrew knowledge: 2-3 months. From scratch: 6-12 months for workplace fluency.
Q: Is tech Hebrew very different from regular Hebrew?
A: Not drastically. It's lots of English loanwords adapted to Hebrew grammar plus standard workplace Hebrew.
Q: Will colleagues help me learn?
A: Yes! Israelis are generally supportive and patient with learners.
Final Thoughts
Mastering tech Hebrew opens doors in Israel's thriving startup ecosystem. While many Israeli developers speak English, understanding Hebrew helps you integrate into teams, understand company culture, and accelerate your career.
Remember:
- ๐ Start with basics - Core terms first
- ๐ฃ๏ธ Practice daily - Use Hebrew in standups
- ๐ Read tech news - In Hebrew
- ๐ค Ask for help - Colleagues will assist
- ๐ช Be persistent - It gets easier!
Next Steps:
Ready to code in Hebrew?
๐ผ Business foundation: Business Hebrew guide
๐ฌ General phrases: 100 everyday expressions
๐ฃ๏ธ Modern slang: Israeli slang 2025
๐ Complete plan: 6-month study plan
ืืืฆืืื ืืงืื! (Behatzlacha bakod - Good luck with the code!) ๐ป๐ฎ๐ฑ
May your code compile, your tests pass, and your Hebrew improve with every sprint!
Last updated: November 2025
Reviewed by: Israeli software developers and tech professionals
Next update: February 2026 with new tech trends
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