# יש את



## Drink

In Eyal Golan's song "מי שמאמין", there is the line "ולנו יש *את* מלך העולם." I would have thought that the "את" is incorrect since "מלך העולם" is a grammatical predicate, not a direct object. Is this use of "את" with "יש" common colloquially? Is it acceptable in the formal language? What about the same construction with "אין"?


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## origumi

http://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/יש_את

A biblical expression is usually not regarded as incorrect.


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## Drink

In that case, is it common? And can the same thing be done with "אין"?


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## origumi

Drink said:


> In that case, is it common? And can the same thing be done with "אין"?


Yes and yes. Actually the way dictated in Grammar lessons, with no את, sounds weird to the modern Hebrew ear.


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## origumi

Examples may be needed.

יש לי הספר sounds awkward, native will say יש לי את הספר. Alternatively הספר ישנו בידי.
יש לך את הספרים? לא, אין לי אותם. is another example of usual spoken language.


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## Drink

So in the past and future tenses, is the "את" still used, even though it is much clearer that it is the grammatical subject?

Which of the following is correct:
1. היו לי הספרים
2. היו לי את הספרים
3. היה לי את הספרים

To me the first one seems correct: the verb "היה" agrees in number with its subject "הספרים". The second and third ones are analogous to what you have told me about "יש" and "אין". But (to me) out of those two, only the third one seems correct (and only if the verb can be impersonal).


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## arbelyoni

The first one is what's considered correct in Hebrew grammar books.
The last two are correct in the colloquial language (כשהייתי קטן היה/היו לי את כל הספרים של המומינים).


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## Dashem

Drink said:


> So in the past and future tenses, is the "את" still used, even though it is much clearer that it is the grammatical subject?
> 
> Which of the following is correct:
> 1. היו לי הספרים
> 2. היו לי את הספרים
> 3. היה לי את הספרים
> 
> To me the first one seems correct: the verb "היה" agrees in number with its subject "הספרים". The second and third ones are analogous to what you have told me about "יש" and "אין". But (to me) out of those two, only the third one seems correct (and only if the verb can be impersonal).


Sorry, but the third one is the least correct of all three. The first one is correct


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## Drink

Dashem said:


> Sorry, but the third one is the least correct of all three. The first one is correct


The reason I think the third is more correct than the second is because once you introduce את, the word ספרים becomes an object rather than a subject, and therefore it doesn't make sense for the verb to agree with its object.


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## Dashem

Drink said:


> The reason I think the third is more correct than the second is because once you introduce את, the word ספרים becomes an object rather than a subject, and therefore it doesn't make sense for the verb to agree with its object.


Why would you introduce את between the verb יש and the subject הספרום? It is as if you say in English: "The children on read". Or some similar nonsense


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## Drink

It doesn't matter why, that's just apparently how people talk. But once it's there, the second option makes little sense to me.


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## k8an

Drink said:


> So in the past and future tenses, is the "את" still used, even though it is much clearer that it is the grammatical subject?
> 
> Which of the following is correct:
> 1. היו לי הספרים
> 2. היו לי את הספרים
> 3. היה לי את הספרים



The second one is the most common in conversation.

Some similar examples:

"יש את זה בכחול?" = Is there/do you have this (item) in blue?
"אין את זה אצלנו." = We don't have that (here/in our place).
"יש לי את הספר שלך" = I have your book.
"אין לך את המספר שלי?" = Don't you have my number?

I was trying to think of a song that included this type of usage, and I thought of an old Ivri Lider song.

<<link to youtube video removed by moderator (rule 4)>>

The very first line is "יש לי את הכוס הכחולה".


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