# מן v מ



## sherd

When would one use מן as a separate word as opposed to מ at the beginning of a word?


----------



## ks20495

In formal writing, they are pretty much 100% interchangeable.

In speech and colloquial writing, מ is the default form; and מן is used generally for emphasis or purposeful formality.


----------



## origumi

ks20495 said:


> In formal writing, they are pretty much 100% interchangeable.


I think that מן comes almost always (in the Bible, and even more in modern Hebrew) before a definite article.


----------



## Aoyama

I think it should require some precise examples.
Min ha ir (from the city), but I wonder if mé ha ir wouldn't be possible.
But you would say mi Tel-Aviv, never min Tel-Aviv, and mirushala'im, etc.
Expressions like miyad (close, _at hand_) can also be discussed.


----------



## origumi

Aoyama said:


> I think it should require some precise examples.


מ is probably always good. מן sounds unnatural if appears not before a definite article.


----------



## Aoyama

Right, but what about "mé ha ir" (instead of min ha ir).


----------



## Abu Rashid

I guess this is part of the normal assimilation that noon undergoes when it has no vowel after it?

Much as words like anf -> ap, bint -> bat, khanzeer -> khazeer, 3unz -> 3uz assimilated the noon?


----------



## origumi

Aoyama said:


> Right, but what about "mé ha ir" (instead of min ha ir).


Both are ok.



Abu Rashid said:


> I guess this is part of the normal assimilation that noon undergoes when it has no vowel after it?


The נ is assimilated but this is not the full story. First of all, some other prepositions are contracted regardless of assimilation, like ל <- אל (= _to_) and informally in moden Hebrew ת <- את (to mark a definite direct object). So מ <- מן behaves in a similar manner. Secondly, מן and מ are not fully interchangeable (as described above), which is sort of unexpected lingual behavior. Or maybe not unexpected - with את we also see a preposition whose behavior depends on the following definite article.

Aramaic doesn't have (or maybe has but more weakly?) this contraction/assimilation of מן. For example Hebrew מיד is Aramaic מן יד.


----------



## Abu Rashid

תודה רבה אריגומי


----------

