# the weekend



## albondiga

*הסוף שבוע* or *סוף השבוע*?

My guess is that the _first _one is how to say "the weekend," and that the _second _can only mean "the end of the week"... is this right?

Also, would *סוף שבוע *even be written like that?  Or should it be one word?


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## cfu507

סוף שבוע two words. For that reason there is ף (pe sofit) instead of פ (pe regila).

If you want to add "the" than you should say/write סוף השבוע. Saying הסוף שבוע is wrong in any situation.

You should add "the" (ה' הידיעה) to the second word:
 בית כנסת - בית הכנסת (the synagogue)
ראש ממשלה - ראש הממשלה (the Prime Minister)
עץ אלון - עץ האלון (the oak tree)
עצי שקמה גדולים - עצי השקמה הגדולים (the big sycamore tree)

When the second word describes the first one, than you should add "the" to both of them:
רוח חזקה – הרוח החזקה (the strong wind)


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## albondiga

Thanks, cfu!

I knew the ה' הידיעה rule, but I actually saw this written somewhere tonight written as *סו*פ*שבוע* - with a *פ*!  I figured the combination as one word was likely wrong, but somehow I thought this might be an exception to the ה' הידיעה rule...  maybe I thought it would be a straight-up calque from the English word...  guess I was wrong!

(Which gets me wondering: _are _there any exceptions?  Topic for another thread...)

 EDIT: So is סוף השבוע potentially ambiguous?  Can it mean both "the weekend" and "the end of the week"?  And סוף השבוע הבא can mean either "next weekend" or "the end of next week"? I'm sure the meaning is usually clear from context, but is this still accurate?


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## cfu507

Hi
I guess you can write סופשבוע. I gooled הסופשבוע and I got some results, which means that some people write/use it. 
סופשבוע sounds for me more like slang. If you want to write a formal letter, for example, use סוף שבוע.

I wouldn't say that it is ambiguous. The words סופשבוע and סוף שבוע mean the same thing. Is there any difference between the end of the week and weekend?


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## CrazyArcher

I think there's no difference between the too (סוף שבוע / סופשבוע) in the meaning, although if you write it in one word it is surely a slang/casual usage.
Also, one more thing: in casual speech, it's often shortened to "sofash" - סופ"ש, especially among young people, so one shouldn't be surprised to see such a thing.


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## albondiga

cfu507 said:


> I wouldn't say that it is ambiguous. The words סופשבוע and סוף שבוע mean the same thing. Is there any difference between the end of the week and weekend?



In (my) English: yes, there is a difference.

"The weekend" is the two-day period between two working weeks.
"The end of the week" is a more specific time; the conclusion of the week.

_ "He had finished work on a major project at *the end of the week*, so he was able to enjoy *the weekend*."  _

How would this sentence be translated in Hebrew?


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## OriGinal

albondiga said:


> _ "He had finished work on a major project at *the end of the week*, so he was able to enjoy *the weekend*."_



הוא סיים את עבודתו בפרויקט גדול/משמעותי בסוף השבוע,
וכך הוא יכל להינות מסוף השבוע

This is a "loose" translation, 
but this is how I would have said this sentence.


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## albondiga

OriGinal said:


> הוא סיים את עבודתו בפרויקט גדול/משמעותי בסוף השבוע,
> וכך הוא יכל להינות מסוף השבוע
> 
> This is a "loose" translation,
> but this is how I would have said this sentence.



Thanks!  I guess it just sounds weird to me hearing "סוף השבוע" twice in the same sentence with different meanings, but if it's correct to use this phrase both ways then I'll manage to adapt!


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## cfu507

albondiga said:


> In (my) English: yes, there is a difference.
> 
> "The weekend" is the two-day period between two working weeks.
> "The end of the week" is a more specific time; the conclusion of the week.
> 
> _"He had finished work on a major project at *the end of the week*, so he was able to enjoy *the weekend*." _
> 
> How would this sentence be translated in Hebrew?


 
How can I know if he finished his work on friday or on Shabat (Saturday). It is hard for to think about "at the end of the week" as a specific time, becase there is no clue when he finished his work.


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