# הבעת פנים / ארשת פנים



## saavedra29

Hello.
Is there a significant difference between בעת פנים and ארשת פנים?


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## amikama

saavedra29 said:


> Is there a significant difference between *ה*בעת פנים and ארשת פנים?


First of all, it's *ה*בעת פנים, not בעת פנים. (The word בעת has a totally different and unrelated meaning.)

No difference in meaning, both expressions are synonymous. But ארשת פנים is less common than הבעת פנים in everyday Hebrew. You'll find ארשת פנים mainly in literature, or in formal Hebrew.


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## saavedra29

i thought ה was the article.. it happens to me all the time in hebrew.
Thank you very much amikama.


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## Drink

saavedra29 said:


> i thought ה was the article.. it happens to me all the time in hebrew.
> Thank you very much amikama.



Just remember that the definite article ה can never occur on a noun in the construct state (smichut). Since הבעת in the phrase הבעת פנים is in the construct state, you know that the ה cannot be a definite article.


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## saavedra29

So Drink we say: תחנת האוטובוס meaning "the bus station" and תחנת אוטובוס meaning "bus station"?


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## Drink

saavedra29 said:


> So Drink we say: תחנת האוטובוס meaning "the bus station" and תחנת אוטובוס meaning "bus station"?



Yes exactly, you would never say "התחנת אוטובוס" (except maybe in very colloquial speech with certain common phrases). Note that the second one in English would be "a bus station".


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## saavedra29

That was something that was not so clear in the first book by which i was tought hebrew. Now it's very clear. תודה רבה!


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## elroy

Drink said:


> Yes exactly, you would never say "התחנת אוטובוס" (except maybe in very colloquial speech with certain common phrases).


 I don't know how regularly it occurs in colloquial Hebrew, but I know it occurs with at least some phrases, like בית ספר (both בית הספר and הבית ספר are used).


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## origumi

elroy said:


> I don't know how regularly it occurs in colloquial Hebrew, but I know it occurs with at least some phrases.


It occurs indeed and not limited to specific idioms (neither can I say how often), and it's awfully colloquial (in other words: you may say it but never write).


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## amikama

origumi said:


> it's awfully colloquial (in other words: you may say it but never write).


You'll see it _written _in chats, forums etc. And also in hand-written notes etc. I see it a lot.

[In case of הבית ספר, the variant הביצפר also exists.]


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