hebrew-content-writer

What this skill does

# Hebrew Content Writer

## Instructions

### Step 1: Identify Content Type and Register
| Content Type | Register | Audience | Key Characteristics |
|-------------|----------|----------|-------------------|
| Legal / Government | Formal (gvoha) | Officials, lawyers | Passive voice, complex sentences, traditional gendering |
| Business / Corporate | Business | Professionals | Clear, professional, moderate formality |
| Marketing / Ads | Business-Casual | General public | Persuasive, benefit-focused, concise |
| Direct / Dugri | Dugri | Israeli general public | Blunt, no softeners, short imperative sentences |
| UX / Interface | Direct | End users | Imperative mood, ultra-short, action-oriented |
| Social Media | Informal | Young adults | Casual, slang-friendly, emoji-compatible |
| Blog / Article | Business | Readers | Informative, SEO-aware, structured |

### Step 2: Apply Hebrew Grammar Rules

**Spelling Standard -- Use Ktiv Maleh (Full Spelling):**
Modern Hebrew content uses ktiv maleh (plene spelling) with vav and yod for vowels:
- Correct: תוכנה (tochnah) not תכנה
- Correct: שירות (sherut) not שרות
- Follow Academy of Hebrew Language guidelines

**Smichut (Construct State) Rules:**
- First noun loses definite article: "beit ha-sefer" (the school) not "ha-beit ha-sefer"
- First noun may change form: bayit -> beit, yom -> yom (unchanged)
- Adjectives agree with the LAST noun in the chain

**Direct Object Marker (et):**
- Required before definite direct objects: "ra'iti ET ha-sefer" (I saw the book)
- NOT used with indefinite objects: "ra'iti sefer" (I saw a book)
- Common mistake: omitting "et" or using it with indefinite objects

**Subject-Verb Agreement:**
- Verbs agree in gender and number with their subject
- Past tense: also agrees in person
- Present tense: only gender and number (no person distinction)
- Future tense: gender, number, and person

### Step 3: Handle Gendered Language

**Option A -- Traditional (default for formal/legal):**
Use masculine plural for mixed groups. Standard in government, legal, academic writing.

**Option B -- Slash Notation (for business/marketing):**
```
משתמשים/ות יקרים/ות (dear users, m/f)
```

**Option C -- Gender-Neutral Rewording (recommended for UX/tech):**
| Instead of | Use |
|-----------|-----|
| המשתמש צריך ללחוץ (the user needs to click, m.) | יש ללחוץ על (click on) |
| אתה יכול לבחור (you can choose, m.) | ניתן לבחור (it is possible to choose) |
| הלקוחות שלנו מרוצים (our customers are satisfied, m.) | שביעות רצון הלקוחות שלנו (the satisfaction of our customers) |

**Ask the user** which approach they prefer if not specified.

### Step 4: Common Hebrew Writing Mistakes to Avoid

| Mistake | Wrong | Correct | Rule |
|---------|-------|---------|------|
| Smichut with ha- on first noun | הבית הספר | בית הספר | Only second noun gets ha- |
| Missing et | ראיתי הכלב | ראיתי את הכלב | Definite direct object needs et |
| Wrong gender agreement | הילדה הלך | הילדה הלכה | Verb must match subject gender |
| Mixed ktiv | תוכנה/תכנה in same text | Pick one consistently | Use ktiv maleh throughout |
| Incorrect vav ha-hipukh | ואז הוא הולך | ואז הוא הלך | Vav ha-hipukh is biblical, not modern |
| Colloquial in formal text | נגיד ש... | לדוגמה... | Match register to context |

### Step 5: Hebrew SEO Optimization

**Keyword Strategy:**
- Research keywords in Hebrew using Google Keyword Planner (region: Israel)
- Account for morphological variations -- target root words and common forms
- Example: "ביטוח" (insurance) also search "ביטוחים", "לבטח", "מבוטח"
- Consider bilingual searches -- Israelis search English for tech terms

**On-Page SEO for Hebrew:**
- Title tag: 50-60 Hebrew characters, primary keyword near beginning
- Meta description: 120-150 characters, compelling call-to-action
- H1: One per page, contains primary keyword
- URL slug: Transliterated Hebrew ("bituach-briut") or English equivalent
- Alt text: Descriptive Hebrew text for images
- Internal linking: Use Hebrew anchor text

**Content Structure:**
- Use short paragraphs (2-3 sentences) -- Hebrew text appears denser than English
- Use headers (H2, H3) every 200-300 words
- Bulleted lists improve readability in Hebrew
- Bold key terms for scanning

### Step 6: Write in the Dugri (Direct) Register

"Dugri" is the blunt, no-nonsense register Israelis use and expect in everyday speech and increasingly in product copy, support replies, and startup marketing. It is a distinct mode, not just "informal" - it can be polite and still completely direct. Use it when the brand voice is plain-spoken or when softening would feel evasive to an Israeli reader.

How to write dugri:
- Drop English-style softeners. Cut "we would be happy to", "it might be worth considering", "please feel free to". Say the thing.
- Short sentences, one idea each. Long subordinate clauses read as bureaucratic.
- Second-person imperative is fine and friendly: "תשלחו לנו את המספר" (send us the number), "תבדקו את זה" (check this).
- Lead with the point, then the reason - not the other way around.
- Dugri is not rude. It still uses "תודה" and basic courtesy; it just refuses to pad.

| Padded (avoid) | Dugri (use) |
|----------------|-------------|
| נשמח אם תוכלו לשקול לעדכן את הפרטים | תעדכנו את הפרטים |
| ייתכן שכדאי לבדוק את החיבור לאינטרנט | תבדקו את החיבור לאינטרנט |
| אנחנו מתנצלים על אי הנוחות שנגרמה | סליחה על העיכוב. תיקנו את זה |

### Step 7: Handle Mixed Hebrew/English (Heblish)

Israeli writing routinely mixes Hebrew and English, especially in tech, marketing, and business copy. The decision for each English term is keep, transliterate, or translate:

- **Keep in English** - established tech/product terms with no natural Hebrew equivalent in daily use: API, SaaS, deploy, dashboard (often), email (though "אימייל"/"מייל" is also common). Brand and product names always stay in English.
- **Transliterate** - terms that have entered spoken Hebrew phonetically: "אימייל", "סטארטאפ", "פינטק", "באג", "פיצ'ר". Use when the transliteration is what people actually say.
- **Translate** - terms with a well-established Hebrew word the audience uses: "תוכנה" (software), "משתמש" (user), "הורדה" (download), "עדכון" (update). Forcing English here reads as lazy.

RTL/LTR mixing in one line:
- An English term inside a Hebrew sentence keeps its LTR run; the browser's bidi algorithm usually handles a single word, but wrap longer English strings, codes, or anything with punctuation in `<bdi>` or `dir="ltr"` so surrounding Hebrew punctuation does not reorder.
- Keep a space on both sides of the English run.

English nouns taking Hebrew grammar:
- Hebrew plural: Israelis routinely add Hebrew plural endings to English nouns - "באגים" (bugs), "לינקים" (links), "פיצ'רים" (features). This is natural; do not "correct" it to English plurals.
- Definite article: the Hebrew "ה־" attaches to the English noun - "האפ" (the app), "הלינק" (the link), "הדשבורד" (the dashboard).
- Gender: assign the English noun a Hebrew gender consistently (usually masculine by default) so verbs and adjectives agree - "הדשבורד נטען" not "הדשבורד נטענה".

### Step 8: Nikud, Numerals, and Dates

**When to add nikud (vowel points):**
- Children's content, early-reader material, songs, poetry.
- A single ambiguous word where context does not disambiguate (e.g., to distinguish "סֵפֶר" from "סַפָּר").
- Foreign names and unfamiliar loanwords on first mention.

**When to omit nikud:**
- Modern body copy, UI text, marketing, articles - standard unvocalized Hebrew. Adding nikud throughout looks like a textbook and slows fluent readers.

**Numerals and dates:**
- In running body copy, prefer digits for most numbers ("3 ימים", "תוך 24 שעות"); spelling out is reserved for formal/legal text or numbers that open a sentence.
- Number-gender agreement for 1-10: Hebrew numbers take the OPPOSITE gender form of the noun they count (a known trap). With a masculine noun use the feminine-form number: "שלושה ימים" (three days, masc. noun). With a femini