Love in Hebrew Is Not Just "ahavá"

Most people think the Hebrew root for love is אהב

And yes — that is the root “to love.” But Hebrew has another root that carries a much deeper idea: נשא. Students often ask:

Why does this root mean both “to carry” and “to marry”?

Let’s unpack it.

By the way: if you are more into video explanations, go here: https://youtu.be/sM6s_CwTans

What does לָשֵׂאת  (infinitive in paal of נשא) mean in Modern Hebrew? In everyday modern Hebrew, לָשֵׂאת usually means:

- to carry

- to lift

- to bear responsibility

- to endure something difficult

For example:

He carried the bag: הוּא נָשָׂא אֶת הַתִּיק

It is hard to bear this pain: קָשֶׁה לָשֵׂאת אֶת הַכְּאֵב הַזֶּה

Is this root really about marriage?

Does לָשֵׂאת  also mean “to marry”? Yes — but only in a very specific, old expression.

In biblical and formal Hebrew you can find:

He married a woman: הוּא נָשָׂא אִישָּׁה

Modern Israelis do not usually speak this way in daily conversation. It sounds elevated, literary, or biblical. The everyday modern verb is: לְהִתְחַתֵּן, to get married.

What Is the Difference Between the modern verb for "to get married", לְהִתְחַתֵּן , and לָשֵׂאת ?

She got married last year: הִיא הִתְחַתְּנָה בַּשָּׁנָה שֶׁעָבְרָה

This is one possibility to say it. But Hebrew also uses a slightly more formal verb: She got married: הִיא נִישְּׂאָה.

Summary:

• casual, spoken: לְהִתְחַתֵּן

• formal, written, elegant: לְהִינָּשֵׂא, לָשֵׂאת  

Why nifal for "she got married"?

In biblical phrasing, the man verb for the man who is getting married appears in Paal, while the woman is described in Nifal, the passive voice. We say "she was married", and we used the verb לְהִינָּשֵׂא

So the ancient idea behind it is: marriage is not only something you do. It is something you enter. A new status. A new lifted state. That is why the same verb also means:

• to be lifted

• to be carried (poetically)

Why to be careful with hitpael, לְהִתְנַשֵּׂא ?

Hitpael is often the reflexive pattern — the action turns back onto the subject. In modern Hebrew, we use Hitpael for things like:

• “smoke rises”

• “mountains rise”

But with לְהִתְנַשֵּׂא, it can also mean something negative:

• to lift yourself above others

• to act superior

• to be arrogant or condescending

So Hebrew draws a sharp contrast:

• lifting someone else = love, responsibility

• lifting yourself above others = pride and arrogance

This is why love lifts — and arrogance separates.

Hebrew quietly teaches:

Love is not only a feeling. Love is a shoulder. A willingness to carry another person with dignity.