Exploring Hebrew’s Mellowest, Sloppiest Corner

What’s חפיף, which language did we get it from, and how do you use it in Hebrew slang? Oh, and there’s a verb, too, לחפף.

New Words and Expressions:

Chafif (Ar.) – Light (opp. Of heavy), easy going – חפיף

Dammo chafif (Ar.) – “His blood is light”, he’s funny, an easy going guy – دمه خفيف – דמו ח’פיף

“K’chu chafif et hachayim” – Take life easy – קחו חפיף את החיים

“Im mashehu kara, hafif ze lo nora” – If something happened, that’s ok, no worries. – אם משהו קרה, חפיף זה לא נורא

Chafifnik – Someone who does a sloppy job – חפיפניק

Chafifnikiyut – The notion of doing things superficially – חפיפניקיות

“Pit’om hitchalta lezayef, lo lehashkia, lechafef” – Suddenly you started slacking, to do a sloppy job – פתאום התחלת לזייף, לא להשקיע, לחפף

Hu mechafef – He blows off – הוא מחפף

Lama chifafta? – Why didn’t you do it well? – למה חיפפת

Mechufaf – Sloppy – מחופף

Playlist and Clips:

Eitan Masuri – Hafif (lyrics)

Julia Boutros – Ala Ma Yabdou

Aviva Avidan – K’chu hafif et ha-hayim 

Ofer Shechter – Bitachon Atsmi (lyrics)

Sarit Avitan – Gever-gever (lyrics)

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