Gematria Calculator › Motzaot HaPeh
Motzaot HaPeh Calculator
Letters pronounced in the same place in the mouth can be exchanged with each other – one of the oldest tools for explaining biblical Hebrew.
The Motzaot HaPeh table
| Group | Letters |
|---|---|
| 1 | א – ה – ח – ע |
| 2 | ב – ו – מ – פ |
| 3 | ג – י – כ – ק |
| 4 | ד – ט – ל – נ – ת |
| 5 | ז – ס – ש – ר – צ |
How it works
- Throat: Aleph, Heh, Chet, Ayin.
- Lips: Bet, Vav, Mem, Peh.
- Palate: Gimel, Yod, Kaf, Kuf.
- Tongue: Dalet, Tet, Lamed, Nun, Tav.
- Teeth: Zayin, Samech, Shin, Resh, Tzadi.
Sources
- Sefer Yetzirah classifies the letters by their place of articulation.
- Rashi on Leviticus 19:16 explains "rachil" (talebearer): Kaf and Gimel come from the same place, so "rachil" is related to "ragil".
- Rashi on Isaiah 21:15 reads "netusha" as "letusha" – Nun exchanged with Lamed.
- The Ben Ish Chai (Ben Yehoyada, Yoma 39b) combines this with Atbash: amal (toil) becomes chayil (strength).
Examples from the sources
רכיל ← רגיל
Leviticus 19:16 – Rashi
Questions
Why do letters from the same place exchange?
Their pronunciation is close. Rashi writes that all letters from the same place in the mouth exchange with each other.