Essential Hebrew phrases

Hello, goodbye and peace — the all-purpose Hebrew greeting.

Thank you. 'Toda raba' is thanks a lot; 'bevakasha' serves as both please and you're welcome.

The city's own name — 'the well of the seven' or 'of the oath'. Locals shorten it to Be'er Sheva in speech and to B7 in writing, which you will see on posters and shopfronts.

The Negev — the desert that is 60% of Israel's land area and where this city is the capital. 'Down to the Negev' is how the rest of the country describes coming here.

The hot dry desert wind that pushes temperatures up sharply and fills the air with dust for a few days at a time, mostly in spring and autumn. It is a weather event people plan around.

The university — meaning Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, which is a landmark, a bus destination, an employer and a neighbourhood all at once.

Soroka Medical Center. In a city where it is the largest employer and the only tertiary hospital for a million people, the name works as a place, a workplace and a shorthand for 'seriously ill'.

Air conditioner. In the Negev this is not a comfort item and the first question about a flat is how many units there are and whether they work.

Municipal property tax, billed per square metre to whoever occupies the flat. In Israel's cheapest big-city rental market it is a proportionally larger part of your housing cost than on the coast.

Cool, fine, all good — the universal Israeli okay.

'Hey, man' in the Bedouin Arabic of the Negev. Around 3% of the city is Arab, and the surrounding Bedouin towns bring the language into the market, the hospital and the university daily.

Help! Emergency numbers are 101 for a Magen David Adom ambulance, 100 police, 102 fire, 104 Home Front Command.