Hebrew Point Tsere

It marks an e-like vowel after a consonant.

Tsere is a niqqud mark, one of Hebrew’s vowel points, attached to a consonant rather than written as a letter on its own. Modern Israeli Hebrew usually gives tsere and segol the same e-like sound; the Tiberian reading tradition distinguishes them.

Is tsere the same as segol?

No: they are different spellings; modern Israeli speech usually merges them.

In סֵפֶר (book), tsere marks the first syllable and segol the second. Don’t choose the spelling by ear; follow the pointed source or a Hebrew dictionary.

Why does Hebrew use vowel points?

They make pronunciation and traditional reading visible.

Modern Hebrew usually leaves niqqud off ordinary prose. Vowel points appear in dictionaries, poetry, children’s books, and religious texts to guide pronunciation, preserve reading traditions, or prevent ambiguity.

The Tiberian vowel-and-accent system took shape among the Masoretes—Jewish scholars who recorded the Hebrew reading tradition—in Tiberias during the early Islamic period; the oral tradition is older. Palestinian and Babylonian systems developed alongside it. Some Palestinian manuscripts from the eighth century use sparse vowel pointing.