)
There were 39 categories of melakha necessary for the Tabernacle to function. These are called avot melakha. (Activities that are largely, but not entirely, similar to avot are called toladot. In practice, there is no difference between an av melakha and a tolada; any melakha considered creative is biblically prohibited.)
Of the 39 melakhot, eleven deal with food preparation:
1. Sowing (Zore’a)
2. Plowing (Ĥoresh)
3. Reaping (Kotzer)
4. Gathering (Me’amer)
5. Threshing (Dash)
6. Winnowing (Zoreh)
7. Separating (Borer)
8. Grinding (Toĥen)
9. Sifting (Meraked)
10. Kneading (Lash)
11. Cooking/Baking (Bishul/Ofeh)
Thirteen deal with making clothing:
12. Shearing wool (Gozez tzemer)
13. Laundering (Melaben)
14. Combing wool (Menapetz)
15. Dyeing (Tzove’a)
16. Spinning (Toveh)
17. Warping (Meisekh)
18. Making two loops (Oseh shtei batei nirin)
19. Weaving two threads (Oreg shnei ĥutin)
20. Separating two threads (Potze’a shnei ĥutin)
21. Tying a knot (Kosheir)
22. Untying a knot (Matir)
23. Sewing two stitches (Tofer shtei tefirot)24. Tearing in order to sew two stitches (Kore’a al menat litfor shtei tefirot)
Seven deal with animals:
25. Trapping (Tzad tzvi)
26. Slaughtering (Shoĥet)
27. Skinning (Mafshit)
28. Tanning (Mole’aĥ/Me’abed)
29. Marking (Mesartet)
30. Smoothing (Memaĥek)
31. Cutting (Meĥatekh)
The rest deal with writing, building, and other human needs:
32. Writing two letters (Kotev shtei otiyot)
33. Erasing two letters in order to overwrite them (Moĥek al menat likhtov shtei otiyot)
34. Building (Boneh)
35. Demolishing (Soter)
36. Extinguishing a fire (Mekhabeh)
37. Lighting a fire (Mavir)
38. Applying the finishing touch (Makeh be-patish)
39. Carrying from one domain to another (Motzi me-reshut li-reshut)
