hava amina

Meaning

• initial assumption
• first thought
• possibility considered and then tested

Alternate spellings

hava mina, havah amina

Usage and context

In Talmudic discussion, this is a preliminary idea that may be rejected or refined. Conversationally it can mean the assumption someone started with.

Example in Yeshivish

My hava amina was that the store closed at six.

Plain-English example

My initial assumption was that the store closed at six.