What it does
Tipcha is a mid-strength disjunctive whose job is to set up the major pause. You will almost never see Tipcha appear on its own. It always sits one word before either Etnachta (mid-verse pause) or Sof Pasuk (end of verse), preparing the reader for the bigger stop that's about to land.
Where it appears
Most verses contain at least one Tipcha; many contain two: one setting up the Etnachta in the middle, and one setting up the Sof Pasuk at the end. If you spot a Tipcha, look ahead one word: a major pause is coming.
How to remember it
Tipcha shares a root with tefach, meaning "handspan." Picture the reader extending a hand before the pause, signaling that something is about to stop. The mark itself is a short diagonal slash below the letter, like a small swept line under the word that says "almost there."
Example from the Torah
Bereishis 1:1
Tipcha sits on הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם, two words before the end of the verse. It sets up the Sof Pasuk on הָאָֽרֶץ. The same verse also opens with a Tipcha on בְּרֵאשִׁ֖ית, which set up the Etnachta on אֱלֹהִ֑ים. Two Tipchas, two major pauses. A textbook layout.
Hear the melody
Chanted by Jordan Mittler.
Hand signal (simanim)
Often confused with
Tipcha and Mercha both look like diagonal slashes below the letter. The key difference is function: Tipcha is a disjunctive (it pauses). Mercha is a conjunctive (it leads forward into the next word). If a major stop follows the next word, it's Tipcha. Otherwise it's Mercha.