What is the difference between Vayomer and Vayomar?

Question

In Chumash, sometimes it says vayomer, but other times it says vayomar. What is the difference? Don't they both just mean "he said"?

Answer 1

As you noted in your comment, at Wiktionary.org, וַיֹּאמַר is the pausal form of וַיֹּאמֶר. In use in the bible, generally coming off of a previous introductory verb, it seems to be more reasonably translated as "saying:" akin to "לאמר" (or "and said:") rather than as "And he said..." or "He said...". See, e.g., Job 1:7 in which וַיֹּאמַר may be interpreted just by using quotation marks:

וַיֹּ֧אמֶר ה' אֶל־הַשָּׂטָ֖ן מֵאַ֣יִן תָּבֹ֑א וַיַּ֨עַן הַשָּׂטָ֤ן אֶת־ה' וַיֹּאמַ֔ר מִשּׁ֣וּט בָּאָ֔רֶץ וּמֵֽהִתְהַלֵּ֖ךְ בָּֽהּ׃

The LORD said to the Adversary, “Where have you been?” The Adversary answered the LORD, “ I have been roaming all over the earth. ”