Some Tips on Hindi Grammar

[Anju]

Syntax
This is the order of the parts of speech in a sentence.
With regards to word order, Hindi-Urdu is an Subject-Object-Verb language. In terms of branching, it is neither purely left- or right-branching, and phenomena of both types can be found. The order of constituents in sentences as a whole lacks governing "hard and fast rules", and frequent deviations can be found from normative word position, describable in terms of a small number of rules.
1. Indirect objects precede direct objects.
2. Attributive adjectives precede the noun they qualify.
3. Adverbs precede the adjectives they qualify.
4. Negative markers (nahī̃, na, mat) and interrogatives precede the verb.
5. Interrogatives precede negative markers if both are present.
6. kyā ("what?") as the yes-no question marker occurs at the beginning of a clause.

Hindi uses a different syntax than French. The verbs are placed at the end of the sentence and prepositions are written after the noun.
Example:
Assertive sentences
English: Subject Verb Object => I go to school.
Hindi: Subject Object Verb => I school go.
Imperative sentences
English: Verb Place => Come here
Hindi: Place Verb => Here come
Interrogative
English: Adverb Aux.Verb Subject Verb => What are you eating?
Hindi: Subject Adverb Verb+aux verb => You what eating?

Nouns
Gender
Hindi has two genders: masculine (nouns ending in aa) and feminine (nouns ending in ii) but there are exceptions.
Number
singular and plural.

Verbs
Verbs are changed with respect to gender of the subject word (nouns may be masculine, feminine, like in French), number of the subject (singular, plural), tense (present, past, future), action (perfect, imperfect, continuous), degree of respect (intimate, familiar, respect).

Verbs are described as in their infinitive noun forms - these end in -na.

Examples:
Kahna to say or speak
bolna to say or speak
likhna to write
lena to take
aana to come
jaana to go
peena to drink
khaana to eat

The actual root of a verb is the infinitive form minus the -na suffix

Examples:
kah
bol
likh
le
aa
jaa
pee
khaa

For example: bol = speak

I speak = main bolti hoon (fem) or main bolta hoon (masc)

You speak = tum bolte ho (informal, gender neutral)
aap bolte hain (formal or with respect, gender neutral)
These will become : bolti for fem. and boltaa for masc. instead of bolte.

In general, -aa ending verb formations are for masculine subjects and -ii endings for feminine.

jaataa hai = goes (masc) [hai is aux. verb]
jaati hai = goes (fem)

[Anju]

Hindi Pronouns

First Person
I - main
My - mera (m) , meri (f) , mere (pl)
But this gender difference for "my" does not depend on your gender, it depends on the gender of the object that belongs to you.
Whether you are a man or a woman, you would say:
Mera naam (my name, naam is masculine)
Meri kitaab (my book, book - kitaab is fem.)
mere dost (my friends)

We - hum
Our - hamara (m) , hamari (f) , hamare (pl)
(again here, the gender of the "our" depends on the gender of the word that follows
hamara desh - our country -- desh is masc.
humari zindagi- our lives- zindagi or life is Fem.

Second Person
You - tum , aap (respect)
Your - tumhara (m) , tumhari (f) , tumhare (pl) - same gender considerations
Your (respect) - aapka (m) , aapki (f) , aapke (pl)

Third Person
He, she, it (there) - vah , ve (respect)
He, she, it (here) - yah, ye (respect)
His, her, its - uska (m) , uski (f) , uske (pl)

Hindi tends to favour the use of वह vah and वे ve more than english does. यह yah and ये ye are only used to indicate a particular sense closeness.

Hindi has three levels of you. This is a very important idea to understand:

* āp (or aap)is for formal use, with superiors and unfamiliar people
* tum is for more familiar use, with peers, and for use with subordinates, etc.
* tu is intimate, used for very close people, in songs etc.

This level system is important to understand because using the wrong version of you can be very offensive. This also varies from person to person, from region to region, and from generation to generation. The best bet is to use आप āp whenever there is any doubt.


They - ve
Their - unka (m) , unki (f) , unke (pl)

Demonstrative & relative
This - yah
This very, this same - yahin
That - vah
That very, that same - vahin
These - ye
Those - ve

Who - kaun
To Whom (sing) - kis ko
To Whom (pl or respect) - kin ko
Whose - kis ka (m) , kis ki (f)

Which (sing) - kaun si
Which (pl) - kaun se

Of which (s) - kis ki
Of which (pl) - kin ki

to me = mujhko
to us = hum ko
to you = tum ko, or aap ko
to him or to her = usko
to them = unko

[Anju]

Tense

Present tense of hona (to be):

main hoon -- I am
hum hain -- we are
tum ho -- you are (familiar)
aap hain -- you are (respect)

tu hai -- you are (intimate, may be considered inappropriate in some regions)

yah hai -- this, he, she, it is
vah hai -- that, he, she, it is
ye hain -- these, they are
ve hain -- those, they are

Hona is frequently used as an auxiliary verb for sentence formations.
Mera naam anju hai. - (my name is anju)
Main ek Indian hoon. - I am an Indian.
Tum kya kar rahe ho - what are you doing
aap kahan jaa rahe hain - where are you going (respect)

Present Imperfect

The present imperfect is used for habitual actions, like he goes, she reads, man walks.
It is formed by adding suffixes -ta, -te, or -ti to the root of the verb, followed by the present tense of hona as an auxillary.

Below are shown the forms in the masculine. The feminine forms can be constructed by replacing -ta and -te with -ti.

main jata hoon -- I go
yah jata hai -- this, he, it goes
vah jalta hai -- that, he, it goes

John bolta hai - John speaks or John says
Jane bolti hai - Jane speaks or Jane says

hum gaate hain -- we sing
tum gaate ho -- you sing (familiar)
aap gaate hain -- you sing (respect)
ye gaate hain -- these, they sing
ve gaate hain -- those, they sing

Jane and John chalte hain= Jane and John walk


Present Continuous

The present continuous is used for ongoing actions -- like the "-ing" form in English. It is formed like this:
verb root + raha/rahe/rahi + present tense of hona

Below are shown the forms in the masculine. The feminine forms can be constructed by replacing raha and rahe with rahi.

main bol raha hun -- I am speaking
tu bol raha hai -- you are speaking (intimate, maybe inappropriate in some regions)
yah bol raha hai -- this, he, it is speaking
vah bol raha hai -- that, he, it is speaking
hum bol rahe hain -- we are speaking
tum bol rahe ho -- you are speaking (familiar)
aap bol rahe hain -- you are speaking (respect)
ye bol rahe hain -- these, they are speaking
ve bol rahe hain -- those, they are speaking


Past Tense

Past tense of hona (to be):

main tha / thi -- I was (tha if you are man, thi if you are a woman)
yah tha / thi -- this, he, she, it was
vah tha / thi -- that, he, she, it was
hum the -- we were
tum the -- you were (familiar)
(the above two are gender neutral forms of the verbs)
aap the / theen -- you were (respect) -- theen for fem.
ye the / theen -- these, they were
ve the / theen -- those, they were

(The slash separates masculine and feminine forms)


Past Imperfect

The past imperfect is used for habitual actions in the past. It is formed like the present imperfect but with the past tense of hona instead of the present tense.

Below are shown the forms in the masculine. The feminine forms can be constructed by replacing bolta and bolte with bolti, replacing tha with thi, and the with theen.

main bolta tha -- I used to speak
tum bolte the -- you used to speak (familiar)
aap bolte the -- you used to speak (respect)
tu bolta tha -- you used to speak (intimate)

hum bolte the -- we used to speak

yah bolta tha -- this, he, it used to speak
vah bolta tha -- that, he, it used to speak

ye bolte the -- these, they used to speak
ve bolte the -- those, they used to speak



Past Continuous

The past continuous is used for ongoing actions in the past -- like the "-ing" form in English. It is formed like this:
stem + raha/rahe/rahi + past tense of hona

Below are shown the forms in the masculine. The feminine forms can be constructed by replacing raha and rahe with rahi, replacing tha with thi, and the with theen.

main bol raha tha/ rahi thi -- I was speaking
tu bol raha tha -- you were speaking (intimate)
yah bol raha tha -- this, he, it was speaking
vah bol raha tha -- that, he, it was speaking
hum bol rahe the -- we were speaking
tum bol rahe the -- you were speaking (familiar)
aap bol rahe the -- you were speaking (respect)
ye bol rahe the -- these, they were speaking
ve bol rahe the -- those, they were speaking



Future Tense
Future Imperfect

The future imperfect is used to refer to the future as well as to make assumptions about the presents (just like in English). It is formed by adding unga/i, ega/i, enge/i, or oge/i to the stem.

Below are shown the forms in the masculine. The feminine forms can be constructed by replacing the ending a or e with i.

main bolunga -- I will speak
tu bolega -- you will speak (intimate)
yah bolega -- this, he, it will speak
vah bolega -- that, he, it will speak
hum bolenge -- we will speak
tum bologe -- you will speak (familiar)
aap bolenge -- you will speak (respect)
ye bolenge -- these, they will speak
ve bolenge -- those, they will speak


Future Continuous

The future continuous is used to refer to ongoing actions in the future. It is formed as the present imperfect but with the future of raha instead of hona.

Below are shown the forms in the masculine. The feminine forms can be constructed by replacing the ending -a or -e with -i in both verbs.

main bolta rahunga -- I will be speaking
tu bolta rahega -- you will be speaking (intimate)
yah bolta rahega -- this, he, it will be speaking
vah bolta rahega -- that, he, it will be speaking
hum bolte rahenge -- we will be speaking
tum bolte rahoge -- you will be speaking (familiar)
aap bolte rahenge -- you will be speaking (respect)
ye bolte rahenge -- these, they will be speaking
ve bolte rahenge -- those, they will be speaking


Imperative

There are three different imperatives in Hindi: tu, tum, and aap imperative.
Tu is you in a very intimate sense or even maybe considered offensive in some families or communities.
It is better to steer clear of using the tu forms unless you know the other person is close to you and is comfortable with using tu.

Tum is you in a familiar sense, and more commonly used for familiar people of same age group, or people younger to us.

Aap is the respectful you, used for new people, elder people, in formal settings, and even for all age groups in some families who speak in a more formal way.

The tu imperative is the verb root itself
The tum imperative is the root + o
The aap imperative is the root + iye

Examples:
kitaab la -- bring book (intimate)
kitaab lao -- bring book (familiar)
kitaab laaiye -- bring book (respect)


Sentences are made negative by adding mat, na, or nahin, like ne-pas, before the verb.
Use mat with the tu imperative.
Use mat or na with the tum imperative.
Use na or nahin with the ap imperative.

Examples:
vahan mat ja -- don't go there (intimate)
vahan mat jao or vahan na jao ---- don't go there (familiar)
vahan nahin jaiye --- don't go there (respect)
Kaam khatam nahi hua hai -- work is not over (yet)
Main yahan nahi rahti hoon - i dont live here

[Anju]

Verb Forms - causatives

* girnā "to fall", girānā "to fell", girvānā "to cause to be felled".
* banna "to become", banānā "to make", banvānā "to cause to be made".
* khulnā "to open", kholnā "to open", khulvānā "to caused to be opened".
* sīkhnā "to learn", sikhānā "to teach", sikhvānā "to cause to be taught".
* khānā "to eat", khilānā "to feed", khilvānā "to cause to be fed".
* biknā "to sell", becnā "to sell", bikvānā "to cause to be sold".
* dikhnā/dīkhnā "to seem", dekhnā "to see", dikhānā "to show", dikhvānā "to cause to be shown".
* kahnā "to say", kahlānā "to be called".
* ghūmnā "to go round", ghumānā "to make go round".
* leṭnā "to lie down", liṭānā "to lay down".
* baiṭhnā "to sit", biṭhānā "to seat".
* sonā "to sleep", sulānā "to make sleep".
* dhulnā "to wash", dhonā "to wash".
* ṭūṭnā "to break", toṛnā "to break", tuṛānā "to cause to be broken".

[Anju]

Conjuncts

Another notable aspect of Hindi-Urdu grammar is that of "conjunct verbs", comprised of a noun or adjective paired up with a general verbalizer, most commonly transitive karnā "to do" or intransitive honā "to be(come)", functioning in the place of what in English would be single unified verb.

In the case of an adjective as the non-verbal element, it is often helps to think of karnā "to do" as supplementally having the senses of "to cause to be", "to make", "to render", etc.


Adjective -- Conjunct -- Literally -- Practical Meaning

sāf (clean) -- sāf karnā -- to do clean -- to clean

niyukt (appointed) -- niyukt karnā -- to do appointed -- to appoint

band (closed) --band honā -- to become closed -- to close
khatm finished --khatm honā -- to become finished --to finish

In the case of a noun as the non-verbal element, it is treated syntactically as the verb's (direct) object
Here- patient or object = participant of a situation upon whom an action is carried out

For example:

intazar = wait (noun)

Noun -- Conjunct -- Conjunct + patient or object -- Literal -- Meaning

intazār (wait) --intazār karnā -- kisī kā intazār karnā --to do somebody's wait -- to wait for somebody

istemāl (use) -- istemāl karnā -- phone kā istemāl karnā -- to do a phone's use -- to use a phone

bāt (talk) --bāt karnā --Politics kī bāt karnā -- to do politics' talk -- to talk about Politics

[sabine]

thanks a lot Anju for the hard work you're putting in here; it's very helpful

[Sourav]

Yes, Anju is indeed doing a commendable job here ...

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[Shashikala]

Hi Anju,


I have discovered your Hindi lesson some days back and I wanted to thank you for your hard work !

I have been trying to learn Hindi for many months but I was really confused about many things (especially genders and the way to built sentences).

You have detailed many rules to apply and now it is more clear in my mind and my motivation is back !!


Do you think that you could provide me (or us?) with a list of common verbs (with their root) so I can train a little bit ?


Thanks a lot again !

[Anju]

Hello Shashikala,
Welcome to the forum, and thank you for appreciating my Hindi post.
I would be happy to know a bit about your background, if you don't mind.
I mean, what is your mother tongue? Do you prefer Hindi written in Devnagari script or in Roman alphabet?
I will surely put up a list of verbs!
_________________
ANJU

[Anju]

@Shashikala: Meanwhile, do check out this link
http://www.unilang.org/course.php?res=69&id=hindi_0&pagenum=index
_________________
ANJU

[Shashikala]

Hello Anju ,


Thanks a lot for your welcome!


I just had a look at your verb list . Wow !! This is kind of you.. I now have enough to keep myself busy with verbs conjugation and tenses for some months.

I have good hope that, next time I go to India I will be able to say more than "eek paani ki bottle, dena" !!


I'm French and I would like to learn Hindi and write it with Roman alphabet (forgot to mention it indeed) for a start. I don't even think of learning how to write Hindi with Devnagari script today !.

If one day I manage to master Hindi a little bit then I might try and learn Devnagari script.


Merci Anju !

[Anju]

Shashikala,
You are welcome.
All the best!
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ANJU