Hindi/Everyday Phrases

What does your typical day looks like?

Phrases

• Hello - नमस्कार (namaskar) or namaste (नमस्ते)
• Goodbye -अलविदा (Alvida), चलता/चलती/चलते हूँ/है (chaltā/chalti/chalte hūⁿ/hai) [chaltā hūⁿ is used by a boy whereas chalti hū is used by a girl. chalte hai is used by a group of people]
• Please be seated- पधारिये। (Padhāriye.)
• See you again. - फिर मिलेंगे। (Phir mileṅge.)
• Thank you - धन्यवाद (dhanyavād)
• It is nice to meet you, I felt good meeting you. - आप से मिल के ख़ुशी हुई, आप से मिल के अच्छा लगा। (Āp se mil ke xuśī huī, āp se mil ke acchā lagā.)
• Please take me to my hotel. - कृप्या मुझे मेरे होटल ले चलिये। (kripyā mujhe mere hoṭel le caliye.)
• Where is the bathroom? - शौंचालय किधर है? (Śauⁿcālay kidhar hai?)
• How much does this cost? - यह कितने का है? (Yah kitne kā hai?)
• How is your health? How is it? What is going on? - क्या हाल है? कैसे हो/हैं? क्या चल रहा है? (Kyā hāl hai? Kaise ho/haiⁿ? Kyā chal rahā hai?
• Where's the phone? - फ़ोन कहाँ है? (Fon kahāⁿ hai?)
• Where are you? - किधर हो तुम? / कहाँ हो तुम? / कहाँ हैं आप? (Kidhar ho tum? / Kahāⁿ ho tum? / Kahāⁿ haiⁿ āp?)
• Can I sit here? (speaker is male) - क्या मैं यहाँ बैठ सकता हूँ? (Kyā maiⁿ yahāⁿ baiṭh saktā hūⁿ?)
• Can I sit here? (speaker is female) - क्या मैं यहाँ बैठ सकती हूँ? (Kyā maiⁿ yahāⁿ baiṭh saktī hūⁿ?)
• I need a (taxi, car, telephone, pen). - मुझे एक (टैक्सी, कार/गाड़ी, फ़ोन, क़लम/पेन) चाहिये। (Mujhe ek (ṭaiksī, kār/gaṛī, fon, qalam/pen) cāhiye.)
• I need to go./I will have to go.- मुझे जाना है mujhe jāna hai / मुझे जाना पड़ेगा mujhe jānā paṛegā / मुझे जाना होगा mujhe jānā hogā
• You need/have to go - आपको जाना है āpko jānā hai / आपको जाना पड़ेगा āpko jānā paṛegā / आपको जाना होगा āpko jānā hogā / तुम्हें जाना है tumhe jānā hai / तुझे जाना है tujhe jānā hai

Translation	Phrase	Transliteration
Hindi	हिन्दी	hindī
hello/goodbye (Hindu, north)	नमस्ते	namaste
hello/goodbye (Hindu, south)	नमस्कार	namaskār
hello/goodbye (Sikh)	सत श्री अकाल	sat śrī akāl
hello (Muslim)	अस्सलाम अलैकुम	assalām alaikum
hello (Muslim reply)	वालैकुम अस्सलाम	vālaikum assalām
goodbye (Muslim)	ख़ुदा हाफ़िज़	khuda hāfiz
please* (Urdu)	मेहरबानी करके	mehrbānī karke
please*	कृपया	kṛipaya
thank you* (Sanskrit origin)	धन्यवाद	dhanyavād
thank you* (Arabic origin)	शुक्रिया	śukriyā
thank you very much	बहुत बहुत धन्यवाद/शुक्रिया	bahut bahut dhanyavād/śukriyā
you're welcome (don’t mention it)	कोई बात नहीं	koī bāt nahīn
excuse me, sorry, please forgive me	माफ़ कीजिये	māf kījiye
excuse me (lit. please listen)	ज़रा सुनिये	zarā suniye
yes	जी हाँ	jī hān
no/not	जी नहीं	jī nahīn
good!/awesome!/oh.../really?!/well!	अच्छा!	acchā!
(all-purpose adj./interj.)
How are you?	आप कैसे/कैसी हैं?	āp kaise/kaisī hai?
		(male/female respondent)
Okay!	ठीक है!	ṭhīk hai!
one minute! (“just a sec”; interj.)	एक मिनट	ek minaṭ
I don’t understand	मैं नहीं समझा/समझी	main nahīn samjha/samjhī (m/f)
I don’t know	मैं नहीं जानता/जानती हूँ	main nahīn jāntā/jāntī hun (m/f)
English	अंग्रेज़ी	angrezī
what is your name?	आप का नाम क्या है?	āp kā nām kyā hai?
my name is ...	मेरा नाम ... है	mera nām ... hai
It was nice to meet you	आप से मिलकर बहुत ख़ुशी हुई	āp se milkar bahut khuśī huī
It was nice to meet you too (lit. to me also)	मुझे भी	mujhe bhī
Do you speak English?	क्या आप अंग्रेज़ी बोलते/बोलती है?	kyā āp angrezī bolte/boltī (m/f) hain?

• *These are not used nearly as casually in Hindi and Urdu as they are in western languages. कृपया especially is used only in cases of true importance or urgency, and using it otherwise would sound incredibly stilted and formal. Instead, politeness is achieved by proper address and verb forms and body language/tone of voice.

Actions

• To make a phone call: PHONE KAR-NAA.
  

Hindi uses two forms of address. One is honoring and the other is common. Honoring address is used when talking to first acquaintances, unfamiliar people, and to elders (relations and age).... Examples include

1. Where are you? => aap kahan hain
2. What is your name? => aapka naam kya hai , aapka naam jaan sakta hoon?
3. Please have a seat. => kripya baithiye, virajiye

The common type of address is used with friends and those of the same age group with whom one is familiar.... Examples include

1. Where are you? => kahan ho?
2. What is your name? => tumhara naam kya hai,
3. Have a seat. => baitho, baith.

For Hindi learners, it is better to stick to the first type of address.

Hindi speakers normally use 'namaste' or 'namaskar' for all occasions (meaning good morning/afternoon/day/evening/night) especially with honorific use. Although these may also be used in pure Hindi:

• good morning => su-pra-bhaa't
• good evening => shubh-sun-dhyaa
• good night => shubh raat-ri

Simple words

• Help: मदद (madad), सहायता (sahāyata)
• Doctor: डाक्टर (ḍākṭar), चिकित्सक, (cikitsak)
• Police: पोलिस (polis)
• Pharmacy: दवाख़ाना (davāḫānā), चिकित्सालय (cikitsālaya)
• Taxi: टैक्सी (ṭaiksī)
• Train: ट्रेन (ṭren), रेल (rel), रेलगाड़ी (relgāṛī)
• Subway: सबवे (sabwe), भूमिगत पैदल पार पथ (bhūmigat paidal pār path)
• Bus: बस (bas)
• Street: सड़क (sadak)
• Way: रास्ता (rāstā), राह (rāh), मार्ग (mārg)
• Left: बायाँ (bāyāⁿ)
• To the left: बाएँ (bāeⁿ)
• Right: दायाँ (dāyāⁿ)
• To the right: दाएँ (dāeⁿ)
• Middle: बीच (bīc), मध्य (madhya)
• In the middle: बीच में (bīc meⁿ), बीचों बीच (bīcoⁿ bīc)
• Under, below: नीचे (nīce) (pronounced NEE-CHE, not like English "nice")
• Beef: गाय का गोश्त (gāe kā gośt)
• Chicken: चिकन (cikan), मुर्ग़ (murġ)
• Fish: मछली (machlī)
• Pork: सुअर का गोश्त (suar kā gośt)
• Veal: बछडे (bachde)
• Broil: भूनना (bhūnnā)
• Bake (v.): सेकना (seknā)
• Baked: सिका (sikā), सेंका (seⁿkā)
• Boil (v.): उबालना (ubālnā)
• Boiled: उबला (ublā)
• Fry (v.): तलना (talnā)
• Fried: तला (talā)
• Vegetable: सबज़ी (sabzī)
• Salad: सलाद (salād)
• Bread: रोटी (roṭī)
• Cheese: पनीर (panīr) (A fresh cheese, closer to curd. True, cured cheeses are rare in India.)
• Rice: चावल (cāwal)
• Potato: आलू (ālū)
• Chick peas: चना (canā)
• Pickle: अचार (achār)
• Soup: सूप (sūp)
• Chocolate: चाकलेट (cākaleṭ)
• Dessert: मिठाई (miṭhāī)
• Coffee: काफ़ी (kāfī)
• Tea: चाय (chāi)
• Milk: दूध (dūdh)
• Water: पानी (pānī), जल (jal)

Phrases

नमस्ते (namaste) - a standard greeting (literally means "I bow to you")

नमस्कार (namaskār) - a standard greeting

आप कैसे हैं? (Āp kaise haiⁿ?) - How are you?

आप का नाम क्या है? (Āp kā nām kyā hai?) - What is your name?

आप कहाँ जा रहे हैं? (Āp kahāⁿ jā rahe haiⁿ?) - Where are you going?

शुक्रिया (shukriyā) - thanks

बहुत बहुत शुक्रिया (bahut bahut shukriyā) - thanks a lot

आपका बहुत बहुत शुक्रिया (āpka bahut bahut shukriyā) - thank you so much

प्रणाम (pranām) - a greeting, similar to नमस्ते (namaste) but used for much older or respectful people

सही (sahī) - nice, right, good

बहुत सही (bahut sahī) - very good

आप की उम्र (āp kī umr) - your age

आप का नाम (āp kā nām) - your name

आप का पता (āp kā patā) - your address

आज का मौसम कैसा है? (Āj ka mausam kaisā hai?) - How is the weather today?

बैठिये (bathiye) - have a seat

और सबज़ी लेंगे? (Aur sabzī leⁿge?) - Will you have more vegetables?

और चावल लीजिये। (Aur chāwal lījiye.) - Have more rice.

थोड़ी देर इन्तज़ार कीजिये। (Thoṛī der intzār kījiye.) - Wait for some time.

ठहरिये (ṭhahriye) - wait a little

समय क्या है? (Samay kyā hai?) - What's the time? Kya hal he apka

Conversation

Here's a complete conversation in Hindi:

नीरजः मैं विद्यालय /पाठशाला /स्कूल जा रहा हूँ। (Nīraj: Mainⁿ vidhyalay/paathshaala/skūl jā rahā hūⁿ.)
Neeraj: I am going to school.

माँः ठीक है बेटा। (Māⁿ: Ṭīk hai beṭā.)
Mom: All right son.

नीरजः आज डिब्बे में क्या दिया है? (Nīraj: Āj dibbe meⁿ kyā diyā hai?)
What have you given me in tiffin?

माँः आज मैं ने सैंडविच और कुछ लड्डू दिये हैं। (Māⁿ: Āj maiⁿ ne saiⁿḍwic aur kuch ladū diye haiⁿ.)
I have given some sandwich and sweet called ladoo.

नीरजः वाह! (Nīraj: Wāh!)
Nice!

माँः बेटा समय से वापस आ जाना। (Māⁿ: Beṭā samay se wāpas ā jānā.)
Son, come back on time. or Honey, come back promptly.

नीरजः हाँ माता जी! स्कूल ख़त्म होते सीधा घर आऊँगा। (Nīraj: Hāⁿ Mātā-jī! Skūl ḫatm hote sidhā ghar āūⁿgā.)
Yes Mom! I'll be back home straight after school ends.