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Basic Hindi for Travelers This is a brief introduction to Hindi, one of the official languages of India. This introduction contains basic instruction about pronunciation and important words and phrases. Anywhere you travel in India, the ability to communicate in Hindi will greatly enhance your experience. Even if you do not plan on studying the language in-depth, we strongly suggest learning and using basic greetings and phrases. The locals will greatly appreciate your efforts and will be all the more welcoming to you during your stay. If you would like to complete a beginning course in Hindi, there are a number of self-study books and tapes. Lonely Planet‟s Hindi, Urdu & Bengali Phrasebook (2005) and Berlitz‟s Hindi Phrase Book and Dictionary (2006) are two very helpful books. Pronunciation Hindi is written in the Devanagari script, which is also the script used for Sanskrit, Nepali, and many other languages. There are 67 characters, each with only one pronunciation. The Devanagari script is not used in this guide; however, a list of the Devanagari characters can be found at the end of this document. Hindi has eleven vowel sounds. a „u‟ as in run aa „a‟ ee „ee‟ as in bee i as in father ai „ai‟ as „i‟ as in bit in aisle ay „ay‟ as in o „o‟ as in go oo day au „ow‟ as in „oo‟ as in fool u „u‟ cow e „e‟ as in bed as in put Generally, Hindi consonants are pronounced the same as in English. b as in bat ng as in finger ch as in chew ny as in canyon d as in dog p as in pin f as in frog r as in rabbit, but slightly trilled g as in go s as in sit h as in hit sh as in ship j as in jaw t as in stop k as in kennel v as in van l as in last y as in yolk m as in mill z as in zero n as in neat info@villagevolunteers.org • www.villagevolunteers.org Page 1 of 6 There are two special types of consonants: aspirated consonants and retroflex consonants. Aspirated consonants are pronounced much more forcefully and with a puff of air. Below are the proper pronunciations of the aspirated consonants. bh „b‟ as in bus chh „ch‟ + „h‟ as in punch hard dh „d‟ in duck gh „g‟ in go jh „j‟ in jump kh „k‟ in kill ph „p‟ in pit, or like an „f‟ th „t‟ in time Retroflex consonants are pronounced by touching the tongue to the roof of the mouth while pronouncing the consonants. Only four consonants can be pronounced this way (d, t, n, dh). In this guide, we have not distinguished between regular consonants, and the aspirated and retroflex consonants. You will still be understood if you do not use them. In Hindi, word stress is very light, and is determined by a complex set of rules. In this guide, however, the stressed syllable will be in italics. Greetings Hello na-ma-ste Goodbye na-ma-ste See you later. pir mi-leng-ge How are you? aap kay-se/kay-see hayng (m/f) I‟m fine, and you? mayng theek hoong aap su-naa-i-ye Okay theek Introductions My name is… me-raa naam … hay. What is your name? aap kaa naam kyaa hay? Pleased to meet you. aap se mil-kar ba-hut ku-shee he-ee I am from America. mayng am-ree-kaa kaa/kee hoong (m/f) Where are you from? aap ha-haang ke/kee hayng? (m/f) I am a student. mayng chaa-tra hoong I work in… mayng … meng kaam kar-taa/kar-tee hoong (m/f) Etiquette Thank you thayn-kyoo; dhan-ya- waad You‟re welcome ko-ee baat na-heeng Please kri-pa-yaa Sorry maaf kee-ji-ye Excuse me (to get attention) su-ni-ye Excuse me (to pass) raas-taa de dee-ji-ye info@villagevolunteers.org • www.villagevolunteers.org Page 2 of 6 Relationships/Titles I/me mayng You (formal) aap You (informal) tum Friend dost Family pa-ri-vaar Daughter be-tee Son be-taa Brother baa-ee Sister be-han Father pi-taa Mother maang Husband pa-ti Wife pat-nee Doctor daak-tar Teacher tee-char Man aad-mee Mister/Sir shree-man/sar Woman stree Mrs./Madam shree-ma-tee/may-dam Ms./Miss mis/ku-maa-ree Food and Drinks I am hungry. mu-je book la-gee hay I am thirsty. mu-je pyaas la-gee hay I would like… mu-je … chaa-hi-ye Food kaa-naa Bread ro-tee naan Meat gosht Fish mach-lee Vegetables sab-zee Fruit pal Chicken mur-gee Rice chaa-val Lentils daal Coffee kaa-fee Tea chaai Water paa-nee Milk dood Beer bi-yar The meal was delicious. ba-hut ma-ze-daar hu-aa info@villagevolunteers.org • www.villagevolunteers.org Page 3 of 6 Important Locations Market baa-zaar Temple man-dir Mosque mas-jid Church gir-jaa Shop du-kaan School skool Hospital as-pa-taal Home ghar Bathroom baat-rum Toilet (flushing) taa-i-let Shower shaa-var Kitchen ra-so-ree Garden ba-gee-cha Cost How much is it? kit-ne kaa hay? Money pay-se Price daam ma- Expensive han-gaa Cheap sas-taa Time of Day Today aaj sa- Morning ve-raa Afternoon do-pa-har Evening shaam raat Night Useful Words and Phrases Yes jee haang na-heeng No Maybe shaa-yad Now ab May I use the… ? kyaa mayng … kaa is-te-maal kar sak-taa/sak- tee hoong? (m/f) What is this? voh kyaa hay? … ka-haang hay? Where is the… ? I want to go… … jaa-ne kaa man ho ra-haa I would like to buy… hay mu-je … chaa-hi-ye mu-je ta-kaan hu-ee hay I am tired. I am lost. mu-je ko ga-yaa/ga-yee hoong (m/f) I am ill. mayng bee-maar hoong info@villagevolunteers.org • www.villagevolunteers.org Page 4 of 6
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