Hindi · Upper intermediate (B2) · Chapter 8 of 12
Idioms and everyday speech
मुहावरे और बोलचालmuhaavre aur bolchaal
Sound natural in Hindi: common idioms (मुहावरे), fillers like मतलब and वैसे, and the shortcuts of relaxed speech.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Understand and use common Hindi idioms
- Keep a conversation flowing with fillers like मतलब, वैसे, चलो
- Recognise the shortcuts of relaxed speech
- Joke and tease within the family
Listen
In Jodhpur, a few days before Diwali, Nani makes laddoos with her grandchildren Ritika, 26, and Mohit, 22. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Nani
रितिका, मोहित, आओ, ज़रा मेरा हाथ बँटाओ। दिवाली में बस तीन दिन बचे हैं, और अभी तक लड्डू भी नहीं बने।
Ritikaa, Mohit, aao, zaraa meraa haath bantaao. Divaalee men bas teen din bache hain, aur abhee tak laddoo bhee naheen bane.
Ritika, Mohit, come and give me a hand. There are only three days left until Diwali, and the laddoos aren't even made yet.
Ritika
आ गई, नानी! वाह, घी की ख़ुशबू से ही मेरे मुँह में पानी आ गया।
Aa gaee, naanee! Vaah, ghee kee khushboo se hee mere munh men paanee aa gayaa.
Coming, Nani! Mmm, just the smell of the ghee is making my mouth water.
Nani
पहले काम, फिर खाना। और मोहित कहाँ है? अभी तो यहीं था।
Pahle kaam, phir khaanaa. Aur Mohit kahaan hai? Abhee to yaheen thaa.
Work first, then food. And where's Mohit? He was right here a moment ago.
Ritika
जैसे ही आपने काम की बात की, वह नौ दो ग्यारह हो गया! मतलब, किसी से फ़ोन पर बात कर रहा है।
Jaise hee aapne kaam kee baat kee, vah nau do gyaarah ho gayaa! Matlab, kisee se fon par baat kar rahaa hai.
As soon as you mentioned work, he vanished! I mean, he's on the phone to someone.
Mohit
अरे, मैं कहीं नहीं भागा। दोस्त का फ़ोन था। अच्छा नानी, बताइए, क्या करना है?
Are, main kaheen naheen bhaagaa. Dost kaa fon thaa. Achchhaa naanee, bataaiye, kyaa karnaa hai?
Hey, I didn't run off anywhere. A friend called. Right, Nani, tell me, what do I do?
Nani
यह चम्मच लो और इसे धीरे-धीरे हिलाते रहो। और फ़ोन अभी रख दो।
Yah chammach lo aur ise dheere-dheere hilaate raho. Aur fon abhee rakh do.
Take this spoon and keep stirring slowly. And put your phone down for now.
Mohit
जी, नानी। वैसे दीदी, तुम आज इतनी ख़ुश क्यों हो? सुबह से मुस्कुरा रही हो। दाल में कुछ काला है।
Jee, naanee. Vaise deedee, tum aaj itnee khush kyon ho? Subah se muskuraa rahee ho. Daal men kuchh kaalaa hai.
Yes, Nani. By the way, Didi, why are you so happy today? You've been smiling since this morning. Something's up.
Ritika
कुछ काला-वाला नहीं है। बस, मुझे बेंगलुरु वाली नौकरी मिल गई है। है ना बढ़िया?
Kuchh kaalaa-vaalaa naheen hai. Bas, mujhe Bengaluru vaalee naukaree mil gaee hai. Hai naa badhiyaa?
Nothing's up. It's just that I've got the job in Bengaluru. Isn't that great?
Nani
अरे वाह! यह तो बहुत अच्छी ख़बर है। पर तुमने हमें पहले क्यों नहीं बताया? और तनख़्वाह कितनी है?
Are vaah! Yah to bahut achchhee khabar hai. Par tumne hamen pahle kyon naheen bataayaa? Aur tankhvaah kitnee hai?
Oh, wonderful! That's very good news. But why didn't you tell us before? And how much is the salary?
Ritika
नानी, आप भी ना! तनख़्वाह ठीक-ठाक है, लेकिन बेंगलुरु के किराए देखकर लगता है कि वह ऊँट के मुँह में जीरा है।
Naanee, aap bhee naa! Tankhvaah theek-thaak hai, lekin Bengaluru ke kiraaye dekhkar lagtaa hai ki vah oont ke munh men jeeraa hai.
Oh, Nani, really! The salary's OK, but when you see the rents in Bengaluru, it feels like a drop in the ocean.
Mohit
चलो, कोई बात नहीं। कम से कम अब मुझे बेंगलुरु घूमने का बहाना मिल गया। दीदी, मैं हर महीने आऊँगा, ठीक है?
Chalo, koee baat naheen. Kam se kam ab mujhe Bengaluru ghoomne kaa bahaanaa mil gayaa. Deedee, main har maheene aaoongaa, theek hai?
Oh well, never mind. At least I've got an excuse to visit Bengaluru now. Didi, I'll come every month, OK?
Ritika
हर महीने? मेरा सिर खाने आओगे क्या? चलो, पहले लड्डू बनाओ, फिर सोचेंगे।
Har maheene? Meraa sir khaane aaoge kyaa? Chalo, pahle laddoo banaao, phir sochenge.
Every month? Are you coming to drive me mad? Come on, make the laddoos first, then we'll see.
Understand
Idioms: मुहावरे
A (muhaavraa) is an idiom: a fixed phrase whose meaning isn't the sum of its words. Hindi speakers use them all the time, at home as much as in the papers. Most contain a verb, and the verb changes as usual: (mere munh men paanee aa gayaa), my mouth watered; (vah nau do gyaarah ho gayaa), he vanished.
Learn idioms as whole phrases. Some, like (sir khaanaa), are chatty and best kept for people you know well. Don't translate English idioms word for word: “a drop in the ocean” is (oont ke munh men jeeraa), a cumin seed in a camel's mouth.
| Idiom | Literally | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| (munh men paanee aanaa) | water comes into the mouth | the mouth waters |
| (haath bantaanaa) | to share hands | to lend a hand |
| (nau do gyaarah honaa) | to become nine two eleven | to vanish, to run off |
| (daal men kuchh kaalaa hai) | there's something black in the lentils | something's fishy, something's up |
| (oont ke munh men jeeraa) | cumin in a camel's mouth | a drop in the ocean |
| (sir khaanaa) | to eat someone's head | to pester, to drive someone mad |
| (aankhon kaa taaraa) | the star of the eyes | the apple of your eye |
Fillers and discourse markers
Spoken Hindi is full of small words that keep a conversation flowing. They rarely translate one to one, so the table gives the usual sense. (naa), the spoken form of (na), softens a sentence or makes a tag: (hai naa badhiyaa?), isn't it great? (aap bhee naa!) is an affectionate “oh, you!”
| Hindi | Usual sense |
|---|---|
| … (matlab …) | I mean …, that is … |
| … (vaise …) | by the way …, actually … |
| … (achchhaa …) | right, so … (moving on) |
| … (chalo …) | oh well, come on, anyway |
| / … (dekho / dekhiye …) | look, you see … |
| … (bas …) | just, that's all |
| (hai naa?) | isn't it?, right? |
Spoken shortcuts
In relaxed speech some forms get shorter. You already know (khaake) for (khaakar). In questions and negatives, (hai) or (ho) is often dropped after the continuous: (kahaan jaa rahe?), where are you off to?; (vah sun naheen rahaa), he isn't listening.
A yes/no question often ends with (kyaa) instead of starting with it: (meraa sir khaane aaoge kyaa?), are you coming to drive me mad? Echo words repeat a word with व (v) in place of its first consonant and mean “or anything like that”: (kuchh kaalaa-vaalaa naheen hai), there's nothing fishy or anything; (chaay-vaay), tea or something. Understand these forms; in careful speech, use the full ones.
More in the grammar: Idioms and set phrases (मुहावरे)
New words
- मुहावराmuhaavraaidiom · masculine; plural (muhaavre)
- हाथ बँटानाhaath bantaanaato lend a hand · (meraa haath bantaao), give me a hand
- बचनाbachnaato be left, to remain; to be saved · (teen din bache hain), there are three days left
- लड्डूladdooladdoo, a round sweet · masculine; plural (laddoo)
- घीgheeghee, clarified butter · masculine
- ख़ुशबूkhushboopleasant smell, fragrance · feminine
- मुँहmunhmouth; face · masculine
- मतलबmatlabmeaning; I mean · masculine; (iskaa kyaa matlab hai?), what does this mean?
- नौ दो ग्यारह होनाnau do gyaarah honaato vanish, to run off · an idiom: literally “to become nine two eleven”
- वैसेvaiseby the way; actually · at the start of a sentence, to change the subject
- मुस्कुरानाmuskuraanaato smile · no (ne)
- बढ़ियाbadhiyaagreat, excellent · never changes; very common in speech
- बहानाbahaanaaexcuse, pretext · masculine; … (… kaa bahaanaa), an excuse for …
- सिर खानाsir khaanaato pester, to drive someone mad · an idiom: (meraa sir mat khaao), stop pestering me
Practise
1.Ritika smells the ghee and says (mere munh men paanee aa gayaa). What does she mean?
2.As soon as work was mentioned, Mohit disappeared. Which idiom describes this?
3.Put the words in order.
Tap the words below in the right order.Something's fishy.
4.Match the Hindi with the English.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
5.Your new salary is tiny compared with the rent. Which idiom fits?
6.What does (vaise) usually mean at the start of a sentence?
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
ज़रा मेरा हाथ बँटाओ।
Zaraa meraa haath bantaao.
Give me a hand, will you?
Listen, then say it out loud, as close to the recording as you can.
Check
Five questions on this chapter. Then mark it as finished to add its words to your review deck.
0 of 5 answered.