Hindi grammar · Intermediate (B1)
Relative clauses: जो … वह, जब … तब, जहाँ … वहाँ
How Hindi joins sentences with pairs of words: जो … वह (who, which), जब … तब (when), जहाँ … वहाँ (where), जैसे … वैसे (as).
Pairs of words
Where English uses one word (who, which, when, where), Hindi usually uses a pair. The first part starts with a ज- (j-) word, and the second part answers with a matching word: (jahaan aag jalaaee jaatee hai, vahaan sab log ikatthe hote hain), literally “where the fire is lit, there everyone gathers”.
| Pair | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| … (jo … vah) | who, which … that one | (jo larkee laal kurte men hai, vah meree bahan hai.) The girl in the red kurta is my sister. |
| … (jab … tab) | when … then | … (jab main chhotaa thaa, tab …) When I was a child, … |
| … (jahaan … vahaan) | where … there | … (jahaan tum rahte ho, vahaan …) Where you live, … |
| … (jaise … vaise) | as … so, the way … | (jaise ve karte hain, vaise hee keejiye.) Do it the way they do. |
| … (jitnaa … utnaa) | as much … as | (jitnaa chaahiye, utnaa leejiye.) Take as much as you need. |
जो before a postposition
(jo) changes before a postposition, just like (vah) becomes (us): (jis) in the singular, (jin) in the plural. With (ko) there are also short forms, and with (ne) the plural is (jinhonne), like (unhonne).
| Form | Meaning | Like |
|---|---|---|
| , (jise, jisko) | whom, to whom (singular) | (use) |
| , (jinhen, jinko) | whom, to whom (plural) | (unhen) |
| (jisne) | who (with , singular) | (usne) |
| (jinhonne) | who (with , plural or respect) | (unhonne) |
| , , (jiskaa, jiskee, jiske) | whose | (uskaa) |
| … (jis din … us din) | on the day that … | (us din) |
Other orders and short forms
The (jo) part can also come after the noun, as in English: (puraane kapre pahniye, jinhen aap phenk saken), wear old clothes that you can throw away. In speech, the answering word is often dropped: (jab main skool pahunchee, bachche aa gaye the), when I got to the school, the children had arrived.
(jo bhee) means “whoever, whatever”: (jo bhee kaam karo, dil se karo), whatever work you do, do it with all your heart.
More pairs: जितना … उतना, जैसे ही, जब तक
… (jitnaa … utnaa) also means “the more …, the more …”: … (jitnaa zyaadaa main sochtaa hoon, utnaa hee lagtaa hai ki …), the more I think about it, the more I feel that … (jaise hee) means “as soon as”, and … …, … (jab tak … naheen …, tab tak …) means “until”. …, … (jisne bhee …, use …) means “whoever (did) …”.
- जितनी जल्दी, उतना अच्छा।Jitnee jaldee, utnaa achchhaa.The sooner, the better.
- जैसे ही मैंने इतिहास पढ़ना शुरू किया, सब बदल गया।Jaise hee mainne itihaas padhnaa shuroo kiyaa, sab badal gayaa.As soon as I started studying history, everything changed.
- जब तक नतीजा नहीं आता, तब तक आराम करो।Jab tak nateejaa naheen aataa, tab tak aaraam karo.Rest until the results come out.