Hindi Adjective (विशेषण-) Definition, Types in English Meaning & Examples
Adjectives in Hindi
- Inflected
- Uninflected
- Types of Adjectives
- Degree of Adjectives
- Derivation of Adjectives
- Numerals
- Cardinals
- Ordinals
- Fractions
- Multiplicatives
- Approximation
- Aggregation
Adjectives Definition:
Adjectives are words that are used to describe or modify nouns or pronouns. Adjectives are words that describe the qualities or states of being of nouns: enormous, doglike, silly, yellow, fun, fast. They can also describe the quantity of nouns: many, few, millions, eleven. Depending on the language, an adjective can precede a corresponding noun on a prepositive basis or it can follow a corresponding noun on a postpositive basis. Structural, contextual, and style considerations can impinge on the pre- or post- position of an adjective in a given instance of its occurrence. In English, occurrences of adjectives generally can be classified into one of three categories: Adjectives in Hindi can be classified into two groups: (i) inflected and (ii) uninflected.
1. Inflected Definition and Examples
Adjective. communicable by infection, as from one person to another or from one part of the body to another: infectious diseases.These adjectives are inflected for gender and number.
Masculine | Feminine | ||
---|---|---|---|
Sg | Pl | Sg/Pl | |
बड़ा badaa | बड़े bade | बड़ी badee | big |
छोटा chhotaa | छोटे chhote | छोटी chhotee | small |
लंबा lambaa | लंबे lambe | लंबी lambee | tall |
काला kaalaa | काले kaale | काली kaalee | black |
हरा haraa | हरे hare | हरी haree | green |
अच्छा achchhaa | अच्छे achchhe | अच्छी achchhee | good |
2. Uninflected Definition and Examples
These adjectives are not inflected for number and gender.
सुंदर लड़का/लड़की sundar ladkaa /ladkee | beautiful boy/girl |
दुखी आदमी /औरत dukhee aadamee/ aurat | sad man/woman |
सफेद कपड़ा/ कमीज़ saphed kapadaa/kameez | white cloth/shirt |
Types of Adjectives
There are two broad types of adjectives:
(i) those that describe a
quality or quantity, and
(ii) those that distinguish one person or thing from another.
सुंदर लड़की sundar ladkee | a beautiful girl |
शर्मीला लड़का sharmeelaa ladkaa | a bashful boy |
The adjective शर्मीला sharmeelaa is derived by adding the suffix – ईला eelaa to the noun stem. Negative qualities are expressed by a separate set of adjectives and also by adding negative prefixes.
बदसूरत औरत bad-soorat aurat | an ugly woman |
बेशर्म लड़का be-sharm ladkaa | a shameless boy |
Quantity may be expressed either by numerals or by the adjectives of quantity like बहुत bahut / अधिक adhik 'a lot,' काफीI kaaphee 'sufficient,' कम kam 'less,' थोड़ाa thodaa 'a little.'
छे किताबें chhe kitaaben | six books |
बहुत लेग bahut leg | many people |
थोड़ा दूध thodaa doodh | a little milk |
Adjectives of quantity may also be formed by the combination of numeral + unit of measure + (classifier (terms of weight, length))/genitive postposition) (+ the particle वाला vaalaa) + noun.
दो सौ गज़ लंबी (वाली) रस्सी |
do sau gaz lambee (vaalee) rassee
two hundred yards long (gen.) rope
the two-hundred-yard long rope
दो किलो वज़न वाला पत्थर |
do kilo vazan vaalaa patthar
two kilo weight-gen stone
the stone weighing two kilograms
The postposition से se is used in the formation of reduplicated adjectival phrases.
अधिक से अधिक | adhik se adhik | at most |
कम से कम | kam se kam | at least |
अच्छे से अच्छा | achchhe se achchhaa | the best of all |
बुरे से बुरा | bure se buraa | worst of all |
मीठे से मीठा | meethe se meethaa | very sweet |
Almost all pronouns can function as adjectives. The demonstrative adjectives that point out persons or things यह - yah 'this,' ye 'these' वह vah 'that,' ve 'those' - are used in the initial position.
यह घर | yeh ghar | this house |
ये किताबें | ye kitaaben | these books |
वह लड़का | vah ladkaa | that boy |
वे बच्चे | ve bachche | those children |
Interrogative pronouns are used to ask questions.
कौन लड़का? kaun ladkaa? | which boy? |
क्या काम? kyaa kaam? | what work? |
The possessive pronouns particularize or show relation.
मेरा / तेरा दोस्त | meraa/teraa dost | my/your friend |
मेरी/ आपकी बहिन | meree/aapakee bahin | my/your sister |
उसका / उनका भाई | uskaa/unkaa bhaaee | his/their brother |
Indefinite and relative pronouns, too, function as adjectives.
कोई अखबार | koee akhbaar | some newspaper |
कुछ सब्ज़ियाँ | kuchh sabziyaan | some vegetables |
जो बच्चा | jo bachchaa | the child who |
Degree of Adjectives in Hindi:
The three degrees of adjectives are positive, comparative and superlative. The comparative and superlative degrees are used to compare between two or more subjects or objects.
For example
Tina is smarter than Abhishek
In this sentence, the comparative degree (smarter) of the adjective 'smart' is used to compare between the two persons.
For example
Tina is the smartest girl in the class
In this sentence, the superlative degree (smartest) of the same adjective is used to compare a person against two or more people.
The superlative adjective is also used to qualify a person or an object as the best among all its counterparts.
For example
Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world.
There are three varieties of adjectival degrees: superlative, comparative and minimal. Superlative and comparative degrees of qualities are denoted with the help of the postposition से se attached to the noun or pronoun (in oblique form) with which the comparison is made. Superlative involves comparison with all.
For example
सब से बड़ी इमारत | sab se badee imaarat | the biggest building |
सब से सुंदर लड़की | sab se sundar ladkee | the most beautiful girl |
Comparative involves comparison between two.
अपने दोस्त से लंबा | apne dost se lambaa | taller than his friend |
Comparative involves comparison between two.
मेरा अच्छा दोस्त | meraa achchhaa dost | my good friend |
The postposition में mei is also alternately used to denote the superiority of one out of two or more.
दोनों में बड़ा | donon mei badaa | bigger of the two |
सब में ऊँचा | sab mei oonchaa | the tallest |
Sometimes, the phrase की अपेक्षा kee apekshaa 'in comparison to' is substituted for से se.
उमा की अपेक्षा लंबी | umaa kee apekshaa lambee | taller than Uma |
Notice that words अधिक/ज़्यादा adhik/zyaadaa 'more' and कम kam 'less' may be prefixed to adjectives for denoting comparison.
सोने से अधिक चमकीला |
sone se adhik chamkeelaa |
brighter than gold |
फूल से ज़्यादा कोमल | phool se zyaadaa komal | more delicate than a flower |
बीस से कम | bees se kam | less than twenty |
5. Derivation of Adjectives
Derivative Adjectives, which often become nouns, are either Nominal (from nouns or adjectives) or Verbal (as from roots or verb stems). Diminutive Adjectives are usually confined to one gender, that of the primitive, and are used as Diminutive Nouns.
A large number of adjectives are derived from nouns by adding the suffixes -आ -aa, -ई -ee, -उ-u, -इला -ilaa, -लू -loo, -इक -ik, -जनक -janak, - दाई-daaee, -मय -mai, -वन -van, -आना -aanaa , - नाक- naak, -ईन-een, -मंद - mand, and - दार- daar.
-आ –aa | |||
---|---|---|---|
Noun | Adjective | ||
सच sach | truth | सच्चा sachchaa | truthful |
झूठ jhooth | lie | झूठा jhoothaa | liar |
भूख bhookh | hunger | भूखा bhookhaa | hungry |
-ई –ee | |||
---|---|---|---|
कीमत keemat | price | कीमती keemtee | expensive |
सुख sukh | comfort | सुखी sukhee | happy |
नेक nek | good | नेकी nekee | goodness |
पहाड़ pahaad | mountain | पहाडी pahaadee | mountainous |
-ऊ –oo | |||
---|---|---|---|
पेट pet | stomach | पेटू petoo | voracious |
बाज़ार baazaar | market | बाज़ारू baazaaru | common |
-ईला –eelaa | |||
---|---|---|---|
रस ras | juice | रसीला raseelaa | juicy |
ज़हर zahar | poison | ज़हरीला zahareelaa | poisonous |
खर्च kharch | expense | खर्चीला kharcheelaa | expensive |
पत्थर patthar | stone | पत्थरीला patthreelaa | stony |
-लू-loo | |||
---|---|---|---|
श्रद्धा shradhaa | faith | श्रद्धालू shradhaaloo | devotee |
दया dayaa | kindness | दयालू dayaaloo | kind |
-इक -ik | |||
---|---|---|---|
समाज samaaj | society | समाजिक samaajik | social |
विज्ञान vigyaan | science | विज्ञानिक vigyaanik | scientific |
वर्ष varsh | year | वार्षिक vaarshik | yearly |
-जनक -janak | |||
---|---|---|---|
आशा aashaa | hope | आशाजनक aashaajanak | hopeful |
चिंता chintaa | worry | चिंताजनक chintaajanak | worried |
-दाई –daaee | |||
---|---|---|---|
सुख sukh | comfort | सुखदाई sukhdaaee | comfortable |
दुख dukh | pain | दुखदाई dukhdaaee | painful |
-मई –maee | |||
---|---|---|---|
आशा aashaa | hope | आशामई aashaamaee | hopeful |
- वान- vaan | |||
---|---|---|---|
धन dhan | wealth | धनवान dhanvaan | wealthy |
बल bal | strength | बलवान balvaan | strong |
-आना –aanaa | |||
---|---|---|---|
साल saal | year | सालाना saalaanaa | yearly |
रोज़ roz | day | रोज़ाना rozaanaa | daily |
मर्द mard | man | मर्दाना mardaanaa | manly |
- नाक- naak | |||
---|---|---|---|
दर्द dard | pain | दर्दनाक dardnaak | painful |
खौफ khauph | fear | खौफनाक khauphanaak | frightful |
खतरा khatraa | danger | खतरनाक khatarnaak | dangerous |
-ईन -een | |||
---|---|---|---|
रंग rang | color | रंगीन rangeen | colorful |
नमक namak | salt | नमकीन namkeen | salty |
शौक shauk | liking | शौकीन shaukeen | fond |
-मंद -mand | |||
---|---|---|---|
अक्ल akl | wisdom | अक्लमंद aklmand | wise |
दौलत daulat | wealth | दौलतमंद daulatmand | wealthy |
-दार -daar | |||
---|---|---|---|
माल maal | property | ||
मालदार maaldaar | wealthy | ||
ज़मीन zameen | land | ||
ज़मीनदार zameendaar | landlord | ||
दुकान dukaan | shop | ||
दुकानदार dukaandaar | shopkeeper |
When सा saa 'like' is attached to the oblique forms of nouns or pronouns, they function as adjectives.
फूल सा phool saa | flower-like |
मुझसा mujhasaa/ तुमसा tum saa | me-like/you-like |
सा saa is also attached to adjectives to denote 'looking, seeming.' When added to quantitative adjectives, it intensifies the meaning.
लाल सा laal saa | red-looking |
बड़ा सा badaa saa | big-looking |
दुबला सा dublaa saa | slim-looking |
कमज़ोर सा kamzor saa | weak-looking |
ऊँचा सा oonchaa saa | high-looking |
बहुत सा bahut saa | a great deal |
थोड़ा सा thodaa saa | just a little |
The forms of सा saa (agreeing in number and gender with the noun) are also added to the genitive/possessive forms to denote a similarity of quality, or possession.
गाय का सा मुंह gaay kaa saa munh | a face like that of a cow |
उनके से कपड़े unke se kapde | clothes similar to his |
मेरी meree/ तेरी सी नाक teree see naak | a nose like mine/yours |
सा saa may be replaced by जैसा jaisaa with nouns and pronouns (other than indefinite or interrogative ones.)
बंदर सा /जैसा bandar saa/jaisaa | similar to a monkey |
तुम सा/जैसा tum saa/jaisaa | like you |
The forms of saa sa: can be added to कोई koee and कौन kaun to indicate 'any one,' and 'which one' respectively.
कोई सा रंग koee saa rang | any color |
कोई सी कमीज़ koee see kameez | any shirt |
कौन सा कोट kaun saa kot | which coat |
कौन सी कमीज़ kaun see kameez | which shirt |
6. Numerals
A numeral is a symbol or name that stands for a number.
Numerals are adjectives indicating number. They may by divided into cardinals, ordinals, or multiplicatives.
6.1. Cardinals
A cardinal number is a number such as 1, 3, or 10 that tells you how many things there are in a group but not what order they are in. Compare ordinal number.
Cardinal numeral forms in Hindi are given below.
एक ek | 1 |
दो do | 2 |
तीन teen | 3 |
चार chaar | 4 |
पाँच paanch | 5 |
छे chhe | 6 |
सात saat | 7 |
आठ aath | 8 |
नौ nau | 9 |
दस das | 10 |
More...
Starting with one hundred, the numerals proceed regularly.
(एक) सौ | (ek) sau | 100 |
एक सौ एक | ek sau ek | 101 |
एक सौ दो | ek sau do | 102 |
दो सौ | do sau | 200 |
दो सौ | do sau | 201 |
एक हज़ार | ek hazaar | 1000 |
दो हज़ार तीन | do hazaar teen | 2003 |
दो हज़ार सात | do hazaar saat | 2007 |
The numerals one thousand and above are as follows.
(एक) हज़ार | (ek) hazaar | one thousand |
दस हज़ार | das hazaar | ten thousand |
लाख | laakh | hundred thousand |
दस लाख | das laakh | million |
करोड़ | karod | ten million |
अरब | arab | thousand million (billion) |
खरब | kharab | hundred billion |
6.2. Ordinals
An ordinal number or an ordinal is a word such as 'first', 'third', and ' tenth' that tells you where a particular thing occurs in a sequence of things. Compare cardinal number.
a number denoting relative position in a sequence, such as first, second, third,etc,.
The first six ordinals are पहला pahlaa 'first,' दूसरा doosraa 'second'; तीसरा teesraa 'third'; चौथा chauthaa 'fourth'; पांचवा paanchvaa 'fifth'; छठा chathaa 'sixth.' The suffix - आं-aam is added to the cardinals from seven onwards to make ordinals: सातवां saatvaan 'seventh'; आठवां aathvaan 'eighth'; नौवां nauvaan 'ninth'; दसवां dasvaan 'tenth'; बीसवां beesvaan 'twentieth'; तीसवां teesvaan 'thirteenth'; सौवां sauvaan 'hundredth' हज़ारवां hazaarvaan 'thousandth' etc.
Adjectives of Quantity
Nouns denoting measure, and weight preceded by a numeral or by an adjective denoting an indefinite number, such as कोई koee or कुछ kuch, are used as adjectives of quantity.
तीन किलो चावला | teen kilo caaval | three kilograms of rice |
दो प्याले चाय | do pyaale caay | two cups of tea |
कुछ बोतल शहद | kuchh botal shahad | some bottles of honey |
कई किलो दूध | kaee kilo doodh | several kilos of milk |
Collective Adjectives
Some regular numerals can be replaced by collective adjectives like जोड़ा jodaa 'pair,' चौकड़ा chaukadaa 'four,' पंजा panjaa 'five,' छक्का chakkaa 'six,' दर्जन darjan 'dozen,' बीसी beesee / कोड़ी kodee 'score,' सैंकड़ा sainkadaa 'hundred.' They are treated as nouns and may be qualified by the regular numerals.
दो जोड़े कपड़े | do jode kapde | two pairs of clothes |
तीम दर्जन सेब | teen darjan seb | three dozens of apples |
The सैंकड़ा sainkadaa is also used in the sense of 'per hundred.' बीस रुपए सैंकड़ा bees rupye sainkadaa twenty rupees per hundred
6.3. Fractions
A fraction (from Latin fractus, "broken") represents a part of a whole or, more generally, any number of equal parts.
In addition to being of great practical importance, fractions are also studied by mathematicians, who check that the rules for fractions given above are consistent and reliable.
Fractions are expressed as follows:
एक बटे चार / पाव | ek bate chaar/paav | one quarter |
(paav is used mainly for denoting weights) | ||
एक बटे तीन /तिहाई | ek bate teen/tihaaee | one-third |
एक बटे दो /आधा | ek bate do/aadhaa | half |
एक बटे चार /पैन | teen bate chaar/pain | three quarters |
एक सही एक बटे चार / सौवा |
ek sahee ek bate chaar/sauvaa |
one and a quarter |
एक सही एक बटे दो डेढ़ | ek sahee ek bate do/dedh | one and a half |
दो सही एक बटे दो ढ़ाई | do sahee ek bate do/dhaee | two and a half |
पौने दो | paune do | two less by a quarter |
पौने तीन | paune teen | three less by a quarter |
साढ़े तीन | saadhe teen | three and a half |
Note that साढ़े saadhe denoting 'half' is attached to the numerals beginning with three: साढ़े चार saadhe chaar 'four and half,साढ़े पांच saadhe paanch 'five and half,' etc. The system of denoting fractions is also used to denote fractions of hundred, thousand, ten thousand, etc.
सवा सौ | savaa sau | 125 |
डेढ़ सौ | dedh sau | 150 |
सढ़ाई | sdhaaee sau | 250 |
डेढ़ हज़ार | dedh hazaar | 1,500 |
सवा दो लाख | savaa do laakh | 2,25,000 |
6.4. Multiplicatives
The multiplication of whole numbers may be thought as a repeated addition; that is, the multiplication of two numbers is equivalent to adding as many copies of one of them, the multiplicand, as the value of the other one, the multiplier. The multiplier can be written first and multiplicand second (though the custom can vary by culture both can be called factors.
Multiplicatives are formed by attaching गुना gunaa 'multiplied by' to the numerals. The numerals 2 to 8 are slightly modified.
दुगना dugnaa or दूना doona: 'double,' तिगुना tigunaa 'threefold,' चौगुना chaugunaa 'fourfold,' पंचगुना panchgunaa 'fivefold,' छ्गुना chhaguna 'sixfold,' सतगुना satgunaa 'sevenfold,' अठगुना athgunaa 'eightfold.' After this the forms are regular: नवगुना navgunaa 'ninefold,' दसगुना dasgunaa 'tenfold,' बीसगुना beesgunaa 'twentyfold,' तीसगुना teesgunaa 'thirtyfold,' सौगुना saugunaa 'hundredfold,' हज़ारगुना hazaargunaa 'thousandfold. The गुना gunaa can be attached to fractions too: सवा गुना Savaa gunaa 1¼ times as much, डेढ़ गुना dedh gunaa 1½ times as much, ढ़ाई गुना dhaaee: gunaa 2 ½ times as much.
6.5. Approximation
Approximation is expressed by placing कोई koee, लगभग lagbhag, or प्राया praayaa before the numeral.
The term can be applied to various properties (e.g., value, quantity, image, description) that are nearly, but not exactly correct; similar, but not exactly the same (e.g., the approximate time was 10 o'clock).
The type of approximation used depends on the available information, the degree of accuracy required, the sensitivity of the problem to this data, and the savings (usually in time and effort) that can be achieved by approximation.
कोई बीस आदमी | koee bees aadmee | about twenty persons |
लगभग पाँच सौ लोग | lagbhag paanch sau log | about five hundred people |
प्राया दो सौ वर्ष | praayaa do sau varsh | about two hundred years |
पहिले | pahile | ago |
It is also expressed by certain pairs of numerals
दो-एक | do-ek | one or two |
दो-तीन | do-teen | about two or three |
दस-पांच | das-paach | about ten |
सौ-सवा सौ | sau-savaa sau | about 125 |
Reduplication of a numeral denotes '… at a time,' or '…per piece.'
दो-दो लड़के | do-do ladke | two boys at a time |
एक-एक लड़के को तीन-तीन | ek-ek ladke ko teen-teen | Give three books to |
किताबें दो | | kitaaben do | each boy. |
6.6. Aggregation
Aggregation is expressed by adding – ओं –om to a numeral. In the case of दो do, -नों-nom is added. (e.g., दोनों donon 'both,' तीनों teenon 'all the three,' चारों chaaron 'all the four,' दसों dason 'all the ten,' बीसों beeson 'all the twenty,' etc.). Notice that –इयों-iyon is added to numerals दस das or बीस bees to indicate an indefinite large number (e.g., दसियों dasiyon 'several tens,' बीसियों beesiyon 'several scores,' etc.)
The suffix -ओं –om is also added to the nouns signifying duration, measures, weight to indicate large and indefinite number or quantity. (e.g., महीनों maheenon 'a number of months,' बरसों barson 'a number of years,' बोरियों अनाज boriyon anaaj 'sackfulls of grains,' etc.
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