How is हिंग्लिश और कोड-मिश्रण formed?

English words take Hindi grammar: a gender on arrival, Hindi postpositions, and करना or होना to become verbs. मीटिंग is feminine, फ़ोन is masculine, and कैंसिल करना is a normal conjunct verb. Formal writing, official notices, literary prose and speech to an elder in a traditional setting all prefer the Hindi word. Using English there reads as careless rather than modern.

What are common mistakes with हिंग्लिश और कोड-मिश्रण?

Avoiding English entirely and sounding stilted, or using it in a formal document. 🇷🇺 Russian speakers: the mechanism is identical to Russian anglicisms taking native endings, so the skill transfers; what has to be learned is which Hindi domains are English by default.

हिंग्लिश और कोड-मिश्रण

B2 — शैली

कब अंग्रेज़ी शब्द स्वाभाविक है और कब नहीं

I can mix English into Hindi the way an urban speaker does

Examples

— There's a meeting at the office today.
— My phone was switched off.
— Please fill in the application form.

शैलीB2

Hinglish and Code-Mixing

When an English word is the natural choice and when it is not

Learning Goal

I can mix English into Hindi the way an urban speaker does

Exam Skills:बोलनालिखना

Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?

There's a meeting at the office today.

My phone was switched off.

Please fill in the application form.

Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?

Not a mistake

Urban spoken Hindi mixes English constantly, and doing so is not a failure of vocabulary. Some domains are almost entirely English: technology, office work, education, medicine, driving.

मीटिंग कैंसिल हो गई। - The meeting got cancelled.
मैंने फ़ोन चार्ज पर लगाया।
उसका एडमिशन हो गया।

The grammar stays Hindi

English words take Hindi grammar: a gender on arrival, Hindi postpositions, and करना or होना to become verbs. मीटिंग is feminine, फ़ोन is masculine, and कैंसिल करना is a normal conjunct verb.

Where it does not belong

Formal writing, official notices, literary prose and speech to an elder in a traditional setting all prefer the Hindi word. Using English there reads as careless rather than modern.

Apply this grammar in B2 course exercises

Practice Exercises

Avoiding English entirely and sounding stilted, or using it in a formal document.

Common Error Patterns

English avoided where it is the natural word

Technology, office and education vocabulary is English by default.

English used in an official document

Formal writing takes the Hindi word.

There's a meeting at the office today.

Office vocabulary is English by default.

My phone was switched off.

An English phrase inside Hindi grammar.

Please fill in the application form.

A formal notice takes the Hindi word, not the English one.

Practice in course

Apply this grammar in B2 course exercises

B2 Course

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Frequently asked questions

When is हिंग्लिश और कोड-मिश्रण used?: Urban spoken Hindi mixes English constantly, and doing so is not a failure of vocabulary. Some domains are almost entirely English: technology, office work, education, medicine, driving.
How is हिंग्लिश और कोड-मिश्रण formed?: English words take Hindi grammar: a gender on arrival, Hindi postpositions, and करना or होना to become verbs. मीटिंग is feminine, फ़ोन is masculine, and कैंसिल करना is a normal conjunct verb. Formal writing, official notices, literary prose and speech to an elder in a traditional setting all prefer the Hindi word. Using English there reads as careless rather than modern.
What are common mistakes with हिंग्लिश और कोड-मिश्रण?: Avoiding English entirely and sounding stilted, or using it in a formal document. 🇷🇺 Russian speakers: the mechanism is identical to Russian anglicisms taking native endings, so the skill transfers; what has to be learned is which Hindi domains are English by default.

Sources

Hindi (London Oriental and African Language Library 12) — John Benjamins Publishing Company, 2006
Yamuna Kachru's reference grammar; the descriptive account relied on for aspect, valency and clause structure.
Outline of Hindi Grammar — Oxford University Press, 1995
R. S. McGregor's outline, the standard concise academic description of Hindi morphology.