The Persian constructions living inside Hindi
I can recognise Persian formations and read them correctly
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
यह बात बेकार है।
This is pointless.
वह मुझसे नाराज़ है।
He is displeased with me.
सारे काग़ज़ात तैयार हैं।
All the papers are ready.
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
A Persian linking vowel joins two nouns, written as a small -ए-: शेर-ए-पंजाब - the lion of Punjab. It survives in names, titles, film titles and poetry, and it reverses the Hindi order: the head comes first.
Some borrowed nouns keep their original plural: काग़ज़ात (papers), हालात (circumstances), मकानात (buildings). These are formal and appear mostly in writing.
Recognising the layer explains why बेकार is not built from any Hindi root, and why शेर-ए-पंजाब puts the lion first when Hindi would say पंजाब का शेर.
Apply this grammar in B2 course exercises
Practice ExercisesTrying to parse a Persian word with Hindi morphology.
Persian word parsed with Hindi morphology
Recognise the layer first; bekar has no Hindi root.
izafat order read as Hindi order
sher-e-punjab puts the head first, unlike punjab ka sher.
यह बात बेकार है।
This is pointless.
be- is the Persian negative prefix, like the Russian bes-.
वह मुझसे नाराज़ है।
He is displeased with me.
na- plus the Persian raz.
सारे काग़ज़ात तैयार हैं।
All the papers are ready.
An Arabic plural kept intact, formal in register.
The check for this topic is still being prepared
Ready-made hints are free
Practice in course
Apply this grammar in B2 course exercises
R. S. McGregor's outline, the standard concise academic description of Hindi morphology.
Yamuna Kachru's reference grammar; the descriptive account relied on for aspect, valency and clause structure.