Alyssa Sylvia

In daily Hindi people say टॉयलेट (ṭāyleṭ) or the polite बाथरूम (bāthrūm). The formal word, used on signs and in official language, is शौचालय (shauchālay).

In Hindi a mild way to say “you’re dumb” is तुम बुद्धू हो (tum buddhū ho). It is a teasing word, closer to “silly”.

To tell someone to wake up in Hindi, say उठो (uṭho). जागो (jāgo) also works, and उठिए (uṭhie) is the respectful form for elders.

A lion is a शेर (sher). The literary word is सिंह (singh) and a lioness is a शेरनी (sherni). A tiger is a different animal, called बाघ (baagh).

Children ask for a टॉफ़ी (tofi) when they want a small wrapped candy. कैंडी (kaindi) is also used, and मिठाई (mithaai) means traditional Indian sweets.

The Hindi word for owl is उल्लू (ullū). It also appears in everyday speech as a mild insult for a foolish person. उल्लू (ullū) names the bird.

The word closest to “buddy” in Hindi is यार (yaar). The plain word for a friend is दोस्त (dost), and भाई (bhai) is also common between men.

A liar is a झूठा (jhootha) for a man and a झूठी (jhoothi) for a woman. The plural is झूठे (jhoothe). The noun for a lie is झूठ (jhooth).

The everyday Hindi word for morning is सुबह (subah).

There is no single language called Indian, so this page gives Hindi. Hindi has separate words for each aunt. The general word is आंटी (aunty).