Ways to say it
| Hindi | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| प्रिय | priya | /pɾɪ.jᵊ/ (Hindi, Standard) | masculine |
| प्रिया | priyā | /pɾɪ.jɑː/ (Hindi, Standard) | feminine |
| प्रियतम | priytam | /pɾɪj.t̪əm/ (Hindi, Standard) | masculine |
| प्रियतमा | priyatmā | /pɾɪ.jət̪.mɑː/ (Hindi, Standard) | feminine |
These terms are used as affectionate addresses for someone who is very dear to you. Additionally, the feminine form प्रिया is frequently used in modern Hindi as a proper female name meaning 'beloved'.
Which one should you use?
The forms differ based on the gender of the person being addressed. प्रिय is a general term for 'dear' or 'beloved'. The forms प्रियतम (masculine) and प्रियतमा (feminine) are superlative versions, meaning 'dearest' or 'most beloved'. The word प्रिया is a feminine, endearing form of 'darling'.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The grammatical gender of the word must match the person you are addressing: use प्रिय or प्रियतम for males and प्रिया or प्रियतमा for females. To express the superlative sense of 'dearest', use the masculine प्रियतम or the feminine प्रियतमा.
How do you pronounce it?
priya (pɾɪ.jᵊ)
Did you know?
- While प्रिय means 'dear', using it too frequently in modern spoken Hindi can make you sound like a character from an old-fashioned Bollywood romance or an epic poem.
- In classical Indian poetry and literature, प्रियतम is often used not just for a spouse but as a spiritual address to a deity to express divine love.
- The suffix तम in प्रियतम is the same way a Sanskrit-derived word would express the concept of 'the most' or 'the greatest', similar to how 'ultra' or 'super' functions in English.
Examples in context
- तुम मेरी जान होYou are my darling
- प्रिय, मुझे तुम्हारी याद आई।priya, mujhe tumhari yaad aayi.Darling, I missed you.
Example conversation
A couple is deciding what to eat for dinner.
- अमित Amitप्रिय, आज हम क्या खाएंगे?priya, aaj hum kya khayenge?Darling, what will we eat today?
- प्रिया Priyaमुझे पिज़्ज़ा खाना है, अमित।mujhe pizza khana hai, amit.I want to eat pizza, Amit.
- अमित Amitठीक है प्रिय, हम पिज़्ज़ा मंगाते हैं।theek hai priya, hum pizza mangate hain.Okay darling, let's order pizza.
- प्रिया Priyaशुक्रिया, तुम बहुत अच्छे हो।shukriya, tum bahut acche ho.Thank you, you are very sweet.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “darling” translations and entries प्रिय, प्रिया, प्रियतम, प्रियतमा, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries प्रिय, प्रियतम, प्रियतमा, प्रिया, CC BY-SA 4.0.
