क्या तुमने खाना खाया?
kyā tumne khānā khāyā?
In Hindi, 'did you eat?' is said as क्या तुमने खाना खाया? (kyā tumne khānā khāyā?)
This phrase is a question used to ask if someone has had a meal. In many Indian contexts, asking 'Did you eat?' is used as a common social greeting or a way to show care, similar to 'How are you?'
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase क्या तुमने खाना खाया? literally translates to 'Did you eat food?'
Is it said differently in some regions?
In the region of Uttar Pradesh, the variation तूने खाना खा लिया है? is commonly used.
How does it change in a sentence?
To make the question extremely informal or intimate, replace तुमने with तूने (tune).
How do you pronounce it?
kyā tumne khānā khāyā?
When do people say it?
Asking 'Did you eat?' is a common social greeting used to show care. If someone asks you this, you can respond affirmatively with हाँ, मैंने खा लिया। (Yes, I have eaten.) or negatively with नहीं, अभी नहीं। (No, not yet.).
Did you know?
- Hindi has specific causative forms of the verb खाना, such as खिलाना, which means 'to feed someone else'.
- In many Indian cultures, answering 'no' to this question can be seen as a signal that you are hungry or in need of help, rather than just a statement of fact.
- If you use the extremely intimate form तूने (tūne) when asking if someone has eaten, you might sound overly aggressive or disrespectful if you are not very close to them.
Examples in context
- क्या आपने खाना खाया है?Did you eat?
- हां, मैंने अभी-अभी खाया।Yes, I just ate.
- अभी क्या तुमने खाना खाया?abhi kya tumne khana khaya?Did you eat just now?
Example conversation
Pooja asks Vikas about his meal at home.
- पूजा Poojaविकास, क्या तुमने खाना खाया?Vikas, kya tumne khaana khaaya?Vikas, did you eat?
- विकास Vikasनहीं, मुझे भूख नहीं है।Nahi, mujhe bhookh nahi hai.No, I am not hungry.
- पूजा Poojaतुम बीमार हो जाओगे।Tum beemaar ho jaoge.You will get sick.
- विकास Vikasठीक है, मैं अभी खाता हूँ।Theek hai, main abhi khaata hoon.Okay, I will eat now.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries क्या, खाना, CC BY-SA 4.0.
