साधु
sādhú/sɑː.dʱú/
To say good in Sanskrit, in the sense of pleasant or fine, use साधु (sādhú).
साधु (sādhú) describes something as good, pleasant or right. Other words cover related shades of good. Shubha can mean good, auspicious or blessed. Uttama expresses the highest level of goodness or excellence. Prashansaaniya means praiseworthy.
Meaning: pleasant, enjoyable (adj)
Which one should you use?
Choose sādhú for plain approval. Use Shubha when good means auspicious, Uttama for the very best and Shobhana when you mean beautiful or excellent.
How do you pronounce it?
sādhú has two syllables and is pronounced /sɑː.dʱú/, with a long first vowel and an aspirated d.
Did you know?
- The Sanskrit root sādh is an ancestor to the English word 'satisfy' via ancient linguistic connections. Both share a core concept of something being 'accomplished' or 'sufficient'.
- The term साधु ('sādhú') is also used as a noun to describe a 'holy man' or an ascetic. In this sense, 'good' refers not just to a quality, but to a person who has achieved a 'perfected' state of life.
- In ancient Indian storytelling, listeners would repeatedly shout sādhu sādhu! to signal agreement. This functioned as a form of verbal applause, meaning 'well said' rather than just 'good'.
Examples in context
- sādhu-√man (+ accusative)To consider a thing good, approvesādhu combined with the verb root meaning to think gives to consider a thing good or to approve.
- तत् साधु भविष्यति।tat sādhu bhaviṣyati.That will be good.
- एतत् साधु कार्यम्।etat sādhu kāryam.This is a good task.
Example conversation
Ananya and Aryan are discussing a piece of music.
- आर्यन Aryanइयं संगीतम् कथं अस्ति?iyaṃ sangeetam kathaṃ asti?How is this music?
- अनन्या Ananyaएतत् साधु अस्ति, आर्यन।etat sādhu asti, Āryān.It is pleasant, Aryan.
- आर्यन Aryanमम अपि एतदेव भासते।mama api etadeva bhāsate.It seems the same to me too.
- अनन्या Ananyaअतः वयं पुनः शृणुमः।ataḥ vayaṃ punaḥ śṛṇumaḥ.Therefore, let us listen again.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry साधु, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries साधु, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
