নানী
nani/nani/
The Bengali word for grandmother is নানী (nani) or দাদি depending on which side of the family she is from.
Meaning: mother of someone's parent (noun)
Ways to say it
| Bengali | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| নানী | nani | /nani/ |
| দাদি | dadi |
In Bengali, the term used for grandmother is determined by whether she is your maternal or paternal grandmother. Use নানী to refer to your mother's mother and দাদি to refer to your father's mother.
Which one should you use?
The terms are used to distinguish between sides of the family: নানী is used for the maternal grandmother, while দাদি is used for the paternal grandmother.
How do you pronounce it?
nani
Did you know?
- In many Bengali households, these terms are used as titles of respect for any elderly woman, even if there is no biological relation to the speaker.
- The word দাদি is widely recognized across several South Asian languages, such as Hindi and Urdu, showing a shared cultural vocabulary for paternal lineage.
- In West Bengal, the term দিদিমা is frequently used for grandmothers, which differs from the more common South Asian influence of using নানী in Bangladesh.
Examples in context
- আমার নানী খুব ভালো রান্না করেন।amar nani khub bhalo ranna koren.My maternal grandmother cooks very well.
- তোমার নানী এখন কোথায়?tomar nani ekhon kothay?Where is your grandmother now?
- নানী আমাদের অনেক গল্প বলেন।nani amader onek golpo bolen.Grandmother tells us many stories.
Example conversation
Ananya is showing a photo to Akash.
- আকাশ Akashএই ছবিটি কে?Ei chhobi-ti ke?Who is this in the photo?
- অনন্যা Ananyaউনি আমার নানী।Uni amar nani.She is my grandmother.
- আকাশ Akashউনি দেখতে খুব মিষ্টি।Uni dekh-te khub mishti.She looks very sweet.
- অনন্যা Ananyaধন্যবাদ, আকাশ!Dhonnobad, Akash!Thank you, Akash!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “grandmother” translations and entries নানী, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
