बहिनी
bahinī[bʌi̯ni]
The English phrase "little sister" is translated into Nepali as बहिनी (bahinī).
बहिनी refers to a female sibling who is younger than the speaker. Beyond biological relationships, it is also used as a friendly or polite way to address any girl or woman who is significantly younger than the speaker.
Which one should you use?
While बहिनी refers to a younger sister, the term दिदी is used to refer to an elder sister.
How does it change in a sentence?
To express the plural form "little sisters", add the suffix -हरू (-harū) to the end of the word to get बहिनीहरू.
How do you pronounce it?
bahinī
Did you know?
- The word बहिनी comes from the Sanskrit word भगिनी, which originally referred to someone who shares a 'portion' or 'share' of a family inheritance.
- While 'little sister' implies age, calling a woman बहिनी in a professional setting can sometimes feel overly familiar or even condescending if the age gap is small.
- While बहिनी refers to a younger sister, Nepali has distinct words for every sibling relationship based on age and gender, meaning you cannot use one generic word for 'sister'.
Examples in context
- मेरी बहिनी स्कुल जान्छिन् ।meri bahini school janchhin.My little sister goes to school.
- उनी मेरी सानी बहिनी हुन् ।uni meri sani bahini hun.She is my little sister.
Example conversation
Maya and Dipesh are talking about family members.
- माया Mayaदिपेश, तिम्रो बहिनी कहाँ छिन्?Dipesh, timro bahini kaha chhin?Dipesh, where is your little sister?
- दिपेश Dipeshमेरी बहिनी घरमै छिन्।Meri bahini gharmai chhin.My little sister is at home.
- माया Mayaउनी कति वर्षकी भइन्?Uni kati varshaki bhain?How old is she?
- दिपेश Dipeshउनी अहिले पाँच वर्षकी भइन्।Uni ahile panch varshaki bhain.She is five years old now.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry बहिनी, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries बहिनी, CC BY-SA 4.0.
