धर्म
dharm/d̪ʱəɾm/masculine
The English word "religion" can be translated into Hindi as धर्म (dharm), दीन or मज़हब.
Meaning: system of beliefs dealing with soul, deity and/or life after death (noun)
Ways to say it
| Hindi | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| धर्म | dharm | /d̪ʱəɾm/ (Hindi, Standard) | masculine |
| दीन | dīn | /d̪iːn/ (Hindi, Standard) | masculine |
| मज़हब | mazhab | /məz.ɦəb/ (Hindi, Standard) /məd͡ʒ.ɦəb/ (Hindi, Standard) |
masculine |
The word refers to a system of beliefs dealing with the soul, a deity, and/or life after death. In a broader cultural sense, धर्म can also mean duty, righteousness or moral law rather than just a structured religion.
Which one should you use?
धर्म is the Sanskrit-derived term for religion and is often used in formal, philosophical or Hindu contexts. मज़हब is the Persian-derived term and is very common in everyday spoken Hindi, particularly in contexts involving Islamic or secular terminology. दीन is a more formal or poetic term for religion or faith, often used in a specifically Islamic or spiritual context.
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is dharm (/d̪ʱəɾm/).
Did you know?
- While धर्म is often translated as 'religion', in a traditional sense it describes the 'essential nature' or 'inherent property' of a thing, such as the धर्म of fire being to burn.
- The word दीन has a linguistic double life. Depending on the context and spelling, it can refer to 'faith' via Persian, or it can mean 'poor' or 'humble' via Sanskrit.
- Because of its Persian roots, मज़हब is often used in Bollywood songs and Urdu-influenced poetry to discuss the concept of love as a form of devotion or 'religion'.
Examples in context
- धर्म हमारे समाज की रीढ़ है।Religion is the backbone of our society.This sentence is useful for illustrating the role of धर्म in society.
- हम किसी धर्म का तिरस्कार नहीं करना चाहते।We do not want to disregard any religion.This sentence shows the use of धर्म in the context of not disregarding a religion.
- इसलाम एक धर्म है।Islam is a religion.This sentence uses धर्म to identify a specific religion.Tatoeba #13690015 by sabretou, translation #8149100 by Amastan
- भारत में विभिन्न धर्मों का महत्वपूर्ण स्थान है।Religion holds significant importance in India.
- तुम्हारा मज़्हब कौन सा है?What is your religion?
- तुम्हारा पंथ कौनसा है?Which religious path do you follow?
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Priya and Amit are discussing their backgrounds.
- प्रिया Priyaआपका धर्म क्या है, अमित?Aapka dharm kya hai, Amit?What is your religion, Amit?
- अमित Amitमैं किसी धर्म को नहीं मानता।Main kisi dharm ko nahi maanta.I do not follow any religion.
- प्रिया Priyaयह सुनकर अच्छा लगा।Yeh sunkar achha laga.It is good to hear that.
- अमित Amitहाँ, धर्म से ज़्यादा इंसानियत ज़रूरी है।Haan, dharm se zyada insaniyat zaroori hai.Yes, humanity is more important than religion.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “religion” translations and entries धर्म, दीन, मज़हब, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries दीन, धर्म, मज़हब, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0, Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
