Ways to say it
| Urdu | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| اِسْکُول | iskūl | masculine |
| مَدْرَسَہ | madrasa | masculine |
| مَکْتَب | maktab | masculine |
| دَرْس گاہ | dars gāh | masculine |
| تَعْلِیم گاہ | ta'līm gāh | masculine |
| دَبِسْتان | dabistān | masculine |
| تَعْلِیمی اِدارَہ | ta'līmī idāra | masculine |
All forms of the word refer to an institution dedicated to teaching and learning.
What does it mean word for word?
The formal compound دَرْس گاہ is composed of دَرْس, meaning lesson and گاہ, meaning place. Similarly, تَعْلِیم گاہ is a compound where تَعْلِیم means education and گاہ means place.
Which one should you use?
The loanword اِسْکُول is the most common way to refer to a school in everyday spoken Urdu. In contrast, مَدْرَسَہ can mean a general school, but it is most frequently used to refer specifically to an Islamic religious school. For more official or administrative contexts, one might use the phrase تَعْلِیمی اِدارَہ to mean 'educational institution'.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase تَعْلِیمی اِدارَہ translates to 'educational institution' and is used in official or administrative contexts.
How do you pronounce it?
iskūl
Did you know?
- While مَدْرَسَہ is often used for religious schools in Urdu, it is the root for the English word 'madrasa' and is the standard word for any school in Arabic.
- The term مَکْتَب is used for a school, but it stems from the Arabic root for 'writing', essentially meaning a 'place of writing'.
- Urdu uses different words for 'school' depending on whether the influence is English اِسْکُول, Arabic مَدْرَسَہ, or Persian دَبِسْتان.
Examples in context
- میرے بچوں کو روز مکتب جانا چاہیئے۔My children should go to school every day.
- وہ روزانہ وقت پر سکول جاتی ہے۔She goes to school on time every day.
- ہمیں دوپہر کو مدرسے سے واپس آنا پڑتا ہے۔We have to come back from school in the afternoon.
- تم کتنے بجے سکول جاتے ہو؟What time do you go to school?
- اِسْکُول بہت بڑا ہے۔iskool bohat bara hai.The school is very big.
- میرا اِسْکُول قریب ہے۔mera iskool qareeb hai.My school is nearby.
Example conversation
Zainab and Ali are talking about their daily routine.
- زینب Zainabعلی، کیا آپ اِسْکُول گئے تھے؟Ali, kya aap school gaye thay?Ali, did you go to school?
- علی Aliہاں، میں صبح اِسْکُول گیا تھا۔Haan, main subah school gaya tha.Yes, I went to school in the morning.
- زینب Zainabآپ کا اِسْکُول کیسا ہے؟Aap ka school kaisa hai?How is your school?
- علی Aliمیرا اِسْکُول بہت اچھا ہے۔Mera school bohat acha hai.My school is very good.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “school” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
