Welcome to Unit 9 — Health and the Body! In this first lesson, you'll learn the Hindi words for essential body parts. Knowing these words is crucial when you need to describe aches, pains, or visit a doctor. We'll also learn the important pattern दर्द होना [dard honā] (to have pain) and how possessives change based on gender. Sita and Ravi are at Lodhi Garden after a yoga session — let's see what happened!
Learning tips
- Hindi body parts have grammatical gender — सिर [sir] (head) is masculine, पीठ [pīṭh] (back) is feminine. The possessive must match: मेरा सिर [merā sir] but मेरी पीठ [merī pīṭh].
- The pattern 'X में दर्द है [X mẽ dard hai]' (there is pain in X) is the most common way to describe pain — memorize it as a chunk!
- Many Indians do yoga and pranayam in parks every morning — body part vocabulary comes naturally in this context.
- Touch each body part as you say the word — physical association helps memory!
Warm-up & Active Recall
| Word | Romanization | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| योजना | yojanā | plan (Hindi) |
| प्लान | plān | plan (English) |
| मिलना | milnā | to meet |
| बुलाना | bulānā | to invite/call |
| जगह | jagah | place |
| तय | tay | decided/fixed |
| ज़रूर | zarūr | definitely |
| शायद | śāyad | maybe |
| चलो | calo | let's go |
| कब | kab | when |
Dialog
Sita and Ravi have just finished a morning yoga session in Lodhi Garden, one of Delhi's most popular parks for exercise. Sita is experiencing various aches and pains, and Ravi offers practical advice — including acupressure and pranayam (breathing exercises), reflecting India's deep connection to traditional wellness practices. Notice how they use मेरा/मेरी/मेरे [merā/merī/mere] with different body parts based on gender, and the key pattern 'X में दर्द है [X mẽ dard hai]' (X hurts).
Vocabulary
Active words
| Word | Romanization | IPA | Translation | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| सिर | sir | /sɪr/ | head | Masculine noun. मेरा सिर [merā sir]. Also used in सिर दर्द [sir dard] (headache). |
| हाथ | hāth | /haːt̪ʰ/ | hand, arm | Masculine noun. Covers both hand and arm in Hindi — context clarifies. |
| पैर | pair | /pɛːr/ | foot, leg | Masculine noun. Like हाथ [hāth], covers both foot and leg. |
| आँख | ā̃kh | /ãːkʰ/ | eye | Feminine noun. Plural: आँखें [ā̃khẽ]. The chandrabindu (ँ) indicates nasalization. |
| कान | kān | /kaːn/ | ear | Masculine noun. कान में दर्द [kān mẽ dard] = earache. |
| नाक | nāk | /naːk/ | nose | Feminine noun. नाक से साँस लो [nāk se sā̃s lo] = breathe through your nose. |
| मुँह | mũh | /mʊ̃h/ | mouth, face | Masculine noun. Can mean mouth or face depending on context. |
| पेट | peṭ | /peːʈ/ | stomach, belly | Masculine noun. पेट ख़राब [peṭ ḵarāb] = upset stomach — very common in India! |
| पीठ | pīṭh | /piːʈʰ/ | back | Feminine noun. पीठ दर्द [pīṭh dard] = backache. |
| उँगली | uṅglī | /ʊ̃ɡ.liː/ | finger | Feminine noun. Plural: उँगलियाँ [uṅgliyā̃]. |
Passive words
| Word | Romanization | IPA | Translation | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| गर्दन | gardan | /ɡər.d̪ən/ | neck | Feminine noun. |
| कंधा | kandhā | /kən.d̪ʰaː/ | shoulder | Masculine noun. Plural: कंधे [kandhe]. |
| कोहनी | kohnī | /koːh.niː/ | elbow | Feminine noun. |
| घुटना | ghuṭnā | /ɡʱʊʈ.naː/ | knee | Masculine noun. Plural: घुटने [ghuṭne]. |
| एड़ी | eṛī | /eː.ɽiː/ | heel | Feminine noun. |
| कलाई | kalāī | /kə.laː.iː/ | wrist | Feminine noun. |
Useful chunks
| Word | Romanization | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| दर्द होना | dard honā | to have pain (lit. 'pain to happen') |
| मेरे सिर में दर्द है | mere sir mẽ dard hai | I have a headache (lit. 'in my head pain is') |
| शरीर के अंग | śarīr ke aṅg | body parts (lit. 'body's parts') |
Grammar: Body parts with possessives & दर्द होना [dard honā] pattern
| Pattern | Hindi | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| मेरा + masc. sg. | मेरा सिर [merā sir] | merā sir | my head |
| मेरी + fem. sg. | मेरी पीठ [merī pīṭh] | merī pīṭh | my back |
| मेरे + masc. pl. | मेरे पैर [mere pair] | mere pair | my legs |
| मेरी + fem. pl. | मेरी आँखें [merī ā̃khẽ] | merī ā̃khẽ | my eyes |
| X में दर्द होना | सिर में दर्द है [sir mẽ dard hai] | sir mẽ dard hai | head hurts |
| X दर्द कर रहा है | पेट दर्द कर रहा है [peṭ dard kar rahā hai] | peṭ dard kar rahā hai | stomach is hurting |
Hindi possessives must agree with the gender and number of the thing possessed — NOT the possessor:
मेरा [merā] — used with masculine singular nouns: मेरा सिर [merā sir] (my head), मेरा हाथ [merā hāth] (my hand)
मेरी [merī] — used with feminine nouns (singular or plural): मेरी पीठ [merī pīṭh] (my back), मेरी आँखें [merī ā̃khẽ] (my eyes)
मेरे [mere] — used with masculine plural nouns: मेरे पैर [mere pair] (my legs), मेरे कान [mere kān] (my ears)
This same pattern applies to तेरा/तेरी/तेरे [terā/terī/tere] (your-informal), उसका/उसकी/उसके [uskā/uskī/uske] (his/her), etc.
The दर्द होना [dard honā] pattern uses में [mẽ] to locate the pain: सिर में दर्द है [sir mẽ dard hai] = there is pain in the head. You can also say X दर्द कर रहा है [X dard kar rahā hai] = X is hurting (ongoing).
Exercises
Fill in the Blanks
Complete each sentence with the missing body part.
- मेरे में दर्द है।(head — masculine)
- अपने से गहरी साँस लो।(nose — feminine, for breathing)
- मेरी में बहुत दर्द है।(back — feminine)
- से यहाँ दबाओ।(hand — for pressing)
- मेरा सूख रहा है।(mouth — masculine, drying out)
Grammar Application
Fill in the correct possessive form (मेरा/मेरी/मेरे) based on the noun's gender.
- सिर (masculine) → मेर__ सिर → (masculine singular → ?)
- पीठ (feminine) → मेर__ पीठ → (feminine singular → ?)
- आँखें (feminine plural) → मेर__ आँखें → (feminine plural → ?)
- पैर (masculine plural) → मेर__ पैर → (masculine plural → ?)
- 'My stomach hurts' using दर्द होना → (use the दर्द होना pattern)
Translation (English → Hindi)
Translate each sentence into Hindi.
- I have a headache.
- Press with your hand.
- My legs have stiffened up.
- Breathe through your nose.
- My eye is tired.
Creative Construction
Describe your body aches using at least 3 body parts and the दर्द होना [dard honā] pattern.
Writing: Conjunct consonants (संयुक्त अक्षर) — Health words
Practice words
| Word | Romanization |
|---|---|
| पीठ | pīṭh |
| आँख | ā̃kh |
| उँगली | uṅglī |
Conjunct consonants (संयुक्त अक्षर [saṃyukt akṣar]) are formed when two consonants appear together without a vowel between them. In Devanagari, they merge into a combined form.
Some common conjuncts:
- क्ष [kṣa] = क् + ष — as in रक्षा [rakṣā] (protection)
- त्र [tra] = त् + र — as in पत्र [patra] (letter)
- ज्ञ [jña] = ज् + ञ — as in ज्ञान [jñān] (knowledge)
- श्र [śra] = श् + र — as in श्री [śrī] (Mr./respected)
In health vocabulary, you'll see conjuncts in words like आँख [ā̃kh] (eye) and उँगली [uṅglī] (finger). The half-र [r] form is especially common — it appears as a hook above the following letter.
Takeaway
Remember that possessives in Hindi must match the gender of the body part: मेरा [merā] (masc. sg.), मेरी [merī] (fem.), मेरे [mere] (masc. pl.). The pattern 'X में दर्द है [X mẽ dard hai]' is your go-to for describing pain!