Why should you learn some common Hindi phrases? Well, it could be to help you understand your favourite Bollywood movies or maybe you’re planning a trip to India and want to know some common Hindi phrases to help you get around. If so, then this post is for you!
Quick links:
- Greetings
- Introducing Yourself
- Shopping
- Getting Around
- In A Restaurant
- Numbers
- Useful questions/phrases
Common Hindi Phrases
Greetings
Although a lot of people in India can speak some English, knowing a few basic, common Hindi phrases can go a long way. Whilst there are hundreds of languages and dialects spoken in India, Hindi is spoken and understood widely across the country.
| English | Hindi |
|---|---|
| Hello/Hi | Namaste / Namaskar |
| How are you? (formal) | Aap kaise hai? |
| How are you? (informal) | Sab theek? / kya haal hai? |
| I’m fine, you? | Main theek hoon. Tum? |
| Please | Kripya |
| Thank you | Dhanyavad / Shukriya |
| Excuse me | Suniye |
| Sorry | Maaf kijiye |
| Bye / See you | Phir milenge |
| See you tomorrow | Kal milenge |
| Yes | Haan |
| No | Nahi |
| Good | Accha |
| Bad | Bura |
| Okay | Theek hai |
| Goodnight | Shubh raatri |
Introducing Yourself
It’s always useful to be able to introduce yourself in Hindi and the people of India will be super happy to see you trying to speak their language. Give these common Hindi phrases a go:
| English | Hindi |
|---|---|
| What’s your name? (formal) | Aapka naam kya hai? |
| What’s your name? (informal) | Tumhara naam kya hai? |
| My name is ….. | Mera naam ….. hai |
| Nice to meet you | Aapse milkar khushi huee |
| Where are you from? | Aap kaha se hai? |
| I am from ….. | Main ….. se hoon |
Shopping
It can be really helpful to know some Hindi phrases relating to shopping. As a foreigner in India, you will often experience shopkeepers offering you very high prices. They may sometimes quote a price 4 to 5 times higher than the actual price so it’s important to be able to bargain. Here’s some key phrases to help:
| English | Hindi |
|---|---|
| How much is this? | Yeh kitnay ka hai |
| What’s the price? | Kyaa daam hai? |
| I want it | Mujhe yah chaahiye |
| I don’t want it | Mujhe nahi chaahiye |
| This is too much | Bahut zyaada hai |
| Lower the price | Daam kum keejiye |
| I like this | Mujhe pasand hai |
| I don’t like this | Mujhe pasand nahi hai |
Getting Around
You may struggle to communicate whilst travelling around the cities of India e.g. if you’re getting a taxi or even if you’re lost so it can be really handy to learn a few of these phrases to make getting around super easy.
| English | Hindi |
|---|---|
| I need a taxi | Mujhe ek taiksee chahiye |
| Take me to the metro station, please | Metro stesan le calo |
| Where can I get a ticket? | Tikat kidhar milegaa |
| A ticket to Mumbai please | Mumbai kaa tikat caahiye |
| Is this the right bus for the airport? | Kya yeh hawai adde ke liye sahi bas hai? |
| Where is the toilet? | Taayalait kaha hai? |
| Taxi | Taiksee |
| Bus | Bas |
| Train | Tren |
| Stop | Ruko |
In A Restaurant
Indian cuisine is so delicious and you definitely don’t want to miss out. Most restaurants will have an English menu or will speak English but they will be excited to see you trying to speak their language so try out a few of these phrases when you’re eating out!
| English | Hindi |
|---|---|
| Food | Khana |
| Water | Paani |
| I need a bottle of water | Mujhe ek bottle paani chahiye |
| I would like …. | Main chaahoonga …. |
| Do you have …. | Kya aapke paas …. |
| I’m hungry | Mujhe bhook lagi hai |
| I’m thirsty | Mujhe pyaas lagi hai |
| I am a vegetarian | Main saakaahaarii hoon |
| It’s delicious | Ye bahut svaadist hai |
Numbers
It can be really useful to learn a few numbers in Hindi especially for bargaining whilst shopping. Here’s a few:
| English | Hindi |
|---|---|
| 1 | Ek |
| 2 | Doe |
| 3 | Teen |
| 4 | Char |
| 5 | Panch |
| 6 | Cheh |
| 7 | Saat |
| 8 | Aath |
| 9 | Now |
| 10 | Das |
| 20 | Bees |
| 30 | Tis |
| 40 | Chalis |
| 50 | Pachas |
| 60 | Saadh |
| 70 | Sattar |
| 80 | Assi |
| 90 | Nabbe |
| 100 | Ek Sau |
Useful Questions/Phrases
It may be worth learning a few of these useful questions and common Hindi phrases to help you on your trip just in case you get into any trouble.
| English | Hindi |
|---|---|
| I don’t speak Hindi | Mujhe hindi nahiin aatii |
| Do you speak English? | Kyaa aapako angrezii aatii hai? |
| What time is it? | Kitane baje hain? |
| I don’t understand | Mujhe samaj nahiin aayaa |
| Can you help me? | Kya aap meri madaad karenge |
| Help! | Madad! |
| I’m feeling sick | Merii tabiiyat kharaab hai |
These common Hindi phrases should help you get around during your trip to India. Don’t worry if you can’t remember them all as many people in India do speak some English so you shouldn’t have too many issues.
Happy travels!
Check out our other India related content to help plan your trip!