खाना (khaanaa)
verb/noun
Covers two closely linked things: the verb 'to eat' and the noun 'food/meal' derived from it. Not to be confused with ख़ाना (khaanaa), a distinct Persian-derived word meaning 'compartment, box' (as in कारख़ाना (kaarkhaanaa, 'factory')).
Sense
1
:
to eat
verb, transitive
Synonyms: भोजन करना (bhojan karnaa, formal), जीमना (jiimnaa, regional/rare)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: खाना (khaanaa) is one of the first verbs every learner meets, and it shows up constantly in the everyday question खाना खाया? (khaanaa khaayaa?, 'have you eaten?') -- a genuine greeting of care in Delhi households, not just small talk. It also extends metaphorically, as in मार खाना (maar khaanaa, 'to take a beating') or धोखा खाना (dhokhaa khaanaa, 'to be deceived'), where 'eating' means 'receiving/suffering' something.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes forget खाना (khaanaa) is transitive and take ने (ne) in the perfective -- मैंने खाना खाया (mainne khaanaa khaayaa, 'I ate food') is correct, not मैं खाया (main khaayaa). 2) The noun खाना (khaanaa, 'food') and the verb खाना (khaanaa, 'to eat') look identical, which can cause confusion in phrases like खाना खाना (khaanaa khaanaa, 'to eat food') -- this doubling is normal, not a mistake.
Sample Sentences:
मैं रोज़ सुबह अंडा खाता हूँ।
I eat an egg every morning.
(main roz subah andaa khaataa hoon।)
क्या तुमने खाना खाया?
Have you eaten?
(kyaa tumne khaanaa khaayaa?)
वह अभी खाना खा रही है।
She is eating right now.
(vah abhii khaanaa khaa rahii hai।)
हम शाम को साथ खाना खाएँगे।
We will eat together in the evening.
(ham shaam ko saath khaanaa khaaenge।)
पहले हाथ धो लो, फिर खाना।
Wash your hands first, then eat.
(pahle haath dho lo, phir khaanaa।)
अगर भूख होती तो वह ज़रूर खाता।
If he had been hungry, he would definitely have eaten.
(agar bhookh hotii to vah zaroor khaataa।)
डॉक्टर ने कहा है कि मुझे समय पर खाना खाना चाहिए।
The doctor has said that I should eat on time.
(doktar ne kahaa hai ki mujhe samay par khaanaa khaanaa chaahie।)
जब मैं वहाँ पहुँचा, तब तक वह खाना खा चुका था।
By the time I got there, he had already finished eating.
(jab main vahaan pahunchaa, tab tak vah khaanaa khaa chukaa thaa।)
मंदिर में प्रसाद सब मिलकर खाते हैं।
Everyone eats the offering together at the temple.
(mandir men prasaad sab milkar khaate hain।)
इतनी मिर्च वाला खाना नहीं खाया जाता मुझसे।
Such spicy food cannot be eaten by me.
(itnii mirch vaalaa khaanaa nahiin khaayaa jaataa mujhse।)
बच्चे, ज़रा सब्ज़ी भी खा लो।
Kid, eat some vegetables too.
(bachche, zaraa sabzii bhii khaa lo।)
Sense
2
:
to receive/suffer (something negative), figurative extension
verb, transitive Occurs in fixed collocations like मार खाना (maar khaanaa, 'to get beaten'), धोखा खाना (dhokhaa khaanaa, 'to be cheated'), कसम खाना (kasam khaanaa, 'to take an oath'), ठोकर खाना (thokar khaanaa, 'to stumble'). The object is fixed within each idiom rather than freely chosen.
Synonyms: सहना (sahnaa, 'to endure', broader meaning), झेलना (jhelnaa, 'to bear/undergo')
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: This is the same खाना (khaanaa) as 'to eat', extended metaphorically: in Hindi you 'eat' a beating, a betrayal, or a stumble, framing misfortune as something absorbed into the body. Once you notice this pattern, you'll spot it everywhere -- धक्का खाना (dhakkaa khaanaa, 'to get jolted/shoved') is another common one.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often try to translate these idioms word-for-word from English ('to receive a beating') instead of learning the खाना (khaanaa) collocation as a fixed chunk. 2) कसम खाना (kasam khaanaa, 'to swear an oath') can confuse learners since 'eating an oath' has no English logic -- it simply must be memorized as a set phrase.
Sample Sentences:
उसे कल भरी सड़क पर धोखा खाना पड़ा।
He had to suffer a betrayal, right in the middle of the street, yesterday.
(use kal bharii sadak par dhokhaa khaanaa padaa।)
बचपन में मैं अक्सर मार खाता था।
As a child, I used to get beaten often.
(bachpan men main aksar maar khaataa thaa।)
वह गिरते-गिरते संभल गया, वरना अच्छी चोट खाता।
He caught himself just before falling, otherwise he would have taken a nasty injury.
(vah girte-girte sambhal gayaa, varnaa achchhii chot khaataa।)
बस में इतनी भीड़ थी कि मुझे बुरी तरह धक्का खाना पड़ा।
The bus was so crowded that I got badly jolted around.
(bas men itnii bhiid thii ki mujhe burii tarah dhakkaa khaanaa padaa।)
अगर तुम बिना सोचे पैसा लगाओगे, तो नुकसान खाओगे।
If you invest money without thinking, you'll end up taking a loss.
(agar tum binaa soche paisaa lagaaoge, to nuksaan khaaoge।)
देखो, ज्यादा शेखी मत बघारो, वरना मुँह की खाओगे।
Look, don't brag too much, or you'll end up eating humiliation.
(dekho, jyaadaa shekhii mat baghaaro, varnaa munh kii khaaoge।)
क्रिकेट मैच में उसकी टीम बड़ी हार खा गई।
His team suffered a huge defeat in the cricket match.
(kriket maich men uskii tiim badii haar khaa gaii।)
सिपाही ने गोली खाई और वहीं गिर पड़ा।
The soldier took a bullet and fell right there.
(sipaahii ne golii khaaii aur vahiin gir padaa।)
यह मशीन इतने साल से चल रही है कि अब जगह-जगह जंग खा गई है।
This machine has been running for so many years that it has now rusted through in places.
(yah mashiin itne saal se chal rahii hai ki ab jagah-jagah jang khaa gaii hai।)
क्या तुम चाहते हो कि मैं फिर से धोखा खाऊँ?
Do you want me to get deceived again?
(kyaa tum chaahte ho ki main phir se dhokhaa khaaoon?)
उस गद्दारी को याद करके वह सालों तक ठोकर खाता रहा।
Remembering that betrayal, he kept stumbling through life for years.
(us gaddaarii ko yaad karke vah saalon tak thokar khaataa rahaa।)
बिना सबूत के आरोप लगाने से पहले सोचिए, वरना बदनामी खानी पड़ेगी।
Think before making accusations without proof, or you will have to bear the disgrace.
(binaa saboot ke aarop lagaane se pahle sochie, varnaa badnaamii khaanii padegii।)
Sense
3
:
food, meal
noun, masculine
Synonyms: भोजन (bhojan, formal), आहार (aahaar, formal/dietary)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: खाना (khaanaa) is the everyday word for a meal, as in खाना बनाना (khaanaa banaanaa, 'to cook/make food') -- a phrase you'll hear in nearly every Indian household multiple times a day. It's less formal than भोजन (bhojan), which shows up more on menus or in written/polite contexts.
Common Mistakes: 1) खाना (khaanaa) as a noun is masculine, so adjectives and verbs agreeing with it take masculine forms -- खाना अच्छा है (khaanaa achchhaa hai, 'the food is good'), not अच्छी (achchhii).
Sample Sentences:
माँ रोज़ सुबह खाना बनाती है।
Mom makes food every morning.
(maan roz subah khaanaa banaatii hai।)
मैंने कल रात का खाना बनाया था।
I had made dinner last night.
(mainne kal raat kaa khaanaa banaayaa thaa।)
खाना मेज़ पर रखा है।
The food is on the table.
(khaanaa mez par rakhaa hai।)
क्या तुम आज खाना बनाओगे?
Will you make food today?
(kyaa tum aaj khaanaa banaaoge?)
कृपया मेहमानों के लिए खाना तैयार कर दो।
Please get the food ready for the guests.
(kripyaa mehmaanon ke lie khaanaa taiyaar kar do।)
अगर समय होता तो मैं खाना खुद बनाता।
If I had time, I would have made the food myself.
(agar samay hotaa to main khaanaa khud banaataa।)
शादी में इतना खाना बनाया गया कि आधा फेंकना पड़ा।
So much food was made at the wedding that half of it had to be thrown away.
(shaadii men itnaa khaanaa banaayaa gayaa ki aadhaa phenknaa padaa।)
हो सकता है खाना थोड़ी देर में बन जाए।
It's possible the food will be ready in a little while.
(ho saktaa hai khaanaa thodii der men ban jaae।)
रेस्तराँ में खाना बहुत स्वादिष्ट था।
The food at the restaurant was very tasty.
(restraan men khaanaa bahut svaadisht thaa।)
बच्चे खाना खाने से पहले हाथ धो रहे हैं।
The children are washing their hands before eating food.
(bachche khaanaa khaane se pahle haath dho rahe hain।)
दफ़्तर की कैंटीन का खाना सस्ता पर अच्छा नहीं होता।
The office canteen's food is cheap but not good.
(daftar kii kaintiin kaa khaanaa sastaa par achchhaa nahiin hotaa।)
Morphology
Verb
infinitive:
खाना
(khaanaa)
infinitive oblique:
खाने
(khaane)
habitual/simple (sg.m):
खाता
(khaataa)
habitual/simple (pl.m):
खाते
(khaate)
habitual/simple (sg.f):
खाती
(khaatii)
habitual/simple (pl.f):
खातीं
(khaatiin)
continuous (sg.m):
खा रहा
(khaa rahaa)
continuous (pl.m):
खा रहे
(khaa rahe)
continuous (sg.f):
खा रही
(khaa rahii)
continuous (pl.f):
खा रहीं
(khaa rahiin)
perfective (sg.m):
खाया
(khaayaa)
perfective (pl.m):
खाए
(khaae)
perfective (sg.f):
खाई
(khaaii)
perfective (pl.f):
खाईं
(khaaiin)
imperative (informal):
खा
(khaa)
imperative (neutral):
खाओ
(khaao)
imperative (formal):
खाइए
(khaaie)
future (1sg.m):
खाऊँगा
(khaaoongaa)
future (1sg.f):
खाऊँगी
(khaaoongii)
future (1pl.m):
खाएँगे
(khaaenge)
future (1pl.f):
खाएँगी
(khaaengii)
future (2sg.m):
खाएगा
(khaaegaa)
future (2sg.f):
खाएगी
(khaaegii)
future (2pl.m):
खाओगे
(khaaoge)
future (2pl.f):
खाओगी
(khaaogii)
future (3sg.m):
खाएगा
(khaaegaa)
future (3sg.f):
खाएगी
(khaaegii)
future (3pl.m):
खाएँगे
(khaaenge)
future (3pl.f):
खाएँगी
(khaaengii)
subjunctive (1sg):
खाऊँ
(khaaoon)
subjunctive (1pl):
खाएँ
(khaaen)
subjunctive (2sg):
खाए
(khaae)
subjunctive (2pl):
खाओ
(khaao)
subjunctive (3sg):
खाए
(khaae)
subjunctive (3pl):
खाएँ
(khaaen)
Noun
(sg.m.direct):
खाना
(khaanaa)
(sg.m.oblique):
खाने
(khaane)
(pl.m.direct):
खाने
(khaane)
(pl.m.oblique):
खानों
(khaanon)