साथ (saath)
postposition/noun/adverb
Mainly used as a noun meaning 'company/togetherness' and, far more frequently, inside the postposition phrase के साथ (ke saath) meaning 'with.' Both uses share the same root idea of accompaniment.
Sense
1
:
with (accompaniment/instrument)
postposition Occurs as the compound postposition के साथ (ke saath) governing the oblique case, e.g. उसके साथ (uske saath, 'with him/her').
Synonyms: समेत (samet, formal, means 'along with/including')
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: Hindi speakers reach for के साथ (ke saath) constantly in daily life -- मेरे साथ चलो (mere saath chalo, 'come with me') is one of the first phrases friends and family use to invite someone along, whether to the market, a wedding, or just next door for chai.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often drop के (ke) and just say साथ (saath) after a noun -- the के (ke) is required except after pronoun forms like मेरे साथ (mere saath, 'with me'), जिसके साथ (jiske saath), etc. where the possessive form itself already carries it. 2) Confusing साथ (saath, 'with a person/thing') with से (se) when the meaning is closer to 'by means of' -- चाकू से काटना (chaakoo se kaatnaa, 'to cut with a knife') uses से (se), not साथ (saath), because it is an instrument, not a companion.
Sample Sentences:
मेरे साथ चलो, बाज़ार जाना है।
Come with me, I need to go to the market.
(mere saath chalo, baazaar jaanaa hai।)
वह अपने दोस्तों के साथ फ़िल्म देखने गया।
He went to watch a movie with his friends.
(vah apne doston ke saath film dekhne gayaa।)
मैं रोटी चाकू के साथ काटती हूँ।
I cut the roti with a knife.
(main rotii chaakoo ke saath kaattii hoon।)
क्या आप मेरे साथ चाय पीना चाहेंगे?
Would you like to have tea with me?
(kyaa aap mere saath chaay piinaa chaahenge?)
अगर तुम मेरे साथ होते, तो मैं इतना नहीं डरती।
If you had been with me, I wouldn't have been so scared.
(agar tum mere saath hote, to main itnaa nahiin dartii।)
यह पत्र उसके साथ भेजा गया था।
This letter was sent along with him.
(yah patr uske saath bhejaa gayaa thaa।)
बच्चे अपनी माँ के साथ पार्क में खेल रहे हैं।
The children are playing in the park with their mother.
(bachche apnii maan ke saath paark men khel rahe hain।)
शायद वह अपने भाई के साथ आए।
Perhaps he will come with his brother.
(shaayad vah apne bhaaii ke saath aae।)
कृपया इस फॉर्म के साथ अपना पहचान पत्र भी जमा करें।
Please submit your ID along with this form.
(kripyaa is phorm ke saath apnaa pahchaan patr bhii jamaa karen।)
उसने अपनी बात हाथों के इशारों के साथ समझाई।
She explained her point with hand gestures.
(usne apnii baat haathon ke ishaaron ke saath samjhaaii।)
पिता जी हमेशा अपने बच्चों के साथ खड़े रहते हैं, चाहे कुछ भी हो।
Father always stands with his children, no matter what happens.
(pitaa jii hameshaa apne bachchon ke saath khade rahte hain, chaahe kuchh bhii ho।)
Sense
2
:
company, companionship
noun, masculine Common in the phrase साथ देना (saath denaa, 'to support/stand by someone') and साथ रहना (saath rahnaa, 'to live/stay together').
Synonyms: साहचर्य (saahchary, literary), संगति (sangti, somewhat formal, often of company/influence)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: साथ (saath) as a noun carries warm emotional weight in Hindi -- तुम्हारा साथ चाहिए (tumhaaraa saath chaahie, 'I need your company/support') is the kind of line you hear in both everyday conversation and in film dialogue about friendship or family bonds.
Common Mistakes: 1) साथ देना (saath denaa) does not literally mean 'to give company' in a passive sense -- it means to actively support or back someone up, e.g. in a difficult time, and learners sometimes underuse it in favor of a literal 'support' translation like समर्थन (samarthan).
Sample Sentences:
मुझे तुम्हारा साथ चाहिए।
I need your company.
(mujhe tumhaaraa saath chaahie।)
उसका साथ छोड़ना मुश्किल था।
Leaving her company was hard.
(uskaa saath chhodnaa mushkil thaa।)
बुढ़ापे में इंसान को साथ की सबसे ज़्यादा ज़रूरत होती है।
In old age, a person needs company the most.
(budhaape men insaan ko saath kii sabse zyaadaa zaroorat hotii hai।)
अगर उसका साथ न होता, तो मैं यह मुश्किल दौर पार नहीं कर पाता।
If I hadn't had her company, I wouldn't have gotten through this hard time.
(agar uskaa saath n hotaa, to main yah mushkil daur paar nahiin kar paataa।)
क्या तुम मेरा साथ दोगी?
Will you give me your company/support?
(kyaa tum meraa saath dogii?)
उम्र भर उसका साथ न छोड़ने की कसम खाई थी उसने।
He had sworn never to leave her company his whole life.
(umr bhar uskaa saath n chhodne kii kasam khaaii thii usne।)
इस मुश्किल समय में हमें आपके साथ की ज़रूरत है।
In this difficult time, we need your company/support.
(is mushkil samay men hamen aapke saath kii zaroorat hai।)
काश उसका साथ मिल जाता।
If only I could have had her company.
(kaash uskaa saath mil jaataa।)
भगवान का साथ हमेशा बना रहे।
May God's company always remain with us.
(bhagvaan kaa saath hameshaa banaa rahe।)
दोस्तों का साथ ज़िंदगी को आसान बना देता है।
The company of friends makes life easier.
(doston kaa saath zindgii ko aasaan banaa detaa hai।)
उसका साथ पाकर मुझे बहुत सुकून मिला।
I found a lot of peace upon getting his company.
(uskaa saath paakar mujhe bahut sukoon milaa।)
Sense
3
:
together, simultaneously
adverb Used adverbially without के (ke) when it modifies a verb directly to mean 'together,' as in साथ खाना खाते हैं (saath khaanaa khaate hain, 'we eat together').
Synonyms: एक साथ (ek saath, more emphatic, 'all together/at once'), मिलकर (milkar, 'jointly, by combining')
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: This sense shows up in the very common phrase साथ साथ (saath saath, 'along together, side by side'), often repeated for emphasis -- हम साथ साथ चलेंगे (ham saath saath chalenge, 'we'll walk along together') has that comfortable, companionable ring Hindi likes to give to shared journeys, literal or metaphorical.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes insert के (ke) here by analogy with the postposition sense, producing an incorrect *उसके साथ खाना खाते हैं* when the intended meaning is simply 'we eat together' (no specific companion named) -- here साथ (saath) alone functions as the adverb, and के साथ (ke saath) would need a following noun/pronoun object to be grammatical.
Sample Sentences:
चलो, आज हम सब साथ खाना खाते हैं।
Come on, today let's all eat together.
(chalo, aaj ham sab saath khaanaa khaate hain।)
हम साथ साथ चलेंगे।
We'll walk along together.
(ham saath saath chalenge।)
दोनों बच्चे साथ साथ बड़े हुए हैं।
Both children grew up together.
(donon bachche saath saath bade hue hain।)
सब लोग साथ बैठकर बात कर रहे थे।
Everyone was sitting together and talking.
(sab log saath baithkar baat kar rahe the।)
साथ रहो, तो रास्ता आसान लगेगा।
Stay together, and the road will feel easier.
(saath raho, to raastaa aasaan lagegaa।)
अगर हम साथ होते, तो यह काम कब का हो जाता।
If we had been together, this work would have been done long ago.
(agar ham saath hote, to yah kaam kab kaa ho jaataa।)
क्या हम साथ चल सकते हैं?
Can we go together?
(kyaa ham saath chal sakte hain?)
यह जरूरी है कि दोनों टीमें साथ काम करें।
It's necessary that both teams work together.
(yah jaroorii hai ki donon tiimen saath kaam karen।)
सभी सदस्यों को साथ आमंत्रित किया गया।
All the members were invited together.
(sabhii sadasyon ko saath aamantrit kiyaa gayaa।)
हम बचपन से साथ साथ पढ़ते आए हैं।
We have been studying together since childhood.
(ham bachpan se saath saath padhte aae hain।)
सुख हो या दुख, हम साथ साथ रहेंगे।
Whether in joy or sorrow, we will remain together.
(sukh ho yaa dukh, ham saath saath rahenge।)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m.direct):
साथ
(saath)
(sg.m.oblique):
साथ
(saath)
(pl.m.direct):
साथ
(saath)
(pl.m.oblique):
साथों
(saathon)