सारा (saaraa)
adjective
An adjective meaning 'whole, entire, all of' -- used with singular nouns to mean the totality of a thing, and in the plural to mean 'all' (of a set). Closely related in meaning to पूरा (pooraa) but with its own shade of use.
Sense
1
:
whole, entire (of a single mass or thing)
adjective
Synonyms: पूरा (pooraa), समस्त (samast, formal), संपूर्ण (sampoorn, formal)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: You will hear सारा दिन (saaraa din, 'the whole day') and सारी रात (saarii raat, 'the whole night') constantly in complaints about work or exhaustion -- it is the classic Hindi way of stretching time to make a point, much like English 'all day long.'
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often reach for पूरा (pooraa) and सारा (saaraa) interchangeably, which mostly works, but सारा (saaraa) leans toward 'the entire extent of' (सारा दिन (saaraa din, 'the whole day')) while पूरा (pooraa) leans toward 'complete, not lacking anything' (पूरा काम (pooraa kaam, 'the complete/finished work')) -- native speakers feel the difference even though both are often acceptable.
Sample Sentences:
मैंने सारा दिन काम किया।
I worked the whole day.
(mainne saaraa din kaam kiyaa।)
वह सारी रात सो नहीं पाई।
She couldn't sleep the whole night.
(vah saarii raat so nahiin paaii।)
सारा पैसा खत्म हो गया।
All the money is finished.
(saaraa paisaa khatm ho gayaa।)
उसने सारा दूध पी लिया।
He drank up all the milk.
(usne saaraa doodh pii liyaa।)
सारा शहर बारिश में डूब गया।
The whole city was flooded in the rain.
(saaraa shahar baarish men doob gayaa।)
वह सारा दिन फोन पर लगा रहता है।
He stays glued to the phone all day.
(vah saaraa din phon par lagaa rahtaa hai।)
अगर बिजली चली गई तो सारा खाना खराब हो जाएगा।
If the power goes out, all the food will spoil.
(agar bijlii chalii gaii to saaraa khaanaa kharaab ho jaaegaa।)
काश मुझे सारा सच पता होता।
I wish I had known the whole truth.
(kaash mujhe saaraa sach pataa hotaa।)
सारा सामान गाड़ी में रख दो।
Put all the luggage in the car.
(saaraa saamaan gaadii men rakh do।)
सारा इलाका बिजली विभाग की लापरवाही से अंधेरे में डूबा रहा।
The entire area remained plunged in darkness due to the electricity department's negligence.
(saaraa ilaakaa bijlii vibhaag kii laaparvaahii se andhere men doobaa rahaa।)
जब तक सारा कर्ज न चुकाया जाए, ज़मीन गिरवी रहेगी।
Until the entire debt is repaid, the land will remain mortgaged.
(jab tak saaraa karj n chukaayaa jaae, zamiin girvii rahegii।)
Sense
2
:
all (of a countable set, in the plural)
adjective In the plural (सारे, सारी), agrees with the noun and means 'all' of a group, functioning much like सब (sab) but placed before the noun as a modifier.
Synonyms: सब (sab), तमाम (tamaam)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: सारे लोग (saare log, 'all the people') and सब लोग (sab log, 'all the people') are both extremely common and largely interchangeable in casual speech -- don't overthink choosing between them.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes place सारे (saare) after the noun the way सब (sab) can sometimes float; सारा (saaraa) and its forms are used strictly before the noun they modify.
Sample Sentences:
सारे लोग पार्टी में आए थे।
All the people had come to the party.
(saare log paartii men aae the।)
सारी किताबें मेज़ पर रखी हैं।
All the books are kept on the table.
(saarii kitaaben mez par rakhii hain।)
सारे बच्चे स्कूल जाते हैं।
All the children go to school.
(saare bachche skool jaate hain।)
सारी फ़ाइलें कल तक तैयार कर लो।
Get all the files ready by tomorrow.
(saarii faailen kal tak taiyaar kar lo।)
सारे मेहमान अभी तक नहीं पहुँचे हैं।
All the guests haven't arrived yet.
(saare mehmaan abhii tak nahiin pahunche hain।)
सारी दुकानें बंद हो जाएँगी।
All the shops will close.
(saarii dukaanen band ho jaaengii।)
अगर सारे कर्मचारी समय पर आते, तो काम जल्दी हो जाता।
If all the employees came on time, the work would get done quickly.
(agar saare karmchaarii samay par aate, to kaam jaldii ho jaataa।)
सारी मिठाइयाँ बच्चों में बाँट दी गईं।
All the sweets were distributed among the children.
(saarii mithaaiyaan bachchon men baant dii gaiin।)
क्या सारे टिकट बिक चुके हैं?
Have all the tickets been sold?
(kyaa saare tikat bik chuke hain?)
काश सारी समस्याएँ इतनी आसानी से हल हो जाएँ।
If only all the problems could be solved so easily.
(kaash saarii samasyaaen itnii aasaanii se hal ho jaaen।)
सारे रास्ते बर्फ़ से ढके हुए थे।
All the roads were covered in snow.
(saare raaste barf se dhake hue the।)
Morphology
Adjective (variable)
(sg.m):
सारा
(saaraa)
(pl.m):
सारे
(saare)
(sg.f):
सारी
(saarii)
(pl.f):
सारी
(saarii)