पास (paas)
postposition/noun
Mainly a postposition of possession/proximity used with के (ke) ('near, in the possession of'); also a borrowed noun meaning 'pass' (bus pass, exam pass). The possession sense पास (paas) है (hai) is one of the first dative-style constructions learners meet.
Sense
1
:
in someone's possession, have
postposition Used in the compound postposition के पास (ke paas) following an oblique noun/pronoun, with होना (honaa) to express possession: X के पास Y है (X ke paas Y hai, 'X has Y'). The possessor is marked with के पास, not से or को.
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: This is the classic 'have' construction in Hindi, and it trips up almost every English speaker at first because there is no verb that means 'to have' the way English uses it. Instead Hindi treats possession as proximity: the thing is metaphorically 'near' you, so मेरे पास किताब है (mere paas kitaab hai, 'I have a book') literally reads as 'near me a book is'. Once this clicks, it unlocks a whole family of similar dative-flavored constructions.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often try को (ko) or से (se) instead of के पास (ke paas) when expressing possession, carrying over patterns from लगना (lagnaa) or चाहिए (chaahie) constructions. 2) मेरे पास (mere paas) is used for things you are currently carrying or own, not for relationships or abstract qualities (for those, में (men) or का/की/के (kaa/kii/ke) is often better) -- so मेरे पास एक भाई है (mere paas ek bhaaii hai) sounds odd to a native ear for 'I have a brother', where मेरा एक भाई है (meraa ek bhaaii hai) is natural.
Sample Sentences:
मेरे पास एक किताब है।
I have a book.
(mere paas ek kitaab hai।)
उसके पास बहुत पैसा था।
He had a lot of money.
(uske paas bahut paisaa thaa।)
क्या तुम्हारे पास मेरा नंबर है?
Do you have my number?
(kyaa tumhaare paas meraa nambar hai?)
अगर मेरे पास समय होता तो मैं ज़रूर आता।
If I had time, I would definitely come.
(agar mere paas samay hotaa to main zaroor aataa।)
उम्मीद है कि उसके पास पर्याप्त जानकारी हो।
I hope he has enough information.
(ummiid hai ki uske paas paryaapt jaankaarii ho।)
गरीबों के पास अक्सर बुनियादी सुविधाएँ नहीं होती हैं।
The poor often do not have basic facilities.
(gariibon ke paas aksar buniyaadii suvidhaaen nahiin hotii hain।)
मेरे पास इतना समय नहीं है कि मैं तुमसे बात करूँ।
I don't have enough time to talk to you.
(mere paas itnaa samay nahiin hai ki main tumse baat karoon।)
उसके पास कोई विकल्प नहीं बचा था।
He had no option left.
(uske paas koii vikalp nahiin bachaa thaa।)
जिनके पास ज़्यादा है, उन्हें बाँटना चाहिए।
Those who have more should share.
(jinke paas zyaadaa hai, unhen baantnaa chaahie।)
क्या आपके पास कोई सुझाव है?
Do you have any suggestion?
(kyaa aapke paas koii sujhaav hai?)
बच्चों के पास अपनी दुनिया होती है।
Children have their own world.
(bachchon ke paas apnii duniyaa hotii hai।)
Sense
2
:
physical nearness, close to
postposition Also used in के पास (ke paas) form to mark spatial proximity to a place or person, distinct from the possession sense: घर के पास (ghar ke paas, 'near the house').
Synonyms: नज़दीक (nazdiik), करीब (kariib)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: In Delhi, you will constantly hear directions given with के पास (ke paas) anchored to a landmark rather than an address -- मेट्रो स्टेशन के पास (metro steshan ke paas, 'near the metro station') is far more useful to an auto driver than a street number.
Sample Sentences:
मेट्रो स्टेशन के पास एक बड़ा मॉल है।
There is a big mall near the metro station.
(metro steshan ke paas ek badaa mol hai।)
मेरा घर बाज़ार के पास है।
My house is near the market.
(meraa ghar baazaar ke paas hai।)
गाड़ी को पेड़ के पास खड़ी कर दो।
Park the car near the tree.
(gaadii ko ped ke paas khadii kar do।)
वह खिड़की के पास बैठा था।
He was sitting near the window.
(vah khidkii ke paas baithaa thaa।)
अगर तुम स्टेशन के पास रहते, तो रोज़ लेट न होते।
If you lived near the station, you wouldn't be late every day.
(agar tum steshan ke paas rahte, to roz let n hote।)
बच्चे स्कूल के पास खेल रहे हैं।
The children are playing near the school.
(bachche skool ke paas khel rahe hain।)
कृपया आगंतुक स्वागत कक्ष के पास प्रतीक्षा करें।
Please wait near the reception desk.
(kripyaa aagantuk svaagat kaksh ke paas pratiikshaa karen।)
हो सकता है वह अभी दरवाज़े के पास हो।
It's possible he's near the door right now.
(ho saktaa hai vah abhii darvaaze ke paas ho।)
मंदिर नदी के पास बना हुआ है।
The temple is built near the river.
(mandir nadii ke paas banaa huaa hai।)
ऑटो वाले को हमेशा लैंडमार्क के पास ही बताना पड़ता है, पता नहीं चलता।
You always have to tell the auto driver a spot near some landmark, addresses just don't work.
(oto vaale ko hameshaa laindmaark ke paas hii bataanaa padtaa hai, pataa nahiin chaltaa।)
कल शाम को हम पार्क के पास मिलेंगे।
Tomorrow evening we'll meet near the park.
(kal shaam ko ham paark ke paas milenge।)
Sense
3
:
an official pass (bus pass, entry pass, exam pass)
noun, masculine A borrowed noun from English 'pass'; commonly takes light verbs like मिलना (milnaa, 'to be obtained') or बनवाना (banvaanaa, 'to get made') rather than being used with के पास (ke paas).
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: Every Delhi college student knows the ritual of getting a बस पास (bas paas, 'bus pass') made at the start of term, and 'पास होना' (paas honaa) doubles as the everyday way to say you passed an exam -- रोहन पास हो गया (rohan paas ho gayaa, 'Rohan passed').
Common Mistakes: 1) This noun sense is unrelated to the postposition sense despite identical spelling and pronunciation -- learners sometimes assume a semantic link where there is none beyond coincidence of borrowing.
Sample Sentences:
मुझे बस पास बनवाना है।
I need to get a bus pass made.
(mujhe bas paas banvaanaa hai।)
रोहन इस बार गणित में पास हो गया।
Rohan passed math this time.
(rohan is baar ganit men paas ho gayaa।)
एंट्री के लिए तुम्हारे पास वैध पास होना चाहिए।
You should have a valid pass for entry.
(entrii ke lie tumhaare paas vaidh paas honaa chaahie।)
क्या तुम इस बार पास हो पाओगी?
Will you be able to pass this time?
(kyaa tum is baar paas ho paaogii?)
अपना पास दिखाओ, तभी अंदर जाने दिया जाएगा।
Show your pass, only then will you be allowed inside.
(apnaa paas dikhaao, tabhii andar jaane diyaa jaaegaa।)
हर सेमेस्टर की शुरुआत में स्टूडेंट्स लाइन लगाकर पास बनवाते हैं।
At the start of every semester, students line up to get their passes made.
(har semestar kii shuruaat men stoodents laain lagaakar paas banvaate hain।)
अगर मेरे पास पास होता, तो मुझे टिकट नहीं खरीदना पड़ता।
If I had a pass, I wouldn't have had to buy a ticket.
(agar mere paas paas hotaa, to mujhe tikat nahiin khariidnaa padtaa।)
उम्मीदवारों का पास होना उनकी मेहनत का नतीजा था।
The candidates' passing was the result of their hard work.
(ummiidvaaron kaa paas honaa unkii mehnat kaa natiijaa thaa।)
परीक्षा परिणाम घोषित होते ही सब जानना चाहते थे कि कौन पास हुआ है।
As soon as the exam results were declared, everyone wanted to know who had passed.
(pariikshaa parinaam ghoshit hote hii sab jaannaa chaahte the ki kaun paas huaa hai।)
मेट्रो का पास ऑनलाइन रीचार्ज किया जा सकता है।
The metro pass can be recharged online.
(metro kaa paas onlaain riichaarj kiyaa jaa saktaa hai।)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m.direct):
पास
(paas)
(sg.m.oblique):
पास
(paas)
(pl.m.direct):
पास
(paas)
(pl.m.oblique):
पासों
(paason)