दम मारना (dam maarnaa)

verb A compound built on दम (dam, 'breath') plus मारना (maarnaa, 'to strike/hit'); its two everyday senses are 'to take a drag/puff' (smoking) and, in the negative, 'to not dare to speak/act, to keep silent out of fear'.
Sense 1 : to take a puff or drag (of a cigarette, joint, hookah, etc.)
verb, transitive
Synonyms: कश लगाना (kash lagaanaa), फूँकना (phoonknaa, colloquial)
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: You will hear this phrase around a chillum or cigarette circle -- ek dam maar le (ek dam maar le, 'take a puff') is casual, friend-to-friend language, not something you would say to an elder. It shares its root दम (dam) with दम लेना (dam lenaa, 'to catch one's breath'), both treating breath as something physically taken in short bursts.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes translate literally as 'to kill breath', missing that दम (dam) here means 'a puff/inhalation', not 'life force' as in other दम (dam) idioms. 2) The object of the smoking is usually marked with का (kaa) -- सिगरेट का दम मारना (sigret kaa dam maarnaa, 'to take a drag of a cigarette') -- not से (se) as some learners guess.
Sample Sentences:
एक दम मार ले, मज़ा आएगा। Take a puff, you'll enjoy it.
(ek dam maar le, mazaa aaegaa।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Imperative -- Voice: Active
वो चिलम पर दम मार रहा था जब पुलिस आ गई। He was taking a drag on the chillum when the police showed up.
(vo chilam par dam maar rahaa thaa jab pulis aa gaii।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Continuous -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
यार, दम मार के सिगरेट आगे बढ़ा दे। Dude, take a drag and pass the cigarette on.
(yaar, dam maar ke sigret aage badhaa de।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Imperative -- Voice: Active
वो हर पाँच मिनट में दम मारता है। He takes a puff every five minutes.
(vo har paanch minat men dam maartaa hai।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
अगर तू एक दम भी मारेगा तो खांसने लगेगा। If you take even one puff, you'll start coughing.
(agar too ek dam bhii maaregaa to khaansne lagegaa।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Tense: Future -- Voice: Active
उसने दम मारा और आँखें बंद कर लीं। He took a drag and closed his eyes.
(usne dam maaraa aur aankhen band kar liin।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
काश मैं भी एक दम मार पाता उस चिलम पर। I wish I could've taken a puff from that chillum too.
(kaash main bhii ek dam maar paataa us chilam par।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Counterfactual -- Aspect: Habitual -- Voice: Active
शायद वो थोड़ा दम मार ले तो चिल हो जाए। Maybe if he takes a puff, he'll chill out.
(shaayad vo thodaa dam maar le to chil ho jaae।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Subjunctive -- Voice: Active
चिलम इतनी बार दम मारी गई कि अब कुछ बचा ही नहीं। The chillum was puffed on so many times that nothing's left in it now.
(chilam itnii baar dam maarii gaii ki ab kuchh bachaa hii nahiin।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Passive
सब बारी-बारी से दम मार रहे थे और गप्पें हांक रहे थे। Everyone was taking turns puffing and shooting the breeze.
(sab baarii-baarii se dam maar rahe the aur gappen haank rahe the।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Continuous -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
Sense 2 : to dare to speak or act (used almost always in the negative)
verb, intransitive Almost exclusively found in the negative frame दम न मारना (dam n maarnaa) or दम मारने की हिम्मत न होना (dam maarne kii himmat n honaa), meaning someone is too scared or overpowered to even open their mouth.
Synonyms: हिम्मत करना (himmat karnaa), जुर्रत करना (jurrat karnaa, more formal/dramatic)
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: This sense turns on the same breath-as-life-force logic as दम (dam) in दम निकल गया (dam nikal gayaa, 'the life went out of him' -- i.e., he was terrified): if you cannot even 'strike a breath', you are utterly cowed. You will hear it in tense family or workplace scenes -- kisii kii himmat nahiin ki dam maare (kisii kii himmat nahiin ki dam maare, 'no one dares breathe a word') -- describing someone so intimidating that everyone else goes silent.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners try to use this in a plain positive sentence ('he dared to act') -- it almost always appears negated, implying stunned silence or fear rather than a neutral act of daring. 2) It is not used for physical fighting-back, only for speaking up or protesting.
Sample Sentences:
बॉस के सामने किसी की दम मारने की हिम्मत नहीं होती। In front of the boss, no one dares to say a word.
(bos ke saamne kisii kii dam maarne kii himmat nahiin hotii।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
उसके गुस्से से सब इतना डर गए कि किसी ने दम नहीं मारी। Everyone was so scared of his anger that no one dared say anything.
(uske gusse se sab itnaa dar gae ki kisii ne dam nahiin maarii।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
पापा के सामने दम मारना, फिर देखना क्या होता है। Just dare to say a word in front of Papa, then see what happens.
(paapaa ke saamne dam maarnaa, phir dekhnaa kyaa hotaa hai।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Imperative -- Voice: Active
इतनी सख्त निगरानी में कोई दम नहीं मार सकता था। Under such strict supervision, no one could dare to speak up.
(itnii sakht nigraanii men koii dam nahiin maar saktaa thaa।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
अगर वह इतना रसूखदार न होता, तो कोई भी उसके खिलाफ दम मार देता। If he weren't so influential, someone would have dared to speak against him.
(agar vah itnaa rasookhdaar n hotaa, to koii bhii uske khilaaph dam maar detaa।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Counterfactual -- Aspect: Habitual -- Voice: Active
मीटिंग में सब चुप थे, किसी की हिम्मत नहीं कि दम मारे। Everyone was silent in the meeting, no one had the nerve to breathe a word.
(miiting men sab chup the, kisii kii himmat nahiin ki dam maare।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Subjunctive -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
अध्यक्ष महोदय के निर्णय के विरुद्ध सभा में किसी ने दम मारने का साहस नहीं दिखाया। No one in the assembly showed the courage to speak against the chairman's decision.
(adhyaksh mahoday ke nirnay ke viruddh sabhaa men kisii ne dam maarne kaa saahas nahiin dikhaayaa।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
क्या इस घर में किसी की दम मारने की हिम्मत भी है? Does anyone in this house even have the nerve to speak up?
(kyaa is ghar men kisii kii dam maarne kii himmat bhii hai?)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
पुलिस के सामने बदमाशों ने भी दम मारने की जुर्रत नहीं की। Even the thugs did not dare to utter a word in front of the police.
(pulis ke saamne badmaashon ne bhii dam maarne kii jurrat nahiin kii।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
Morphology
Verb
infinitive: दम मारना (dam maarnaa)
infinitive oblique: दम मारने (dam maarne)
habitual/simple (sg.m): दम मारता (dam maartaa)
habitual/simple (pl.m): दम मारते (dam maarte)
habitual/simple (sg.f): दम मारती (dam maartii)
habitual/simple (pl.f): दम मारतीं (dam maartiin)
continuous (sg.m): दम मार रहा (dam maar rahaa)
continuous (pl.m): दम मार रहे (dam maar rahe)
continuous (sg.f): दम मार रही (dam maar rahii)
continuous (pl.f): दम मार रहीं (dam maar rahiin)
perfective (sg.m): दम मारा (dam maaraa)
perfective (pl.m): दम मारे (dam maare)
perfective (sg.f): दम मारी (dam maarii)
perfective (pl.f): दम मारीं (dam maariin)
imperative (informal): दम मार (dam maar)
imperative (neutral): दम मारो (dam maaro)
imperative (formal): दम मारिए (dam maarie)
future (1sg.m): दम मारूँगा (dam maaroongaa)
future (1sg.f): दम मारूँगी (dam maaroongii)
future (1pl.m): दम मारेंगे (dam maarenge)
future (1pl.f): दम मारेंगी (dam maarengii)
future (2sg.m): दम मारेगा (dam maaregaa)
future (2sg.f): दम मारेगी (dam maaregii)
future (2pl.m): दम मारोगे (dam maaroge)
future (2pl.f): दम मारोगी (dam maarogii)
future (3sg.m): दम मारेगा (dam maaregaa)
future (3sg.f): दम मारेगी (dam maaregii)
future (3pl.m): दम मारेंगे (dam maarenge)
future (3pl.f): दम मारेंगी (dam maarengii)
subjunctive (1sg): दम मारूँ (dam maaroon)
subjunctive (1pl): दम मारें (dam maaren)
subjunctive (2sg): दम मारे (dam maare)
subjunctive (2pl): दम मारो (dam maaro)
subjunctive (3sg): दम मारे (dam maare)
subjunctive (3pl): दम मारें (dam maaren)