याद करना (yaad karnaa)
verb
A compound built from the noun याद (yaad, 'memory/remembrance') plus करना (karnaa, 'to do'); covers both 'to remember/recall' and 'to memorize' as well as the affectionate 'to miss someone'.
Sense
1
:
to remember, to recall
verb, transitive The thing remembered is usually marked with को (ko) or is simply the direct object; contrast with याद आना (yaad aanaa), where the memory arrives to the person (dative subject) rather than the person actively recalling it.
Synonyms: याद आना (yaad aanaa, involuntary recall -- different construction), स्मरण करना (smaran karnaa, formal/literary)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: Think of याद (yaad) as a mental object you can actively 'do' something with -- यह याद करो (yah yaad karo, 'recall this') treats memory as an act of will, which is why this pairs so naturally with करना (karnaa) rather than होना (honaa).
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often reach for याद आना (yaad aanaa) when they actually mean the deliberate act of recalling something -- याद करना (yaad karnaa) is the active, willed version, while याद आना (yaad aanaa) just happens to you. 2) The person doing the remembering is the subject here (with ने (ne) in the past, since करना (karnaa) is transitive), not marked with को (ko) as it would be with याद आना (yaad aanaa).
Sample Sentences:
मुझे उसका नाम याद नहीं आ रहा।
I can't recall his name.
(mujhe uskaa naam yaad nahiin aa rahaa।)
क्या तुम्हें अपनी पहली नौकरी याद है?
Do you remember your first job?
(kyaa tumhen apnii pahlii naukrii yaad hai?)
यह बात याद करो, बहुत काम आएगी।
Recall this point, it will be very useful.
(yah baat yaad karo, bahut kaam aaegii।)
जब मैंने वह तस्वीर देखी, तो मुझे बचपन याद आ गया।
When I saw that photo, I remembered my childhood.
(jab mainne vah tasviir dekhii, to mujhe bachpan yaad aa gayaa।)
अगर मुझे उसका फ़ोन नंबर याद होता, तो मैं उसे बुला लेता।
If I remembered his phone number, I would have called him.
(agar mujhe uskaa fon nambar yaad hotaa, to main use bulaa letaa।)
पता नहीं क्यों, लेकिन मुझे वह दिन बार-बार याद आता है।
I don't know why, but I keep remembering that day again and again.
(pataa nahiin kyon, lekin mujhe vah din baar-baar yaad aataa hai।)
मुझे याद है कि मैंने दरवाज़ा बंद किया था।
I remember that I closed the door.
(mujhe yaad hai ki mainne darvaazaa band kiyaa thaa।)
कृपया वह वादा याद रखिए जो आपने किया था।
Please remember the promise you made.
(kripyaa vah vaadaa yaad rakhie jo aapne kiyaa thaa।)
शायद उसे मेरी शादी की तारीख़ याद न हो।
Maybe he doesn't remember the date of my wedding.
(shaayad use merii shaadii kii taariikh yaad n ho।)
मुझे नहीं याद कि मैंने वह किताब कहाँ रखी थी।
I don't remember where I kept that book.
(mujhe nahiin yaad ki mainne vah kitaab kahaan rakhii thii।)
इतिहास की वे तारीखें आज भी लोगों को याद की जाती हैं।
Those dates in history are still remembered by people today.
(itihaas kii ve taariikhen aaj bhii logon ko yaad kii jaatii hain।)
Sense
2
:
to memorize (by rote)
verb, transitive
Synonyms: कंठस्थ करना (kanthasth karnaa, formal), रटना (ratnaa, rote/mechanical memorization, often with a negative shade)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: Every Indian schoolkid has heard a parent or teacher say कविता याद करो (kavitaa yaad karo, 'memorize the poem') -- this sense is deeply tied to rote learning culture around exams.
Common Mistakes: 1) In school contexts याद करना (yaad karnaa) is the neutral everyday way to say 'memorize'; रटना (ratnaa) implies mindless cramming, so swapping them changes the tone.
Sample Sentences:
बच्चों, कविता याद करो।
Children, memorize the poem.
(bachchon, kavitaa yaad karo।)
मैं रोज़ रात को अगले दिन का पाठ याद करता हूँ।
I memorize the next day's lesson every night.
(main roz raat ko agle din kaa paath yaad kartaa hoon।)
वह परीक्षा के लिए पूरा अध्याय याद कर रही है।
She is memorizing the whole chapter for the exam.
(vah pariikshaa ke lie pooraa adhyaay yaad kar rahii hai।)
मैंने सारे सूत्र याद कर लिए थे, फिर भी पेपर मुश्किल लगा।
I had memorized all the formulas, yet the paper still felt hard.
(mainne saare sootr yaad kar lie the, phir bhii pepar mushkil lagaa।)
अगर तुम रोज़ थोड़ा-थोड़ा याद करो, तो परीक्षा के पहले घबराना नहीं पड़ेगा।
If you memorize a little every day, you won't have to panic before the exam.
(agar tum roz thodaa-thodaa yaad karo, to pariikshaa ke pahle ghabraanaa nahiin padegaa।)
अगर मैंने समय पर पहाड़े याद किए होते, तो आज गणित में इतनी परेशानी नहीं होती।
If I had memorized the multiplication tables on time, I wouldn't have this much trouble with math today.
(agar mainne samay par pahaade yaad kie hote, to aaj ganit men itnii pareshaanii nahiin hotii।)
यह पूरी किताब रटकर याद की जाती है, समझकर नहीं।
This entire book is memorized by rote, not by understanding.
(yah poorii kitaab ratkar yaad kii jaatii hai, samajhkar nahiin।)
कृपया कल तक यह गीत याद कर लीजिए।
Please have this song memorized by tomorrow.
(kripyaa kal tak yah giit yaad kar liijie।)
टीचर ने कहा कि हर छात्र दस श्लोक याद करे।
The teacher said that every student should memorize ten verses.
(tiichar ne kahaa ki har chhaatr das shlok yaad kare।)
मुझे लगता है कि वह अपना भाषण याद कर चुका है।
I think he has already finished memorizing his speech.
(mujhe lagtaa hai ki vah apnaa bhaashan yaad kar chukaa hai।)
Sense
3
:
to miss someone (think of them fondly/longingly)
verb, transitive The person missed is the direct object, e.g. मैं तुम्हें याद करता हूँ (main tumhen yaad kartaa hoon, 'I miss you') -- an active statement of missing, distinct from तुम्हारी याद आती है (tumhaarii yaad aatii hai, 'I find myself missing you'), where the missing arrives unbidden.
Synonyms: याद आना (yaad aanaa, the involuntary counterpart -- 'to be missed/come to mind')
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: This is the sense behind countless Hindi film lyrics and messages -- तुम्हारी याद आती है (tumhaarii yaad aatii hai) lets missing someone feel like it happens to you, which fits Hindi's general comfort with feelings as things that arrive rather than things you do.
Common Mistakes: 1) English speakers default to 'I miss you' and translate it literally, but तुम्हारी याद आती है (tumhaarii yaad aatii hai) is actually far more common in natural speech for this feeling than मैं तुम्हें याद करता हूँ (main tumhen yaad kartaa hoon), which can sound slightly more deliberate or formal.
Sample Sentences:
मैं तुम्हें बहुत याद करता हूँ।
I miss you a lot.
(main tumhen bahut yaad kartaa hoon।)
जब से वह विदेश गई है, मैं उसे रोज़ याद करती हूँ।
Ever since she went abroad, I miss her every day.
(jab se vah videsh gaii hai, main use roz yaad kartii hoon।)
आज मैं अपने दादा जी को बहुत याद कर रहा हूँ।
Today I am missing my grandfather a lot.
(aaj main apne daadaa jii ko bahut yaad kar rahaa hoon।)
उसके जाने के बाद हम सब उसे याद करते रहे।
After he left, all of us kept missing him.
(uske jaane ke baad ham sab use yaad karte rahe।)
तुम्हारी याद आती है, यह कहना भी अब आसान नहीं रहा।
Saying that I miss you is not even easy anymore.
(tumhaarii yaad aatii hai, yah kahnaa bhii ab aasaan nahiin rahaa।)
काश तुम यहाँ होते, हम तुम्हें इतना याद न करते।
If only you were here, we wouldn't miss you so much.
(kaash tum yahaan hote, ham tumhen itnaa yaad n karte।)
मुझे याद कर लेना, जब भी उदास हो।
Miss me, whenever you feel sad.
(mujhe yaad kar lenaa, jab bhii udaas ho।)
हो सकता है वह भी हमें उतना ही याद करती हो।
It's possible that she misses us just as much.
(ho saktaa hai vah bhii hamen utnaa hii yaad kartii ho।)
बचपन के दोस्तों को याद किया जाता है, पर मिलना कम ही हो पाता है।
Childhood friends are missed, but meeting them rarely works out.
(bachpan ke doston ko yaad kiyaa jaataa hai, par milnaa kam hii ho paataa hai।)
छुट्टियों में घर से दूर रहकर उसने अपने माँ-बाप को बहुत याद किया।
Staying away from home during the holidays, he missed his parents a lot.
(chhuttiyon men ghar se door rahkar usne apne maan-baap ko bahut yaad kiyaa।)
बरसों बाद भी वह अपने पहले प्यार को याद करता है।
Even after years, he still misses his first love.
(barson baad bhii vah apne pahle pyaar ko yaad kartaa hai।)
Morphology
Verb (irregular)
infinitive:
याद करना
(yaad karnaa)
infinitive oblique:
याद करने
(yaad karne)
habitual/simple (sg.m):
याद करता
(yaad kartaa)
habitual/simple (pl.m):
याद करते
(yaad karte)
habitual/simple (sg.f):
याद करती
(yaad kartii)
habitual/simple (pl.f):
याद करतीं
(yaad kartiin)
continuous (sg.m):
याद कर रहा
(yaad kar rahaa)
continuous (pl.m):
याद कर रहे
(yaad kar rahe)
continuous (sg.f):
याद कर रही
(yaad kar rahii)
continuous (pl.f):
याद कर रहीं
(yaad kar rahiin)
perfective (sg.m):
याद किया
(yaad kiyaa)
perfective (pl.m):
याद किए
(yaad kie)
perfective (sg.f):
याद की
(yaad kii)
perfective (pl.f):
याद कीं
(yaad kiin)
imperative (informal):
याद कर
(yaad kar)
imperative (neutral):
याद करो
(yaad karo)
imperative (formal):
याद कीजिए
(yaad kiijie)
future (1sg.m):
याद करूँगा
(yaad karoongaa)
future (1sg.f):
याद करूँगी
(yaad karoongii)
future (1pl.m):
याद करेंगे
(yaad karenge)
future (1pl.f):
याद करेंगी
(yaad karengii)
future (2sg.m):
याद करेगा
(yaad karegaa)
future (2sg.f):
याद करेगी
(yaad karegii)
future (2pl.m):
याद करोगे
(yaad karoge)
future (2pl.f):
याद करोगी
(yaad karogii)
future (3sg.m):
याद करेगा
(yaad karegaa)
future (3sg.f):
याद करेगी
(yaad karegii)
future (3pl.m):
याद करेंगे
(yaad karenge)
future (3pl.f):
याद करेंगी
(yaad karengii)
subjunctive (1sg):
याद करूँ
(yaad karoon)
subjunctive (1pl):
याद करें
(yaad karen)
subjunctive (2sg):
याद करे
(yaad kare)
subjunctive (2pl):
याद करो
(yaad karo)
subjunctive (3sg):
याद करे
(yaad kare)
subjunctive (3pl):
याद करें
(yaad karen)