लीपना (liipnaa)
verb
A traditional verb meaning to smear or plaster a surface, most often with mud, cow dung, or a similar paste -- the everyday word for the age-old rural practice of coating a floor or wall this way.
Sense
1
:
to plaster/smear (a floor, wall, etc.) with mud or dung
verb, transitive
Synonyms: पोतना (potnaa), थोपना (thopnaa, to slap on/apply thickly)
Frequency: low
Cultural Note: This word carries the image of a village courtyard at dawn, a woman bent over smoothing wet cow-dung-and-mud paste (gobar) across a mud floor with her bare hand -- a scene still common in rural North India and one every Hindi speaker recognizes even if they've only seen it in films or at a grandparent's house. It pairs naturally with पोतना (potnaa) in the common phrase लीपना-पोतना (liipnaa-potnaa, 'to plaster and coat'), used for general housekeeping upkeep of a mud house.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes reach for पोतना (potnaa) as a casual synonym for painting, but लीपना (liipnaa) specifically evokes the traditional mud/dung-plaster technique, not painting with a brush and color. 2) The object is the surface being coated (the floor, the wall), not the mud itself -- so a sentence like फर्श को लीपना (pharsh ko liipnaa, 'to plaster the floor') takes फर्श (pharsh) as the direct object, with the coating material marked separately, often with से (se).
Sample Sentences:
गाँव में औरतें रोज़ सुबह घर का आँगन गोबर से लीपती हैं।
In villages, women plaster the courtyard with cow dung every morning.
(gaanv men aurten roz subah ghar kaa aangan gobar se liiptii hain।)
दादी ने कल आँगन को मिट्टी और गोबर से लीपा था।
Grandmother had plastered the courtyard with mud and dung yesterday.
(daadii ne kal aangan ko mittii aur gobar se liipaa thaa।)
वह चूल्हे के पास की दीवार लीप रही थी जब बारिश शुरू हो गई।
She was plastering the wall near the hearth when it started raining.
(vah choolhe ke paas kii diivaar liip rahii thii jab baarish shuroo ho gaii।)
त्योहार से पहले पूरा घर लीपा-पोता जाता है।
Before the festival, the whole house is plastered and coated.
(tyohaar se pahle pooraa ghar liipaa-potaa jaataa hai।)
फर्श को अच्छे से गोबर से लीप दो, तभी सूखेगा जल्दी।
Plaster the floor well with dung, only then will it dry quickly.
(pharsh ko achchhe se gobar se liip do, tabhii sookhegaa jaldii।)
अगर वह हर हफ्ते आँगन लीपती तो घर इतना साफ़ न होता।
If she plastered the courtyard every week, the house wouldn't be this clean.
(agar vah har haphte aangan liiptii to ghar itnaa saaf n hotaa।)
माँ चाहती है कि बेटी भी सीखे कि दीवार कैसे लीपी जाती है।
Mother wants her daughter to also learn how a wall is plastered.
(maan chaahtii hai ki betii bhii siikhe ki diivaar kaise liipii jaatii hai।)
उस ज़माने में हर घर की औरत आँगन लीपना-पोतना जानती थी।
Back in those days, every household's woman knew how to plaster and coat the courtyard.
(us zamaane men har ghar kii aurat aangan liipnaa-potnaa jaantii thii।)
दीवाली से पहले उसने पूरी झोपड़ी लीप डाली।
Before Diwali, she plastered the whole hut thoroughly.
(diivaalii se pahle usne poorii jhopdii liip daalii।)
Morphology
Verb
infinitive:
लीपना
(liipnaa)
infinitive oblique:
लीपने
(liipne)
habitual/simple (sg.m):
लीपता
(liiptaa)
habitual/simple (pl.m):
लीपते
(liipte)
habitual/simple (sg.f):
लीपती
(liiptii)
habitual/simple (pl.f):
लीपतीं
(liiptiin)
continuous (sg.m):
लीप रहा
(liip rahaa)
continuous (pl.m):
लीप रहे
(liip rahe)
continuous (sg.f):
लीप रही
(liip rahii)
continuous (pl.f):
लीप रहीं
(liip rahiin)
perfective (sg.m):
लीपा
(liipaa)
perfective (pl.m):
लीपे
(liipe)
perfective (sg.f):
लीपी
(liipii)
perfective (pl.f):
लीपीं
(liipiin)
imperative (informal):
लीप
(liip)
imperative (neutral):
लीपो
(liipo)
imperative (formal):
लीपिए
(liipie)
future (1sg.m):
लीपूँगा
(liipoongaa)
future (1sg.f):
लीपूँगी
(liipoongii)
future (1pl.m):
लीपेंगे
(liipenge)
future (1pl.f):
लीपेंगी
(liipengii)
future (2sg.m):
लीपेगा
(liipegaa)
future (2sg.f):
लीपेगी
(liipegii)
future (2pl.m):
लीपोगे
(liipoge)
future (2pl.f):
लीपोगी
(liipogii)
future (3sg.m):
लीपेगा
(liipegaa)
future (3sg.f):
लीपेगी
(liipegii)
future (3pl.m):
लीपेंगे
(liipenge)
future (3pl.f):
लीपेंगी
(liipengii)
subjunctive (1sg):
लीपूँ
(liipoon)
subjunctive (1pl):
लीपें
(liipen)
subjunctive (2sg):
लीपे
(liipe)
subjunctive (2pl):
लीपो
(liipo)
subjunctive (3sg):
लीपे
(liipe)
subjunctive (3pl):
लीपें
(liipen)