भूलना (bhoolnaa)
verb
One core meaning -- 'to forget' -- but watch how it swings between simple forgetting and the more final sense of 'to leave behind/lose touch with' something or someone; also shows up heavily as a compound verb with जाना (jaanaa).
Sense
1
:
to forget (a fact, name, task, etc.)
verb, transitive
Synonyms: विस्मृत करना (vismrit karnaa, literary)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: As a simple transitive verb this is a bit bookish on its own; in real conversation you will hear भूल जाना (bhool jaanaa) constantly -- Delhi speakers reach for it the moment they walk out without their phone or miss an appointment.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often say भूलना (bhoolnaa) alone where native speakers default to the compound भूल जाना (bhool jaanaa) to mark that the forgetting is complete/final -- both are grammatical, but भूल जाना (bhool jaanaa) is far more common in everyday speech. 2) The thing forgotten takes a direct object without को (ko) in most cases: मैं उसका नाम भूल गया (main uskaa naam bhool gayaa, 'I forgot his name'), not मैं उसके नाम को भूल गया।
Sample Sentences:
मैं अक्सर लोगों के नाम भूल जाता हूँ।
I often forget people's names.
(main aksar logon ke naam bhool jaataa hoon।)
कल रात मैं अपना पासवर्ड भूल गया।
Last night I forgot my password.
(kal raat main apnaa paasvard bhool gayaa।)
प्लीज़ मीटिंग का समय मत भूलना।
Please don't forget the meeting time.
(pliiz miiting kaa samay mat bhoolnaa।)
मुझे डर है कि मैं परीक्षा में जवाब भूल जाऊँगी।
I'm afraid that I will forget the answers in the exam.
(mujhe dar hai ki main pariikshaa men javaab bhool jaaoongii।)
अगर तुम रोज़ अभ्यास नहीं करोगे तो सब कुछ भूल जाओगे।
If you don't practice every day, you will forget everything.
(agar tum roz abhyaas nahiin karoge to sab kuchh bhool jaaoge।)
काश मैं उसका फ़ोन नंबर न भूलता।
I wish I hadn't forgotten his phone number.
(kaash main uskaa fon nambar n bhooltaa।)
उम्मीद है कि आप हमारा वादा नहीं भूलेंगे।
I hope you will not forget our promise.
(ummiid hai ki aap hamaaraa vaadaa nahiin bhoolenge।)
बचपन की बहुत सी बातें अब भुला दी गई हैं।
Many things from childhood have now been forgotten.
(bachpan kii bahut sii baaten ab bhulaa dii gaii hain।)
क्या तुम सच में मेरा जन्मदिन भूल गए?
Did you really forget my birthday?
(kyaa tum sach men meraa janmdin bhool gae?)
वह अपना पाठ भूल चुका था इसलिए फिर से पढ़ रहा था।
He had already forgotten his lesson, so he was studying it again.
(vah apnaa paath bhool chukaa thaa islie phir se padh rahaa thaa।)
अगर वह समय पर न पहुँचे तो शायद रास्ता भूल गया हो।
If he doesn't arrive on time, maybe he has forgotten the way.
(agar vah samay par n pahunche to shaayad raastaa bhool gayaa ho।)
Sense
2
:
to forget/leave behind (an object, by accident)
verb, transitive Takes a locative phrase for where the object was left: मैं छाता घर पर भूल आया (main chhaataa ghar par bhool aayaa, 'I left my umbrella at home').
Synonyms: छोड़ आना (chhod aanaa, close in meaning but implies intentional leaving)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: This is the sense behind every Indian household's running joke about someone always भूल आना (bhool aanaa)-ing their keys or phone somewhere -- it is used constantly for absent-minded moments.
Common Mistakes: 1) English speakers say 'I forgot my umbrella' with no location; Hindi usually wants the place named -- घर पर (ghar par), टैक्सी में (taiksii men), etc. -- since भूलना (bhoolnaa) here really means 'left behind', not just 'lost track of'.
Sample Sentences:
मैं अपना छाता बस में भूल आया।
I left my umbrella behind on the bus.
(main apnaa chhaataa bas men bhool aayaa।)
वह हमेशा अपना फोन कहीं न कहीं भूल जाती है।
She always leaves her phone behind somewhere or the other.
(vah hameshaa apnaa phon kahiin n kahiin bhool jaatii hai।)
अरे यार, मैं अपनी चाबियाँ फिर से घर में भूल आया!
Ugh man, I left my keys at home again!
(are yaar, main apnii chaabiyaan phir se ghar men bhool aayaa!)
कृपया देखें कि आप अपना सामान सीट पर तो नहीं भूल रहे।
Please check that you are not leaving your belongings behind on the seat.
(kripyaa dekhen ki aap apnaa saamaan siit par to nahiin bhool rahe।)
अपना पासपोर्ट होटल में मत भूलना।
Don't leave your passport behind at the hotel.
(apnaa paasport hotal men mat bhoolnaa।)
अगर मैं अपना पर्स भूल जाऊँ तो टैक्सी वाले को कैसे पैसे दूँगा?
If I leave my wallet behind, how will I pay the taxi driver?
(agar main apnaa pars bhool jaaoon to taiksii vaale ko kaise paise doongaa?)
अगर वह इतना जल्दी में न होता तो अपनी फाइल दफ्तर में न भूलता।
If he hadn't been in such a hurry, he wouldn't have left his file behind at the office.
(agar vah itnaa jaldii men n hotaa to apnii phaail daphtar men n bhooltaa।)
मेरा चश्मा रेस्तराँ में भूल गया, अब वहीं वापस जाना पड़ेगा।
My glasses got left behind at the restaurant, now I'll have to go back there.
(meraa chashmaa restraan men bhool gayaa, ab vahiin vaapas jaanaa padegaa।)
बच्चे अक्सर अपने टिफिन स्कूल में भूल जाते हैं।
Kids often leave their lunchboxes behind at school.
(bachche aksar apne tiphin skool men bhool jaate hain।)
जाने से पहले जाँच लो कि कुछ भूल तो नहीं रहे।
Before leaving, check that you're not forgetting something behind.
(jaane se pahle jaanch lo ki kuchh bhool to nahiin rahe।)
उसने अपनी जैकेट सिनेमा हॉल में भूल दी थी।
He had left his jacket behind at the cinema hall.
(usne apnii jaiket sinemaa hol men bhool dii thii।)
Sense
3
:
to forget/let go of (an emotional bond, grudge, past relationship)
verb, transitive
Synonyms: भुला देना (bhulaa denaa, causative-flavored, 'to put out of one's mind')
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: This is the भूलना (bhoolnaa) of Bollywood breakup songs and heartfelt advice -- उसे भूल जाओ (use bhool jaao, 'forget him/her') is the classic line a friend says over chai when consoling someone after a breakup. It carries real emotional weight, more like 'move on' than mere memory failure.
Sample Sentences:
उसे भूल जाओ, अब वो तुम्हारी ज़िंदगी में नहीं है।
Forget him, he's not in your life anymore.
(use bhool jaao, ab vo tumhaarii zindgii men nahiin hai।)
मैं उसे भूलने की बहुत कोशिश कर रहा हूँ, पर हो नहीं पा रहा।
I'm trying really hard to forget her, but I just can't.
(main use bhoolne kii bahut koshish kar rahaa hoon, par ho nahiin paa rahaa।)
इतने साल बीत गए, पर वो अब भी उसे भूल नहीं पाई है।
So many years have passed, but she still hasn't been able to move on from him.
(itne saal biit gae, par vo ab bhii use bhool nahiin paaii hai।)
काश मैं उसे उतनी आसानी से भूल पाता जितनी आसानी से उसने मुझे भुला दिया।
I wish I could forget him as easily as he forgot me.
(kaash main use utnii aasaanii se bhool paataa jitnii aasaanii se usne mujhe bhulaa diyaa।)
समय के साथ पुराना दर्द भुला दिया जाता है।
Old pain gets forgotten with time.
(samay ke saath puraanaa dard bhulaa diyaa jaataa hai।)
शायद उसे भूलना ही ठीक रहेगा, वरना तू यूँ ही टूटता रहेगा।
Maybe it's best to just forget him, otherwise you'll keep breaking like this.
(shaayad use bhoolnaa hii thiik rahegaa, varnaa too yoon hii toottaa rahegaa।)
अगर तू सच में खुश रहना चाहता है, तो उस रिश्ते को भूल जा।
If you really want to be happy, then let go of that relationship.
(agar too sach men khush rahnaa chaahtaa hai, to us rishte ko bhool jaa।)
वो चाहे कितना भी कोशिश कर ले, अपने पहले प्यार को कभी नहीं भूल सकता।
No matter how much he tries, he can never forget his first love.
(vo chaahe kitnaa bhii koshish kar le, apne pahle pyaar ko kabhii nahiin bhool saktaa।)
उस गीत के बोल हैं, 'तुझे भुलाना है मुश्किल, फिर भी भुलाना है।'
The song's lyrics go, 'Forgetting you is hard, yet forget I must.'
(us giit ke bol hain, 'tujhe bhulaanaa hai mushkil, phir bhii bhulaanaa hai।')
अगर मैं उसकी सारी बेवफाई भूल भी जाता, तो भी दोस्तों ने मुझे याद दिलाना नहीं छोड़ा होता।
Even if I had forgotten all his betrayal, my friends still wouldn't have stopped reminding me.
(agar main uskii saarii bevphaaii bhool bhii jaataa, to bhii doston ne mujhe yaad dilaanaa nahiin chhodaa hotaa।)
चाय पर उसने बस यही कहा, 'भूल जा उसे, वक्त सब ठीक कर देगा।'
Over chai, she just said, 'Forget him, time will fix everything.'
(chaay par usne bas yahii kahaa, 'bhool jaa use, vakt sab thiik kar degaa।')
Morphology
Verb
infinitive:
भूलना
(bhoolnaa)
infinitive oblique:
भूलने
(bhoolne)
habitual/simple (sg.m):
भूलता
(bhooltaa)
habitual/simple (pl.m):
भूलते
(bhoolte)
habitual/simple (sg.f):
भूलती
(bhooltii)
habitual/simple (pl.f):
भूलतीं
(bhooltiin)
continuous (sg.m):
भूल रहा
(bhool rahaa)
continuous (pl.m):
भूल रहे
(bhool rahe)
continuous (sg.f):
भूल रही
(bhool rahii)
continuous (pl.f):
भूल रहीं
(bhool rahiin)
perfective (sg.m):
भूला
(bhoolaa)
perfective (pl.m):
भूले
(bhoole)
perfective (sg.f):
भूली
(bhoolii)
perfective (pl.f):
भूलीं
(bhooliin)
imperative (informal):
भूल
(bhool)
imperative (neutral):
भूलो
(bhoolo)
imperative (formal):
भूलिए
(bhoolie)
future (1sg.m):
भूलूँगा
(bhooloongaa)
future (1sg.f):
भूलूँगी
(bhooloongii)
future (1pl.m):
भूलेंगे
(bhoolenge)
future (1pl.f):
भूलेंगी
(bhoolengii)
future (2sg.m):
भूलेगा
(bhoolegaa)
future (2sg.f):
भूलेगी
(bhoolegii)
future (2pl.m):
भूलोगे
(bhoologe)
future (2pl.f):
भूलोगी
(bhoologii)
future (3sg.m):
भूलेगा
(bhoolegaa)
future (3sg.f):
भूलेगी
(bhoolegii)
future (3pl.m):
भूलेंगे
(bhoolenge)
future (3pl.f):
भूलेंगी
(bhoolengii)
subjunctive (1sg):
भूलूँ
(bhooloon)
subjunctive (1pl):
भूलें
(bhoolen)
subjunctive (2sg):
भूले
(bhoole)
subjunctive (2pl):
भूलो
(bhoolo)
subjunctive (3sg):
भूले
(bhoole)
subjunctive (3pl):
भूलें
(bhoolen)