मानना (maannaa)
verb
Covers a cluster of related meanings: to believe/consider something to be true, to accept or agree to something, to obey or heed someone, and to celebrate/observe (a festival or occasion).
Sense
1
:
to believe, consider, regard as
verb, transitive Often takes the frame X को Y मानना (X ko Y maannaa) meaning 'to consider X as Y', e.g. treating someone as a friend, god, fool, etc.
Synonyms: समझना (samajhnaa, to consider/understand), विश्वास करना (vishvaas karnaa, to have faith/belief)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: मानना (maannaa) sits at the heart of how Hindi expresses personal conviction -- मैं मानता हूँ (main maantaa hoon, 'I believe/hold the view') is the everyday way to voice an opinion, softer and more common in conversation than the heavier विश्वास करना (vishvaas karnaa).
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often reach for विश्वास करना (vishvaas karnaa) when मानना (maannaa) alone is more natural for 'I believe/think that...', especially with कि (ki) clauses. 2) In the 'consider as' sense, the structure is X को Y मानना (X ko Y maannaa), not X Y मानना -- dropping को (ko) is a common slip.
Sample Sentences:
मैं मानता हूँ कि यह सही फ़ैसला है।
I believe that this is the right decision.
(main maantaa hoon ki yah sahii faislaa hai।)
वह हमेशा से खुद को सबसे होशियार मानती थी।
She had always considered herself the smartest.
(vah hameshaa se khud ko sabse hoshiyaar maantii thii।)
अगर तुम मुझे अपना दोस्त मानते हो, तो सच बताओ।
If you consider me your friend, then tell me the truth.
(agar tum mujhe apnaa dost maante ho, to sach bataao।)
मुझे लगता है कि तुम इसे बहुत गंभीरता से मान रहे हो।
I feel like you're taking this too seriously.
(mujhe lagtaa hai ki tum ise bahut gambhiirtaa se maan rahe ho।)
उसने कभी अपनी हार नहीं मानी।
He never accepted his defeat as final.
(usne kabhii apnii haar nahiin maanii।)
अगर मैं उसे सही मानता, तो कभी उसका साथ न छोड़ता।
If I had considered him right, I would never have left his side.
(agar main use sahii maantaa, to kabhii uskaa saath n chhodtaa।)
मान लो कि तुम्हें एक करोड़ रुपये मिल जाएँ, तब क्या करोगे?
Suppose you got ten million rupees, what would you do then?
(maan lo ki tumhen ek karod rupye mil jaaen, tab kyaa karoge?)
इसे साबित मान लिया जाए, तो पूरी कहानी बदल जाएगी।
If this is taken to be proven, the whole story will change.
(ise saabit maan liyaa jaae, to poorii kahaanii badal jaaegii।)
समाज में उसे एक बुद्धिमान नेता माना जाता है।
In society he is regarded as a wise leader.
(samaaj men use ek buddhimaan netaa maanaa jaataa hai।)
कृपया इसे एक चेतावनी मानें, दोबारा ऐसी गलती न हो।
Please consider this a warning, let such a mistake not happen again.
(kripyaa ise ek chetaavnii maanen, dobaaraa aisii galtii n ho।)
विद्वानों का मानना है कि यह ग्रंथ हज़ार साल पुराना है।
Scholars are of the view that this text is a thousand years old.
(vidvaanon kaa maannaa hai ki yah granth hazaar saal puraanaa hai।)
Sense
2
:
to accept, agree to, give in to
verb, transitive Used for accepting a request, condition, or proposal -- बात मानना (baat maannaa) is a common collocation meaning 'to accept what someone says' or 'to comply'.
Synonyms: स्वीकार करना (sviikaar karnaa, more formal), राज़ी होना (raazii honaa, to become willing/agree)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: This is the sense behind the classic parental complaint मेरी बात नहीं मानता (merii baat nahiin maantaa, 'he doesn't listen to/obey me') -- a phrase every Hindi-speaking parent has uttered about a stubborn child.
Common Mistakes: 1) बात मानना (baat maannaa) means 'to listen to/comply with someone's word', not literally 'to believe a matter' -- learners sometimes misread it through the 'believe' sense. 2) With this sense, the person whose request is accepted is marked with की बात (kii baat) or का कहना (kaa kahnaa), not directly as an object.
Sample Sentences:
आखिरकार उसने मेरी शर्त मान ली।
He finally accepted my condition.
(aakhirkaar usne merii shart maan lii।)
प्लीज़ मेरी बात मान जाओ, इस बार बस।
Please just agree with me, just this once.
(pliiz merii baat maan jaao, is baar bas।)
अगर वह हार मान ले, तो झगड़ा यहीं खत्म हो जाएगा।
If he accepts defeat, the fight will end right here.
(agar vah haar maan le, to jhagdaa yahiin khatm ho jaaegaa।)
सरकार ने अभी तक उनकी माँगें नहीं मानी हैं।
The government has not yet accepted their demands.
(sarkaar ne abhii tak unkii maangen nahiin maanii hain।)
बच्चा तो जिद्दी है, मेरी बात नहीं मानता।
The kid is stubborn, he just won't give in to me.
(bachchaa to jiddii hai, merii baat nahiin maantaa।)
काश वह मेरी दलील मान लेता।
I wish he had accepted my argument.
(kaash vah merii daliil maan letaa।)
कंपनी को आखिर हमारी माँग मानने पर मजबूर होना पड़ा।
The company was eventually forced to accept our demand.
(kampnii ko aakhir hamaarii maang maanne par majboor honaa padaa।)
समझौते की शर्तें दोनों पक्षों द्वारा मान ली गई थीं।
The terms of the agreement had been accepted by both parties.
(samjhaute kii sharten donon pakshon dvaaraa maan lii gaii thiin।)
थोड़ा झुक जाओ यार, कभी-कभी दूसरों की भी मान लेनी चाहिए।
Bend a little, man -- sometimes you should give in to others too.
(thodaa jhuk jaao yaar, kabhii-kabhii doosron kii bhii maan lenii chaahie।)
वह शायद मेरा प्रस्ताव मान जाए, पता नहीं।
Maybe he'll agree to my proposal, who knows.
(vah shaayad meraa prastaav maan jaae, pataa nahiin।)
जब तक वे अपनी गलती नहीं मानेंगे, बात नहीं बनेगी।
Until they admit their mistake, nothing will work out.
(jab tak ve apnii galtii nahiin maanenge, baat nahiin banegii।)
Sense
3
:
to obey, heed, listen to (a person or their words)
verb, transitive Takes की बात मानना (kii baat maannaa) or का कहना मानना (kaa kahnaa maannaa) as its typical frame when the object is a person being obeyed.
Synonyms: आज्ञा मानना (aagyaa maannaa, to obey an order, more formal), सुनना (sunnaa, colloquial extension meaning 'to listen to/heed')
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: This sense overlaps closely with the 'accept/agree' sense above -- both trace back to the same root idea of yielding to someone's word, so in real speech the line between 'agreeing' and 'obeying' with मानना (maannaa) is often blurry and context-dependent.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes use सुनना (sunnaa) alone for 'obey', but मानना (maannaa) is the stronger, more idiomatic choice when compliance (not just hearing) is meant.
Sample Sentences:
बच्चे अक्सर अपने माँ-बाप की बात नहीं मानते।
Children often don't listen to their parents.
(bachche aksar apne maan-baap kii baat nahiin maante।)
मेरी बात मान लो, वहाँ मत जाओ।
Listen to me, don't go there.
(merii baat maan lo, vahaan mat jaao।)
सिपाही ने अफसर का हुक्म माना।
The soldier obeyed the officer's order.
(sipaahii ne aphsar kaa hukm maanaa।)
काश वह अपने गुरु की सलाह मानता।
If only he had heeded his teacher's advice.
(kaash vah apne guru kii salaah maantaa।)
अगर तुम मेरी बात मानो तो सब ठीक हो जाएगा।
If you heed my word, everything will be fine.
(agar tum merii baat maano to sab thiik ho jaaegaa।)
क्या तुम कभी किसी की बात मानोगे?
Will you ever listen to anyone?
(kyaa tum kabhii kisii kii baat maanoge?)
यह कानून सभी नागरिकों को मानना होगा।
All citizens will have to obey this law.
(yah kaanoon sabhii naagrikon ko maannaa hogaa।)
जब तक आदेश माना जाता रहेगा, अनुशासन बना रहेगा।
As long as orders keep being obeyed, discipline will remain.
(jab tak aadesh maanaa jaataa rahegaa, anushaasan banaa rahegaa।)
उसने अपनी माँ की एक भी बात नहीं मानी।
He didn't heed a single word his mother said.
(usne apnii maan kii ek bhii baat nahiin maanii।)
सरकार का हुक्म मानना हर कर्मचारी का फ़र्ज़ है।
It is every employee's duty to obey the government's order.
(sarkaar kaa hukm maannaa har karmchaarii kaa farz hai।)
बड़ों की बात मानो, बेटा, तभी भला होगा।
Listen to your elders, son, only then will good come of it.
(badon kii baat maano, betaa, tabhii bhalaa hogaa।)
Sense
4
:
to celebrate, observe (a festival, occasion, or event)
verb, transitive Used with festival or occasion nouns: त्योहार मानना (tyohaar maannaa, 'to observe a festival'); in everyday speech the causative मनाना (manaanaa) is actually more common for this exact meaning.
Synonyms: मनाना (manaanaa, causative form, to celebrate/please -- often used interchangeably in casual speech for festivals)
Frequency: low
Cultural Note: Keep मानना (maannaa) and मनाना (manaanaa) firmly distinct in your ear: they look like a minimal pair but मनाना (manaanaa) is the everyday verb for 'to celebrate' or 'to persuade/coax', while this sense of मानना (maannaa) for celebration is the less common, more literary cousin.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners frequently confuse this with the causative मनाना (manaanaa) -- 'we celebrate Diwali' is far more often हम दिवाली मनाते हैं (ham divaalii manaate hain) than ...मानते हैं (maante hain); this मानना (maannaa) sense for 'celebrate' is comparatively less common and can sound slightly formal or old-fashioned.
Sample Sentences:
हम हर वर्ष यह उत्सव पूरी श्रद्धा से मानते हैं।
We celebrate this festival every year with full devotion.
(ham har varsh yah utsav poorii shraddhaa se maante hain।)
यह पर्व सदियों से इस क्षेत्र में माना जाता रहा है।
This festival has been observed in this region for centuries.
(yah parv sadiyon se is kshetr men maanaa jaataa rahaa hai।)
इस वर्ष यह जयंती बड़े स्तर पर मानी जाएगी।
This anniversary will be observed on a grand scale this year.
(is varsh yah jayantii bade star par maanii jaaegii।)
काश हम भी यह पर्व अपने पूर्वजों की तरह मान पाते।
If only we too could observe this festival the way our ancestors did.
(kaash ham bhii yah parv apne poorvjon kii tarah maan paate।)
प्राचीन काल में यह उत्सव राजा की उपस्थिति में माना जाता था।
In ancient times, this celebration used to be observed in the king's presence.
(praachiin kaal men yah utsav raajaa kii upasthiti men maanaa jaataa thaa।)
यह पावन दिवस भारत के प्रत्येक कोने में माना जाता है।
This sacred day is observed in every corner of India.
(yah paavan divas bhaarat ke pratyek kone men maanaa jaataa hai।)
समाज यह पुण्यतिथि श्रद्धापूर्वक माने, यही अपेक्षित है।
It is expected that society observe this death anniversary with reverence.
(samaaj yah punytithi shraddhaapoorvak maane, yahii apekshit hai।)
इस तिथि को धार्मिक रीति से मानना हमारी परंपरा है।
Observing this date in a religious manner is our tradition.
(is tithi ko dhaarmik riiti se maannaa hamaarii parampraa hai।)
Morphology
Verb
infinitive:
मानना
(maannaa)
infinitive oblique:
मानने
(maanne)
habitual/simple (sg.m):
मानता
(maantaa)
habitual/simple (pl.m):
मानते
(maante)
habitual/simple (sg.f):
मानती
(maantii)
habitual/simple (pl.f):
मानतीं
(maantiin)
continuous (sg.m):
मान रहा
(maan rahaa)
continuous (pl.m):
मान रहे
(maan rahe)
continuous (sg.f):
मान रही
(maan rahii)
continuous (pl.f):
मान रहीं
(maan rahiin)
perfective (sg.m):
माना
(maanaa)
perfective (pl.m):
माने
(maane)
perfective (sg.f):
मानी
(maanii)
perfective (pl.f):
मानीं
(maaniin)
imperative (informal):
मान
(maan)
imperative (neutral):
मानो
(maano)
imperative (formal):
मानिए
(maanie)
future (1sg.m):
मानूँगा
(maanoongaa)
future (1sg.f):
मानूँगी
(maanoongii)
future (1pl.m):
मानेंगे
(maanenge)
future (1pl.f):
मानेंगी
(maanengii)
future (2sg.m):
मानेगा
(maanegaa)
future (2sg.f):
मानेगी
(maanegii)
future (2pl.m):
मानोगे
(maanoge)
future (2pl.f):
मानोगी
(maanogii)
future (3sg.m):
मानेगा
(maanegaa)
future (3sg.f):
मानेगी
(maanegii)
future (3pl.m):
मानेंगे
(maanenge)
future (3pl.f):
मानेंगी
(maanengii)
subjunctive (1sg):
मानूँ
(maanoon)
subjunctive (1pl):
मानें
(maanen)
subjunctive (2sg):
माने
(maane)
subjunctive (2pl):
मानो
(maano)
subjunctive (3sg):
माने
(maane)
subjunctive (3pl):
मानें
(maanen)