पोंछना (ponchhnaa)
verb
A single core sense: to wipe or mop something clean with a cloth or similar.
Sense
1
:
to wipe, mop, clean by wiping
verb, transitive
Synonyms: साफ़ करना (saaf karnaa, broader, not wipe-specific)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: This is a kitchen-and-household staple verb -- you will hear it constantly in phrases like हाथ पोंछना (haath ponchhnaa, 'to wipe one's hands') or आँसू पोंछना (aansoo ponchhnaa, 'to wipe away tears'), the latter carrying real emotional weight in Hindi films and everyday tenderness, like a mother wiping a child's tears. The compound झाड़ू-पोंछा (jhaadoo-ponchhaa) pairs it with sweeping as the standard term for daily house-cleaning in most Indian homes.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes reach for साफ़ करना (saaf karnaa) whenever they mean 'clean,' but पोंछना (ponchhnaa) specifically implies the physical action of wiping with a cloth, hand, or mop -- you would not use it for, say, cleaning a house in general (झाड़ू-पोंछा करना (jhaadoo-ponchhaa karnaa, to sweep and mop) is the set phrase for household cleaning). 2) The object being wiped takes ने-marking in the perfective as expected for a transitive verb, but learners often forget the surface being wiped away (like water or dirt) can also appear as the object, e.g. पानी पोंछना (paanii ponchhnaa, 'to wipe up water') versus मेज़ पोंछना (mez ponchhnaa, 'to wipe the table') -- both are grammatical, just different objects for the same verb.
Sample Sentences:
माँ ने बच्चे के आँसू पोंछे।
The mother wiped the child's tears.
(maan ne bachche ke aansoo ponchhe।)
खाने से पहले अपने हाथ पोंछ लो।
Wipe your hands before eating.
(khaane se pahle apne haath ponchh lo।)
वह हर सुबह रसोई का स्लैब पोंछती है।
She wipes the kitchen counter every morning.
(vah har subah rasoii kaa slaib ponchhtii hai।)
मैं अभी फर्श पोंछ रहा हूँ, थोड़ा रुक जाओ।
I'm mopping the floor right now, wait a bit.
(main abhii pharsh ponchh rahaa hoon, thodaa ruk jaao।)
मेज़ का पानी किसी ने पोंछ दिया था।
Someone had wiped up the water on the table.
(mez kaa paanii kisii ne ponchh diyaa thaa।)
घर में हर हफ्ते झाड़ू-पोंछा होता है।
Sweeping and mopping happens in the house every week.
(ghar men har haphte jhaadoo-ponchhaa hotaa hai।)
अगर तुमने खिड़की पोंछी होती तो इतनी धूल न होती।
If you had wiped the window, there wouldn't be this much dust.
(agar tumne khidkii ponchhii hotii to itnii dhool n hotii।)
काश कोई मेरी मेज़ पोंछ देता।
I wish someone would wipe my desk clean.
(kaash koii merii mez ponchh detaa।)
फर्श पोंछा जा रहा है, कृपया सावधानी से चलें।
The floor is being mopped, please walk carefully.
(pharsh ponchhaa jaa rahaa hai, kripyaa saavdhaanii se chalen।)
फिल्म के आखिरी सीन में हीरो ने हीरोइन के आँसू पोंछे।
In the film's final scene, the hero wiped the heroine's tears.
(philm ke aakhirii siin men hiiro ne hiiroin ke aansoo ponchhe।)
जब तक तुम बर्तन धोओ, मैं टेबल पोंछ दूँगी।
While you wash the dishes, I'll wipe the table.
(jab tak tum bartan dhoo, main tebal ponchh doongii।)
Morphology
Verb
infinitive:
पोंछना
(ponchhnaa)
infinitive oblique:
पोंछने
(ponchhne)
habitual/simple (sg.m):
पोंछता
(ponchhtaa)
habitual/simple (pl.m):
पोंछते
(ponchhte)
habitual/simple (sg.f):
पोंछती
(ponchhtii)
habitual/simple (pl.f):
पोंछतीं
(ponchhtiin)
continuous (sg.m):
पोंछ रहा
(ponchh rahaa)
continuous (pl.m):
पोंछ रहे
(ponchh rahe)
continuous (sg.f):
पोंछ रही
(ponchh rahii)
continuous (pl.f):
पोंछ रहीं
(ponchh rahiin)
perfective (sg.m):
पोंछा
(ponchhaa)
perfective (pl.m):
पोंछे
(ponchhe)
perfective (sg.f):
पोंछी
(ponchhii)
perfective (pl.f):
पोंछीं
(ponchhiin)
imperative (informal):
पोंछ
(ponchh)
imperative (neutral):
पोंछो
(ponchho)
imperative (formal):
पोंछिए
(ponchhie)
future (1sg.m):
पोंछूँगा
(ponchhoongaa)
future (1sg.f):
पोंछूँगी
(ponchhoongii)
future (1pl.m):
पोंछेंगे
(ponchhenge)
future (1pl.f):
पोंछेंगी
(ponchhengii)
future (2sg.m):
पोंछेगा
(ponchhegaa)
future (2sg.f):
पोंछेगी
(ponchhegii)
future (2pl.m):
पोंछोगे
(ponchhoge)
future (2pl.f):
पोंछोगी
(ponchhogii)
future (3sg.m):
पोंछेगा
(ponchhegaa)
future (3sg.f):
पोंछेगी
(ponchhegii)
future (3pl.m):
पोंछेंगे
(ponchhenge)
future (3pl.f):
पोंछेंगी
(ponchhengii)
subjunctive (1sg):
पोंछूँ
(ponchhoon)
subjunctive (1pl):
पोंछें
(ponchhen)
subjunctive (2sg):
पोंछे
(ponchhe)
subjunctive (2pl):
पोंछो
(ponchho)
subjunctive (3sg):
पोंछे
(ponchhe)
subjunctive (3pl):
पोंछें
(ponchhen)