कट्टरपंथी (kattarpanthii)
noun/adjective
A word from political and religious commentary meaning 'fundamentalist/extremist' -- it works both as an adjective describing a person, group, or belief, and as a noun for the person themselves.
Sense
1
:
a fundamentalist or extremist person
noun, masculine/feminine
Synonyms: कट्टरवादी (kattarvaadii), चरमपंथी (charampanthii, leans toward political/violent extremism), मौलवादी (maulvaadii, less common)
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: This word shows up constantly in Hindi news and political debate -- newspapers routinely talk about धार्मिक कट्टरपंथी (dhaarmik kattarpanthii, 'religious fundamentalists') or कट्टरपंथी सोच (kattarpanthii soch, 'fundamentalist thinking'). It's built from कट्टर (kattar, 'staunch, hardcore') plus पंथ (panth, 'path, sect'), so it literally evokes someone rigidly walking one ideological path.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes use this loosely for anyone 'strict' or 'traditional' -- but कट्टरपंथी (kattarpanthii) carries a real edge of rigidity or extremism, usually in religious or ideological contexts, and is not a compliment. 2) Don't confuse with कट्टर (kattar) alone, which just means 'staunch/hardcore' and can be used more neutrally or even admiringly (कट्टर समर्थक (kattar samarthak, 'die-hard supporter')); कट्टरपंथी (kattarpanthii) specifically implies a 'path' (पंथ (panth)) of rigid belief.
Sample Sentences:
वह एक धार्मिक कट्टरपंथी है।
He is a religious fundamentalist.
(vah ek dhaarmik kattarpanthii hai।)
पुलिस ने तीन कट्टरपंथियों को गिरफ्तार किया।
The police arrested three extremists.
(pulis ne tiin kattarpanthiyon ko giraphtaar kiyaa।)
कुछ कट्टरपंथी युवाओं को गुमराह करते हैं।
Some fundamentalists mislead young people.
(kuchh kattarpanthii yuvaaon ko gumraah karte hain।)
अगर वह कट्टरपंथी न होता, तो शायद इतनी हिंसा न भड़कती।
If he weren't a fundamentalist, maybe so much violence wouldn't have erupted.
(agar vah kattarpanthii n hotaa, to shaayad itnii hinsaa n bhadaktii।)
उस कट्टरपंथी को कल अदालत में पेश किया जाएगा।
That extremist will be presented in court tomorrow.
(us kattarpanthii ko kal adaalat men pesh kiyaa jaaegaa।)
क्या तुम सच में उस कट्टरपंथी की बातें मान रहे हो?
Are you seriously believing what that fundamentalist says?
(kyaa tum sach men us kattarpanthii kii baaten maan rahe ho?)
उस इलाके में कुछ कट्टरपंथी छिपे बैठे हैं।
Some extremists are hiding out in that area.
(us ilaake men kuchh kattarpanthii chhipe baithe hain।)
सरकार को उन कट्टरपंथियों पर सख्त कार्रवाई करनी चाहिए।
The government should take strict action against those extremists.
(sarkaar ko un kattarpanthiyon par sakht kaarrvaaii karnii chaahie।)
अरे भाई, वह तो पहले से ही कट्टरपंथी निकला!
Oh man, turns out he was a fundamentalist all along!
(are bhaaii, vah to pahle se hii kattarpanthii niklaa!)
उस कट्टरपंथी को समाज से बाहर कर दिया गया था।
That extremist had been cast out of society.
(us kattarpanthii ko samaaj se baahar kar diyaa gayaa thaa।)
Sense
2
:
fundamentalist, extremist (describing beliefs, groups, ideology)
adjective
Synonyms: कट्टरवादी (kattarvaadii), चरमपंथी (charampanthii, leans toward political/violent extremism)
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: You'll hear this paired with संगठन (sangthan, 'organization'), विचारधारा (vichaardhaaraa, 'ideology'), or गुट (gut, 'faction') in news coverage -- कट्टरपंथी संगठन (kattarpanthii sangthan, 'fundamentalist organization') is a very standard collocation.
Sample Sentences:
यह एक कट्टरपंथी संगठन है।
This is a fundamentalist organization.
(yah ek kattarpanthii sangthan hai।)
पुलिस ने कट्टरपंथी गुट के तीन सदस्यों को पकड़ा।
The police caught three members of the fundamentalist faction.
(pulis ne kattarpanthii gut ke tiin sadasyon ko pakdaa।)
यह विचारधारा दिन-ब-दिन कट्टरपंथी होती जा रही है।
This ideology is becoming more fundamentalist day by day.
(yah vichaardhaaraa din-b-din kattarpanthii hotii jaa rahii hai।)
सरकार को कट्टरपंथी संगठनों पर प्रतिबंध लगाना चाहिए।
The government should ban fundamentalist organizations.
(sarkaar ko kattarpanthii sangathnon par pratibandh lagaanaa chaahie।)
अगर उनकी विचारधारा इतनी कट्टरपंथी न होती, तो शायद बातचीत हो पाती।
If their ideology were not so fundamentalist, perhaps talks could have happened.
(agar unkii vichaardhaaraa itnii kattarpanthii n hotii, to shaayad baatchiit ho paatii।)
समाचार चैनल पर एक कट्टरपंथी गुट की गतिविधियों की रिपोर्ट दिखाई गई।
A report on the activities of a fundamentalist faction was shown on the news channel.
(samaachaar chainal par ek kattarpanthii gut kii gatividhiyon kii riport dikhaaii gaii।)
क्षेत्र में कई कट्टरपंथी संगठन सक्रिय रहे हैं।
Many fundamentalist organizations have remained active in the region.
(kshetr men kaii kattarpanthii sangthan sakriy rahe hain।)
क्या यह विचारधारा वास्तव में इतनी कट्टरपंथी है जितना बताया जाता है?
Is this ideology really as fundamentalist as it is made out to be?
(kyaa yah vichaardhaaraa vaastav men itnii kattarpanthii hai jitnaa bataayaa jaataa hai?)
विश्लेषकों का मानना है कि यह गुट लगातार कट्टरपंथी रुख अपनाता रहा है।
Analysts believe that this faction has continuously adopted a fundamentalist stance.
(vishleshkon kaa maannaa hai ki yah gut lagaataar kattarpanthii rukh apnaataa rahaa hai।)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m/f.direct):
कट्टरपंथी
(kattarpanthii)
(sg.m/f.oblique):
कट्टरपंथी
(kattarpanthii)
(pl.m/f.direct):
कट्टरपंथियाँ
(kattarpanthiyaan)
(pl.m/f.oblique):
कट्टरपंथियों
(kattarpanthiyon)
Adjective (invariant)
invariant:
कट्टरपंथी
(kattarpanthii)