नासमझ (naasmajh)

adjective/noun A negated form of समझ (samajh, 'understanding'), built with the Persian-origin prefix ना- (naa, 'not/un-'). It works as both an adjective ('foolish, uncomprehending') and a noun for the person themselves ('a fool, an unwise person').

Sense 1 : lacking sense or judgment; foolish, naive

adjective

Synonyms: बेवकूफ (bevkooph), मूर्ख (moorkh, formal), नादान (naadaan)

Frequency: high

Cultural Note: You will hear this a lot from parents and elders about children: बच्चे नासमझ होते हैं (bachche naasmajh hote hain, 'children are naive/don't understand better') is said almost as an excuse or explanation for a child's mistake, not as an insult. It carries real tenderness compared to a word like बेवकूफ (bevkooph).

Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes reach for बेवकूफ (bevkooph) as a blunt insult, but नासमझ (naasmajh) is softer -- it points to a lack of understanding or maturity (often used affectionately about children) rather than outright stupidity. 2) It is invariant -- it does not change form for gender or number, unlike many -आ adjectives learners have already met.

Sample Sentences:

बच्चे नासमझ होते हैं, इसलिए उन्हें डांटने से पहले समझाना चाहिए। Children are naive, so before scolding them one should explain things to them.

(bachche naasmajh hote hain, islie unhen daantne se pahle samjhaanaa chaahie।)

मैं उस उम्र में बहुत नासमझ थी, मुझे कुछ पता ही नहीं था। I was very naive at that age, I did not know anything at all.

(main us umr men bahut naasmajh thii, mujhe kuchh pataa hii nahiin thaa।)

इतना नासमझ मत बनो, थोड़ा सोच-समझकर फैसला लो। Don't be so unwise, make your decision with a little thought.

(itnaa naasmajh mat bano, thodaa soch-samajhkar phaislaa lo।)

अगर मैं इतना नासमझ न होता तो अपनी सारी जमा-पूंजी उस धोखेबाज़ को न देता। If I hadn't been so unwise, I wouldn't have given all my savings to that fraud.

(agar main itnaa naasmajh n hotaa to apnii saarii jamaa-poonjii us dhokhebaaz ko n detaa।)

उसने नासमझ लड़की समझकर उसकी बात हल्के में ले ली, पर वह गलत था। He took her words lightly, thinking of her as a naive girl, but he was wrong.

(usne naasmajh ladkii samajhkar uskii baat halke men le lii, par vah galat thaa।)

क्या तुम अब भी इतने नासमझ हो कि उसकी बातों पर भरोसा कर लेते हो? Are you still so naive that you trust whatever he says?

(kyaa tum ab bhii itne naasmajh ho ki uskii baaton par bharosaa kar lete ho?)

यह मत सोचो कि वह नासमझ है; वह सब कुछ समझता है, बस बोलता नहीं। Don't think he is naive; he understands everything, he just doesn't say anything.

(yah mat socho ki vah naasmajh hai; vah sab kuchh samajhtaa hai, bas boltaa nahiin।)

महोदय, कृपया इस बात को ध्यान में रखें कि आवेदक अभी नासमझ उम्र का है। Sir, please keep in mind that the applicant is still of a naive/immature age.

(mahoday, kripyaa is baat ko dhyaan men rakhen ki aavedak abhii naasmajh umr kaa hai।)

शायद वह नासमझ हो, इसलिए उसे बार-बार यही गलती करते देखा जाता है। Perhaps he is unwise, which is why he is seen making this same mistake again and again.

(shaayad vah naasmajh ho, islie use baar-baar yahii galtii karte dekhaa jaataa hai।)

अगर वह नासमझ न रही होती तो इतनी बड़ी गलती नहीं करती। If she had not remained so naive, she would not have made such a big mistake.

(agar vah naasmajh n rahii hotii to itnii badii galtii nahiin kartii।)

नासमझ मन को समझाना आसान नहीं होता, फिर भी माँ हर बार कोशिश करती है। It's never easy to make an unwise/uncomprehending mind understand, yet the mother tries every time.

(naasmajh man ko samjhaanaa aasaan nahiin hotaa, phir bhii maan har baar koshish kartii hai।)

Sense 2 : a foolish or naive person

noun, masculine/feminine Functions as a noun by referring directly to the person, often with a possessive or in direct address, e.g. तुम कैसे नासमझ हो (tum kaise naasmajh ho, 'what a naive person you are').

Synonyms: बेवकूफ (bevkooph), नादान (naadaan)

Frequency: medium

Cultural Note: This noun use overlaps closely with the adjective sense -- Hindi often lets a describing word double as the person it describes, so नासमझ (naasmajh) can mean both 'naive' and 'a naive one' depending on the sentence, much like 'a fool' versus 'foolish' collapsing into one word.

Sample Sentences:

वह नासमझ है, उसकी बातों का बुरा मत मानो। He's a fool, don't take his words to heart.

(vah naasmajh hai, uskii baaton kaa buraa mat maano।)

एक नासमझ ने सारी जमा पूँजी जुए में लगा दी। A fool put his entire savings into gambling.

(ek naasmajh ne saarii jamaa poonjii jue men lagaa dii।)

नासमझों को समझाना बहुत मुश्किल काम है। Explaining things to fools is a very difficult task.

(naasamjhon ko samjhaanaa bahut mushkil kaam hai।)

अगर मैं नासमझ होता, तो इतना पैसा उसे उधार दे देता। If I were a fool, I would have lent him this much money.

(agar main naasmajh hotaa, to itnaa paisaa use udhaar de detaa।)

अरे नासमझ, तुझे इतनी सीधी बात भी समझ नहीं आई? Hey fool, you didn't even understand such a simple thing?

(are naasmajh, tujhe itnii siidhii baat bhii samajh nahiin aaii?)

कोई नासमझ ही ऐसे मौके को हाथ से जाने देगा। Only a fool would let such an opportunity slip away.

(koii naasmajh hii aise mauke ko haath se jaane degaa।)

बच्चों को नासमझ मत समझो, वे बहुत कुछ जानते हैं। Don't take children for fools, they know a lot.

(bachchon ko naasmajh mat samjho, ve bahut kuchh jaante hain।)

इतिहास में ऐसे कई नासमझ हुए हैं जिन्होंने अपना ही नुकसान किया। History has seen many fools who caused harm to none but themselves.

(itihaas men aise kaii naasmajh hue hain jinhonne apnaa hii nuksaan kiyaa।)

क्या मुझे नासमझ समझकर तुम मुझसे झूठ बोल रहे हो? Are you lying to me because you think I'm a fool?

(kyaa mujhe naasmajh samajhkar tum mujhse jhooth bol rahe ho?)

काश वह नासमझ अपनी गलती मान लेता। If only that fool would admit his mistake.

(kaash vah naasmajh apnii galtii maan letaa।)

Morphology

Adjective (invariant)

invariant: नासमझ (naasmajh)

Noun

(sg.m/f.direct): नासमझ (naasmajh)

(sg.m/f.oblique): नासमझ (naasmajh)

(pl.m/f.direct): नासमझें (naasamjhen)

(pl.m/f.oblique): नासमझों (naasamjhon)