हिम्मत (himmat)
noun
A single core sense: inner courage or nerve to face something difficult or scary. Used constantly in everyday encouragement and scolding alike.
Sense
1
:
courage, nerve, boldness to act despite fear
noun, feminine Very commonly paired with the verb करना (karnaa) in the frame हिम्मत करना (himmat karnaa, 'to muster courage/dare to'), and with होना (honaa) in constructions like मेरी हिम्मत नहीं हुई (merii himmat nahiin huii, 'I didn't have the nerve') where the person is marked with का (kaa) possessive rather than an agentive subject.
Synonyms: हौसला (hauslaa), जुर्रत (jurrat, formal), दिलेरी (dilerii, literary), साहस (saahas, formal)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: हिम्मत रखो (himmat rakho, 'keep your courage up') is something you'll hear from friends, parents, and even strangers consoling someone after bad news -- it's the go-to phrase for emotional support in Delhi households. Related expressions like हिम्मत टूटना (himmat tootnaa, 'courage to break/shatter') and हिम्मत बंधना (himmat bandhnaa, 'courage to be bound/take hold') treat courage as something fragile that can break or be tied down, reflecting a broader Hindi pattern of framing inner states as physical objects acted upon rather than things one simply 'has'.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often try to say 'I have courage' with पास (paas) like other possessed nouns, but native speakers usually say मेरी हिम्मत है (merii himmat hai) or use हिम्मत होना (himmat honaa) with a possessive, not हिम्मत मेरे पास है (himmat mere paas hai) which sounds odd. 2) हिम्मत बढ़ाना (himmat badhaanaa, 'to boost someone's courage/morale') is a fixed collocation that beginners tend to replace with बढ़ना (badhnaa) alone, losing the causative sense.
Sample Sentences:
मुझमें अभी भी उससे बात करने की हिम्मत नहीं है।
I still don't have the courage to talk to him.
(mujhmen abhii bhii usse baat karne kii himmat nahiin hai।)
हिम्मत रखो, सब ठीक हो जाएगा।
Keep your courage up, everything will be fine.
(himmat rakho, sab thiik ho jaaegaa।)
जब उसे रिपोर्ट के बारे में पता चला, उसकी हिम्मत टूट गई।
When she found out about the report, her courage broke.
(jab use riport ke baare men pataa chalaa, uskii himmat toot gaii।)
उसके शब्दों से मेरी हिम्मत बंध गई।
His words gave me courage.
(uske shabdon se merii himmat bandh gaii।)
काश मुझमें भी इतनी हिम्मत होती।
I wish I had that much courage too.
(kaash mujhmen bhii itnii himmat hotii।)
अगर उसमें हिम्मत होती, तो वह सच बोल देता।
If he had had the courage, he would have told the truth.
(agar usmen himmat hotii, to vah sach bol detaa।)
क्या तुम्हारी इतनी हिम्मत है कि तुम बॉस के सामने खड़े हो सको?
Do you have the nerve to stand up to the boss?
(kyaa tumhaarii itnii himmat hai ki tum bos ke saamne khade ho sako?)
उसकी हिम्मत देखकर सब हैरान रह गए।
Everyone was stunned seeing her courage.
(uskii himmat dekhkar sab hairaan rah gae।)
विपत्ति के समय भी उनकी हिम्मत नहीं डिगती थी।
Even in times of calamity, his courage never wavered.
(vipatti ke samay bhii unkii himmat nahiin digtii thii।)
तेरी इतनी हिम्मत कैसे हुई कि तू मुझसे झूठ बोले?
How dare you lie to me?
(terii itnii himmat kaise huii ki too mujhse jhooth bole?)
हार मत मानो, अपनी हिम्मत बनाए रखो।
Don't give up, keep your courage intact.
(haar mat maano, apnii himmat banaae rakho।)
डॉक्टरों ने भी उसकी हिम्मत की तारीफ की।
Even the doctors praised her courage.
(doktron ne bhii uskii himmat kii taariiph kii।)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.f.direct):
हिम्मत
(himmat)
(sg.f.oblique):
हिम्मत
(himmat)
(pl.f.direct):
हिम्मतें
(himmten)
(pl.f.oblique):
हिम्मतों
(himmton)