इच्छा (ichchhaa)
noun
A single core noun meaning 'wish, desire' -- straightforward and mostly one sense in everyday use, with a common idiomatic pairing in the phrase इच्छा होना (ichchhaa honaa).
Sense
1
:
wish, desire, will
noun, feminine Most naturally used with होना (honaa) in a dative-subject frame -- 'X को Y की इच्छा है' (X ko Y kii ichchhaa hai, 'X has a desire for Y') -- placing the desire on the person rather than treating them as the grammatical subject, much like पसंद (pasand) or ज़रूरत (zaroorat).
Synonyms: चाह (chaah), ख़्वाहिश (khvaahish), मर्ज़ी (marzii, often 'preference/will' rather than a passing wish), कामना (kaamnaa, slightly formal/literary tone)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: इच्छा (ichchhaa) has a slightly more reflective, inward flavor than चाहत (chaahat) or मर्ज़ी (marzii) -- it is the word you will hear in contexts of personal wishes, even spiritual or philosophical ones (as in the phrase ईश्वर की इच्छा (iishvar kii ichchhaa, 'God's will')), rather than casual everyday cravings, for which लोग अक्सर मन (man) करना (man karnaa) का सहारा लेते हैं ('people often lean on the phrase मन करना instead').
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often reach for चाहना (chaahnaa) as a verb when a native speaker would use the noun इच्छा (ichchhaa) with होना (honaa) instead, e.g. मेरी इच्छा है कि... (merii ichchhaa hai ki..., 'my wish is that...') rather than forcing a verb construction. 2) Do not mark the person wanting something with ने (ne) -- इच्छा (ichchhaa) takes a को-marked (ko) possessor, not an ergative subject.
Sample Sentences:
मेरी इच्छा है कि मैं विदेश में पढ़ूँ।
My wish is that I study abroad.
(merii ichchhaa hai ki main videsh men padhoon।)
यह सब ईश्वर की इच्छा है।
All this is God's will.
(yah sab iishvar kii ichchhaa hai।)
उसकी इच्छा कभी पूरी नहीं हुई।
Her wish was never fulfilled.
(uskii ichchhaa kabhii poorii nahiin huii।)
काश मेरी यह इच्छा पूरी हो जाती।
If only this wish of mine had come true.
(kaash merii yah ichchhaa poorii ho jaatii।)
अगर आपकी इच्छा हो तो हम कल मिल सकते हैं।
If you wish, we can meet tomorrow.
(agar aapkii ichchhaa ho to ham kal mil sakte hain।)
उनकी अंतिम इच्छा पूरी की जाएगी।
His last wish will be fulfilled.
(unkii antim ichchhaa poorii kii jaaegii।)
बच्चे की इच्छाओं का सम्मान करना ज़रूरी है।
It is important to respect a child's wishes.
(bachche kii ichchhaaon kaa sammaan karnaa zaroorii hai।)
अपनी इच्छाओं को दबाना आसान नहीं होता।
Suppressing one's own desires is not easy.
(apnii ichchhaaon ko dabaanaa aasaan nahiin hotaa।)
साधु ने कहा कि सच्चा सुख इच्छाओं के त्याग में है।
The sage said that true happiness lies in renouncing desires.
(saadhu ne kahaa ki sachchaa sukh ichchhaaon ke tyaag men hai।)
अपनी इच्छा बताइए, मैं मदद करने की कोशिश करूँगा।
Tell me your wish, I will try to help.
(apnii ichchhaa bataaie, main madad karne kii koshish karoongaa।)
जो होनी है वही होगी, इच्छा से कुछ नहीं बदलता।
Whatever is meant to happen will happen; nothing changes just by wishing.
(jo honii hai vahii hogii, ichchhaa se kuchh nahiin badaltaa।)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.f.direct):
इच्छा
(ichchhaa)
(sg.f.oblique):
इच्छा
(ichchhaa)
(pl.f.direct):
इच्छाएँ
(ichchhaaen)
(pl.f.oblique):
इच्छाओं
(ichchhaaon)