मुख (mukh)
noun
A somewhat formal/literary word for 'face' or 'mouth' (compare the everyday चेहरा (chehraa) and मुँह (munh)); it also lives on as a common adjective meaning 'main, chief' in compounds like मुख्य (mukhy) -- but as a standalone word today, its main job is the body-part sense plus a figurative 'front/opening' sense.
Sense
1
:
face; mouth (as a body part)
noun, masculine
Synonyms: चेहरा (chehraa), मुँह (munh), आनन (aanan, literary)
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: You will meet मुख (mukh) constantly in devotional contexts -- describing a deity's radiant face, as in the common phrase referring to the 'lotus face' (मुखकमल, mukhakmal) of a god or goddess -- which is why it carries a slightly reverent, elevated flavor even outside temple language.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often reach for this when चेहरा (chehraa) or मुँह (munh) would sound far more natural in everyday speech -- मुख (mukh) is the word you meet in formal writing, prayers, or poetic description of a face, not in casual conversation about someone's face.
Sample Sentences:
देवी का मुख कमल के समान सुंदर है।
The goddess's face is beautiful like a lotus.
(devii kaa mukh kamal ke samaan sundar hai।)
उसके मुख पर मुस्कान थी।
There was a smile on her face.
(uske mukh par muskaan thii।)
कृपया अपना मुख धो लीजिए।
Please wash your face.
(kripyaa apnaa mukh dho liijie।)
अगर तुम अपना मुख ढँक लेते तो कोई तुम्हें पहचान न पाता।
If you had covered your face, no one would have recognized you.
(agar tum apnaa mukh dhank lete to koii tumhen pahchaan n paataa।)
भगवान का मुखकमल देखकर भक्तों की आँखें भर आईं।
Seeing the lord's lotus face, the devotees' eyes welled up.
(bhagvaan kaa mukhakmal dekhkar bhakton kii aankhen bhar aaiin।)
बच्चे का मुख देखकर माँ की सारी थकान दूर हो गई।
Seeing the child's face, all the mother's tiredness disappeared.
(bachche kaa mukh dekhkar maan kii saarii thakaan door ho gaii।)
पुजारी मूर्ति का मुख स्वच्छ जल से धो रहा था।
The priest was washing the idol's face with clean water.
(pujaarii moorti kaa mukh svachchh jal se dho rahaa thaa।)
क्या तुमने कभी उसका मुख गौर से देखा है?
Have you ever looked closely at his face?
(kyaa tumne kabhii uskaa mukh gaur se dekhaa hai?)
यात्री का मुख धूप से झुलस गया था।
The traveler's face had been scorched by the sun.
(yaatrii kaa mukh dhoop se jhulas gayaa thaa।)
साधु का मुख तेज से चमक रहा था।
The sage's face was glowing with radiance.
(saadhu kaa mukh tej se chamak rahaa thaa।)
Sense
2
:
front part, opening, mouth of something (figurative/extended)
noun, masculine Used in compounds for the 'mouth' or 'front' of a non-human thing, e.g. नदी का मुख (nadii kaa mukh, 'the mouth of a river') or द्वारमुख (dvaarmukh, 'the face/front of a doorway').
Synonyms: द्वार (dvaar, entrance/opening sense), प्रवेश (pravesh, entrance sense)
Frequency: low
Cultural Note: This is the same metaphor English speakers use for a 'river mouth' -- Hindi extends मुख (mukh) the same way, from a person's face to the 'face' or opening of a place, which makes this sense easy to grasp once you know the body-part meaning.
Sample Sentences:
नदी का मुख यहाँ से कुछ किलोमीटर दूर समुद्र में खुलता है।
The river's mouth opens into the sea a few kilometers from here.
(nadii kaa mukh yahaan se kuchh kilomiitar door samudr men khultaa hai।)
गुफा का मुख इतना संकरा था कि अंदर जाना मुश्किल हो गया।
The mouth of the cave was so narrow that it became hard to go inside.
(guphaa kaa mukh itnaa sankraa thaa ki andar jaanaa mushkil ho gayaa।)
सुरंग के मुख पर एक बड़ा सा गेट बना हुआ था।
There was a large gate built at the mouth of the tunnel.
(surang ke mukh par ek badaa saa get banaa huaa thaa।)
मंदिर का मुख पूर्व की ओर है, जो शुभ माना जाता है।
The temple's front faces east, which is considered auspicious.
(mandir kaa mukh poorv kii or hai, jo shubh maanaa jaataa hai।)
घाटी के मुख से पूरा गाँव साफ़ दिखाई देता है।
The entire village is clearly visible from the mouth of the valley.
(ghaatii ke mukh se pooraa gaanv saaf dikhaaii detaa hai।)
बोतल का मुख इतना छोटा है कि पानी धीरे-धीरे ही निकलेगा।
The bottle's opening is so small that the water will come out only slowly.
(botal kaa mukh itnaa chhotaa hai ki paanii dhiire-dhiire hii niklegaa।)
यदि इस बर्तन का मुख चौड़ा होता, तो साफ़ करना आसान होता।
If this vessel's mouth were wider, cleaning it would be easy.
(yadi is bartan kaa mukh chaudaa hotaa, to saaf karnaa aasaan hotaa।)
घर का मुख सड़क की ओर रखा गया है ताकि रोशनी अंदर आए।
The house's front has been positioned toward the road so that light comes inside.
(ghar kaa mukh sadak kii or rakhaa gayaa hai taaki roshnii andar aae।)
कृपया भवन का मुख उत्तर दिशा में रखें, जैसा वास्तु में बताया गया है।
Please keep the building's front facing north, as prescribed in vastu.
(kripyaa bhavan kaa mukh uttar dishaa men rakhen, jaisaa vaastu men bataayaa gayaa hai।)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m.direct):
मुख
(mukh)
(sg.m.oblique):
मुख
(mukh)
(pl.m.direct):
मुख
(mukh)
(pl.m.oblique):
मुखों
(mukhon)