कुली (kulii)

noun A single-sense everyday noun: a porter, most familiar to Indians from railway stations.
Sense 1 : porter (someone paid to carry luggage)
noun, masculine
Synonyms: बोझा ढोने वाला (bojhaa dhone vaalaa, descriptive phrase, not a single-word synonym)
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: Say कुली (kulii) to almost any Indian and they picture the red-shirted, red-turbaned porters balancing three suitcases on their heads at a railway platform -- calling one over with a shout of कुली! (kulii!, 'Porter!') is a classic scene at any busy station like Delhi's Nizamuddin or Old Delhi. The word itself is a loanword used across many South and Southeast Asian languages, and in Hindi it carries no negative connotation -- it is simply the everyday name for this profession.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes assume कुली (kulii) is a general word for 'laborer' -- it specifically means a luggage-carrying porter, typically at a railway station or airport; for general manual labor, मज़दूर (mazdoor) is the word wanted.
Sample Sentences:
कुली! ज़रा ये सामान उठा लो। Porter! Please pick up this luggage.
(kulii! zaraa ye saamaan uthaa lo।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Imperative -- Voice: Active
स्टेशन पर पहुँचते ही उसने एक कुली को बुलाया। As soon as he reached the station, he called a porter.
(steshan par pahunchte hii usne ek kulii ko bulaayaa।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
कुली तीन-तीन सूटकेस सिर पर उठाए चला जा रहा था। The porter was walking along, carrying three suitcases on his head.
(kulii tiin-tiin sootkes sir par uthaae chalaa jaa rahaa thaa।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Continuous -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
पुरानी दिल्ली स्टेशन पर हमेशा कई कुली प्लेटफ़ॉर्म पर खड़े रहते हैं। At Old Delhi station, many porters are always standing on the platform.
(puraanii dillii steshan par hameshaa kaii kulii pletform par khade rahte hain।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
अगर कुली नहीं मिलता, तो हमें खुद ही सामान उठाना पड़ता। If we hadn't found a porter, we would have had to carry the luggage ourselves.
(agar kulii nahiin miltaa, to hamen khud hii saamaan uthaanaa padtaa।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Counterfactual -- Aspect: Habitual -- Voice: Active
कुली को उसकी मेहनत के लिए ठीक-ठाक पैसे दिए जाते हैं। Porters are paid a decent amount for their hard work.
(kulii ko uskii mehnat ke lie thiik-thaak paise die jaate hain।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Passive
क्या आपको लगता है कि इस भीड़ में कोई कुली मिल पाएगा? Do you think we'll be able to find a porter in this crowd?
(kyaa aapko lagtaa hai ki is bhiid men koii kulii mil paaegaa?)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Tense: Future -- Voice: Active
रेलवे प्रशासन ने सुझाव दिया कि हर कुली की वर्दी पर उसका नंबर साफ़ लिखा हो। The railway administration suggested that every porter's number should be clearly written on his uniform.
(relve prashaasan ne sujhaav diyaa ki har kulii kii vardii par uskaa nambar saaf likhaa ho।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Subjunctive -- Voice: Passive
उस कुली ने बड़ी फुर्ती से भारी बक्सा ट्रेन में चढ़ा दिया। That porter swiftly loaded the heavy trunk onto the train.
(us kulii ne badii phurtii se bhaarii baksaa tren men chadhaa diyaa।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m.direct): कुली (kulii)
(sg.m.oblique): कुली (kulii)
(pl.m.direct): कुली (kulii)
(pl.m.oblique): कुलीयों (kuliiyon)