गायक (gaayak)

noun A straightforward one-sense word meaning 'singer' -- the masculine agentive noun from गाना (gaanaa, 'to sing').
Sense 1 : singer (male, or male-default professional term)
noun, masculine
Synonyms: गवैया (gavaiyaa, colloquial), संगीतकार (sangiitkaar, often means 'music composer' rather than 'singer')
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: You will hear गायक (gaayak) constantly in the context of playback singers in Bollywood -- पार्श्व गायक (paarshv gaayak) is the formal term for a 'playback singer.' In everyday talk about a favorite singer on the radio or at a wedding sangeet, this is the natural word to reach for.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes use गायक (gaayak) for any musician; it specifically means one who sings, not an instrumentalist or composer -- for those, use संगीतकार (sangiitkaar) or वादक (vaadak). 2) The feminine counterpart is गायिका (gaayikaa), not a form of गायक (gaayak) itself -- learners sometimes try to feminize it the way adjectives inflect, but this is a separate derived noun.
Sample Sentences:
वह मेरा पसंदीदा गायक है। He is my favorite singer.
(vah meraa pasandiidaa gaayak hai।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
इस फिल्म में गाने किस गायक ने गाए हैं? Which singer has sung the songs in this movie?
(is philm men gaane kis gaayak ne gaae hain?)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
वह एक मशहूर पार्श्व गायक है। He is a famous playback singer.
(vah ek mashahoor paarshv gaayak hai।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
शादी की संगीत में गायक पूरी रात गाता रहा। At the wedding sangeet, the singer kept singing all night.
(shaadii kii sangiit men gaayak poorii raat gaataa rahaa।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Continuous -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
अच्छा गायक बनने के लिए बरसों रियाज़ करना पड़ता है। To become a good singer, one has to practice for years.
(achchhaa gaayak banne ke lie barson riyaaz karnaa padtaa hai।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
काश मैं भी उतना अच्छा गायक होता। I wish I were as good a singer as him.
(kaash main bhii utnaa achchhaa gaayak hotaa।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Counterfactual -- Aspect: Habitual -- Voice: Active
अगर वह उस समय बीमार न होता, तो गायक ज़रूर मंच पर आता। If he hadn't been sick then, the singer would definitely have come on stage.
(agar vah us samay biimaar n hotaa, to gaayak zaroor manch par aataa।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Counterfactual -- Aspect: Habitual -- Voice: Active
उस गायक को इस साल सबसे अच्छे पार्श्व गायक का पुरस्कार मिला। That singer received the award for best playback singer this year.
(us gaayak ko is saal sabse achchhe paarshv gaayak kaa puraskaar milaa।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
गायक को मंच पर देखकर सब तालियाँ बजाने लगे। Seeing the singer on stage, everyone started clapping.
(gaayak ko manch par dekhkar sab taaliyaan bajaane lage।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
समारोह में जिस गायक को आमंत्रित किया गया था, वह नहीं आ सका। The singer who had been invited to the ceremony could not come.
(samaaroh men jis gaayak ko aamantrit kiyaa gayaa thaa, vah nahiin aa sakaa।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Passive
महोदय, कृपया मंच पर पधार रहे गायक का स्वागत करें। Sir, please welcome the singer who is arriving on stage.
(mahoday, kripyaa manch par padhaar rahe gaayak kaa svaagat karen।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Imperative -- Voice: Active
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m.direct): गायक (gaayak)
(sg.m.oblique): गायक (gaayak)
(pl.m.direct): गायक (gaayak)
(pl.m.oblique): गायकों (gaaykon)