राष्ट्र (raashtr)

noun A formal, elevated word for 'nation' or 'state' -- the word you meet in news, politics, and civic ceremony rather than in kitchen-table conversation.
Sense 1 : nation, country (as a political/civic entity)
noun, masculine
Synonyms: देश (desh), मुल्क (mulk)
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: You will hear राष्ट्र (raashtr) in the president's Independence Day address, in राष्ट्रगान (raashtrgaan, 'national anthem'), or राष्ट्रपति (raashtrapti, 'president', literally 'lord of the nation') -- it carries the weight of the nation-as-idea, not the nation-as-home-soil feeling that देश (desh) carries. Think of देश (desh) as the country you miss when you're away, and राष्ट्र (raashtr) as the country invoked in a constitution or a parliamentary debate.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often use राष्ट्र (raashtr) where देश (desh) would sound more natural -- देश (desh) is the everyday word for 'country' (where you're from, where you live), while राष्ट्र (raashtr) belongs to formal, political, or ceremonial registers, like a speech or a news headline. 2) It is grammatically masculine, but because it ends in अ (a) rather than आ (aa), it does not inflect in the oblique the way words like लड़का (ladkaa) do -- learners sometimes wrongly add an oblique -e ending.
Sample Sentences:
राष्ट्र की एकता सबसे महत्वपूर्ण है। The unity of the nation is most important.
(raashtr kii ektaa sabse mahatvpoorn hai।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Indicative -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
राष्ट्रपति ने राष्ट्र को संबोधित किया। The president addressed the nation.
(raashtrapti ne raashtr ko sambodhit kiyaa।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
संविधान राष्ट्र की सर्वोच्च कानूनी नींव है। The constitution is the supreme legal foundation of the nation.
(sanvidhaan raashtr kii sarvochch kaanoonii niinv hai।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Indicative -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
स्कूल में हर सुबह राष्ट्रगान गाया जाता है। The national anthem is sung every morning at school.
(skool men har subah raashtrgaan gaayaa jaataa hai।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Passive
संसद में राष्ट्र के भविष्य पर बहस हो रही है। A debate on the future of the nation is going on in parliament.
(sansad men raashtr ke bhavishy par bahas ho rahii hai।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Continuous -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
काश हर नागरिक राष्ट्र के प्रति अपना कर्तव्य समझता। If only every citizen understood their duty toward the nation.
(kaash har naagrik raashtr ke prati apnaa kartavy samajhtaa।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Counterfactual -- Aspect: Habitual -- Voice: Active
राष्ट्र की रक्षा के लिए सैनिकों ने अपना जीवन बलिदान कर दिया। The soldiers sacrificed their lives for the protection of the nation.
(raashtr kii rakshaa ke lie sainikon ne apnaa jiivan balidaan kar diyaa।)
Register: Literary -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
हमें ऐसे नेता चाहिए जो राष्ट्र का भला सोचें। We need leaders who think of the good of the nation.
(hamen aise netaa chaahie jo raashtr kaa bhalaa sochen।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Subjunctive -- Voice: Active
आइए, राष्ट्र निर्माण में अपना योगदान दें। Let us contribute to the building of the nation.
(aaie, raashtr nirmaan men apnaa yogdaan den।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Imperative -- Voice: Active
यह कानून राष्ट्र की सुरक्षा को ध्यान में रखकर बनाया गया था। This law was made keeping the security of the nation in mind.
(yah kaanoon raashtr kii surakshaa ko dhyaan men rakhkar banaayaa gayaa thaa।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Passive
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m.direct): राष्ट्र (raashtr)
(sg.m.oblique): राष्ट्र (raashtr)
(pl.m.direct): राष्ट्र (raashtr)
(pl.m.oblique): राष्ट्रों (raashtron)