खंडहर (khandahar)
noun
A single-sense noun meaning 'ruins' or 'a ruined structure' -- the crumbled remains of a building, fort, or city.
Sense
1
:
ruins, a derelict/ruined building
noun, masculine
Synonyms: भग्नावशेष (bhagnaavshesh, literary), वीरान इमारत (viiraan imaarat, describes an abandoned/desolate building rather than the ruins themselves)
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: Old forts and havelis across Delhi-NCR (Tughlaqabad, Feroz Shah Kotla) are commonly called खंडहर (khandahar), and the word carries a slightly poetic, wistful tone -- it evokes lost grandeur rather than just physical damage. You'll often hear it in phrases like किसी शहर के खंडहर (kisii shahar ke khandahar, 'the ruins of some city'), used almost as a metaphor for anything that once thrived and is now abandoned, including relationships or empires.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes use खंडहर (khandahar) for any 'old building,' but it specifically implies decay and abandonment, not just age -- a well-kept old haveli is पुरानी हवेली (puraanii havelii), not खंडहर (khandahar). 2) It is often used in the plural sense even in singular form (like 'ruins' in English), referring to the whole site rather than one broken piece.
Sample Sentences:
तुगलकाबाद का किला अब सिर्फ एक खंडहर रह गया है।
Tughlaqabad fort has now become nothing but a ruin.
(tugalkaabaad kaa kilaa ab sirph ek khandahar rah gayaa hai।)
हम छुट्टियों में पुराने खंडहर देखने गए थे।
We had gone to see old ruins during the holidays.
(ham chhuttiyon men puraane khandahar dekhne gae the।)
इस हवेली को खंडहर मत बनने दो, इसकी मरम्मत करवाओ।
Don't let this mansion turn into a ruin, get it repaired.
(is havelii ko khandahar mat banne do, iskii marammat karvaao।)
किसी शहर के खंडहर देखकर पता चलता है कि वहाँ कभी कितनी रौनक रही होगी।
Seeing the ruins of some city, one realizes how much liveliness must have once existed there.
(kisii shahar ke khandahar dekhkar pataa chaltaa hai ki vahaan kabhii kitnii raunak rahii hogii।)
अगर सरकार ध्यान न देती, तो यह स्मारक भी खंडहर बन गया होता।
If the government hadn't paid attention, this monument too would have become a ruin.
(agar sarkaar dhyaan n detii, to yah smaarak bhii khandahar ban gayaa hotaa।)
बारिश के बाद खंडहर की दीवारें और भी कमज़ोर हो जाएँगी।
After the rain, the walls of the ruin will become even weaker.
(baarish ke baad khandahar kii diivaaren aur bhii kamzor ho jaaengii।)
फ़िरोज़ शाह कोटला के खंडहरों में शाम को अजीब सी ख़ामोशी छा जाती है।
In the ruins of Feroz Shah Kotla, a strange silence descends in the evening.
(firoz shaah kotlaa ke khandahron men shaam ko ajiib sii khaamoshii chhaa jaatii hai।)
उनका रिश्ता भी उस पुरानी हवेली की तरह खंडहर हो चुका है।
Their relationship too has crumbled into ruins, just like that old mansion.
(unkaa rishtaa bhii us puraanii havelii kii tarah khandahar ho chukaa hai।)
क्या तुमने कभी लाल कोट के खंडहर देखे हैं?
Have you ever seen the ruins of Lal Kot?
(kyaa tumne kabhii laal kot ke khandahar dekhe hain?)
युद्ध के बाद पूरा गाँव एक खंडहर में बदल गया।
After the war, the entire village turned into a ruin.
(yuddh ke baad pooraa gaanv ek khandahar men badal gayaa।)
खंडहरों में अक्सर चमगादड़ और साँप पाए जाते हैं।
Bats and snakes are often found in ruins.
(khandahron men aksar chamgaadad aur saamp paae jaate hain।)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m.direct):
खंडहर
(khandahar)
(sg.m.oblique):
खंडहर
(khandahar)
(pl.m.direct):
खंडहर
(khandahar)
(pl.m.oblique):
खंडहरों
(khandahron)