हैरानी (hairaanii)

noun A single-sense noun meaning surprise or astonishment -- the feeling itself, closely related to the adjective हैरान (hairaan, 'surprised').
Sense 1 : surprise, astonishment
noun, feminine Commonly appears with होना (honaa) in the pattern X को हैरानी होना (X ko hairaanii honaa) -- 'X feels surprise' -- following the same dative-subject frame as लगना (lagnaa).
Synonyms: आश्चर्य (aashchary), अचंभा (achambhaa, colloquial), ताज्जुब (taajjub)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: You will hear मुझे बड़ी हैरानी हुई (mujhe badii hairaanii huii, 'I was quite surprised') constantly in everyday storytelling -- Hindi treats surprise as something that arrives and happens to you, much like feeling cold or feeling sleepy, rather than something you actively do.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners try to use हैरानी (hairaanii) as an adjective meaning 'surprised' -- that job belongs to हैरान (hairaan); हैरानी (hairaanii) is only the noun 'surprise.' 2) The experiencer of the surprise takes को (ko), not ने (ne) -- मुझे हैरानी हुई (mujhe hairaanii huii, 'I was surprised'), not a ने-marked construction.
Sample Sentences:
मुझे बड़ी हैरानी हुई जब उसने अचानक इस्तीफ़ा दे दिया। I was quite surprised when he suddenly resigned.
(mujhe badii hairaanii huii jab usne achaanak istiifaa de diyaa।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
उसकी बात सुनकर सबको हैरानी होती है। Everyone is surprised when they hear what he says.
(uskii baat sunkar sabko hairaanii hotii hai।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
मुझे हैरानी हो रही है कि तुमने अभी तक फ़ोन नहीं किया। I'm surprised that you still haven't called.
(mujhe hairaanii ho rahii hai ki tumne abhii tak fon nahiin kiyaa।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Continuous -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
अगर वह परीक्षा में फेल हो जाए तो मुझे हैरानी नहीं होगी। If he fails the exam, I won't be surprised.
(agar vah pariikshaa men phel ho jaae to mujhe hairaanii nahiin hogii।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Subjunctive -- Tense: Future -- Voice: Active
उसकी आँखों में हैरानी साफ़ झलक रही थी। The surprise was clearly showing in her eyes.
(uskii aankhon men hairaanii saaf jhalak rahii thii।)
Register: Literary -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Continuous -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
अगर उसे पता होता तो उसे इतनी हैरानी न होती। If he had known, he wouldn't have been so surprised.
(agar use pataa hotaa to use itnii hairaanii n hotii।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Counterfactual -- Aspect: Habitual -- Voice: Active
यह सुनकर मुझे हैरानी हुई कि वह शादी कर रहा है। I was surprised to hear that he's getting married.
(yah sunkar mujhe hairaanii huii ki vah shaadii kar rahaa hai।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
उसने बड़ी हैरानी से मेरी तरफ़ देखा। He looked at me with great astonishment.
(usne badii hairaanii se merii taraf dekhaa।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
अगर तुम अचानक चले जाओगे तो सबको हैरानी होगी। If you leave suddenly, everyone will be surprised.
(agar tum achaanak chale jaaoge to sabko hairaanii hogii।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Tense: Future -- Voice: Active
क्या तुम्हें उसकी सफलता पर हैरानी नहीं हुई? Weren't you surprised at his success?
(kyaa tumhen uskii saphaltaa par hairaanii nahiin huii?)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
उस घटना से जनता में गहरी हैरानी व्याप्त हो गई। A deep astonishment spread among the public over that incident.
(us ghatnaa se jantaa men gahrii hairaanii vyaapt ho gaii।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
Morphology
Noun
(sg.f.direct): हैरानी (hairaanii)
(sg.f.oblique): हैरानी (hairaanii)
(pl.f.direct): हैरानियाँ (hairaaniyaan)
(pl.f.oblique): हैरानियों (hairaaniyon)