ऊँट (oont)
noun
A single, simple sense: the animal 'camel'. Also carries a well-known idiomatic use referring to a person's unpredictable temperament, tied to the camel's famously erratic behavior.
Sense
1
:
camel (the animal)
noun, masculine
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: In Rajasthan and the Delhi-NCR fringe you still see ऊँट (oont) pulling carts or decked out for tourists at fairs like Pushkar. It's a common, everyday noun, not a bookish one, even though many city kids only meet it in zoos or on trips out west.
Sample Sentences:
राजस्थान में सड़क किनारे ऊँट घूमते रहते हैं।
In Rajasthan, camels keep roaming along the roadside.
(raajasthaan men sadak kinaare oont ghoomte rahte hain।)
पुष्कर मेले में हमने रंग-बिरंगे कपड़ों में सजे ऊँट देखे।
At the Pushkar fair we saw camels decked out in colorful clothes.
(pushkar mele men hamne rang-birange kapdon men saje oont dekhe।)
वह किसान अपना ऊँट बाज़ार ले जा रहा था।
That farmer was taking his camel to the market.
(vah kisaan apnaa oont baazaar le jaa rahaa thaa।)
ऊँट रेगिस्तान में बिना पानी के कई दिनों तक चल सकता है।
A camel can walk in the desert for many days without water.
(oont registaan men binaa paanii ke kaii dinon tak chal saktaa hai।)
ऊँट को यहाँ मत बैठाओ, रास्ता बंद हो जाएगा।
Don't make the camel sit here, the path will get blocked.
(oont ko yahaan mat baithaao, raastaa band ho jaaegaa।)
अगर हमारे पास ऊँट होता, तो हम रेत के टीलों पर सफ़र कर पाते।
If we had a camel, we would have been able to travel over the sand dunes.
(agar hamaare paas oont hotaa, to ham ret ke tiilon par safar kar paate।)
गाँव में ऊँट से खेत जोता जाता था।
In the village, the fields used to be plowed with a camel.
(gaanv men oont se khet jotaa jaataa thaa।)
शायद मेले में इस बार ऊँटों की दौड़ भी हो।
Perhaps there will be a camel race at the fair this time too.
(shaayad mele men is baar oonton kii daud bhii ho।)
बच्चों ने चिड़ियाघर में पहली बार ऊँट को इतने पास से देखा।
The children saw a camel from this close for the first time at the zoo.
(bachchon ne chidiyaaghar men pahlii baar oont ko itne paas se dekhaa।)
ऊँट सामने खड़ा है, डरो मत।
The camel is standing right in front, don't be afraid.
(oont saamne khadaa hai, daro mat।)
थार के इलाकों में ऊँट को 'रेगिस्तान का जहाज़' कहा जाता है।
In the Thar regions, the camel is called the 'ship of the desert'.
(thaar ke ilaakon men oont ko 'registaan kaa jahaaz' kahaa jaataa hai।)
Sense
2
:
an unpredictable or fickle person (idiomatic)
noun, masculine Almost always used inside the fixed idiom ऊँट किस करवट बैठेगा (oont kis karvat baithegaa, 'which way will the camel sit down'), not as a free-standing noun meaning 'fickle person.'
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: This idiom plays on the real-life image of a camel lowering itself to sit -- an oddly lurching, hard-to-predict motion -- and Hindi speakers reach for it when discussing an unpredictable boss, politician, or situation whose next move nobody can call.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners try to use ऊँट (oont) alone to mean 'an unpredictable person' -- in practice this sense almost never appears outside the set phrase ऊँट किस करवट बैठेगा (oont kis karvat baithegaa), so using the bare noun this way sounds odd to a native speaker.
Sample Sentences:
पता नहीं ऊँट किस करवट बैठे, बॉस का मूड हर दिन बदल जाता है।
Who knows which way the camel will sit -- the boss's mood changes every day.
(pataa nahiin oont kis karvat baithe, bos kaa mood har din badal jaataa hai।)
वो आदमी तो असली ऊँट है, कब क्या फैसला ले ले कोई नहीं जानता।
That man is a real camel -- nobody knows when he'll make what decision.
(vo aadmii to aslii oont hai, kab kyaa phaislaa le le koii nahiin jaantaa।)
इस सरकार का तो कुछ पता ही नहीं, ऊँट किस करवट बैठेगा कोई नहीं कह सकता।
There's no telling with this government -- no one can say which way the camel will sit.
(is sarkaar kaa to kuchh pataa hii nahiin, oont kis karvat baithegaa koii nahiin kah saktaa।)
अगर वो ऊँट न होता तो हम पहले ही इस डील पर हस्ताक्षर कर चुके होते।
If he weren't such an unpredictable character, we would have already signed this deal.
(agar vo oont n hotaa to ham pahle hii is diil par hastaakshar kar chuke hote।)
मैडम, माफ कीजिए पर आपके मैनेजर तो ऊँट निकले, आज हाँ कल ना।
Ma'am, excuse me, but your manager turned out to be quite the fickle one -- yes today, no tomorrow.
(maidam, maaph kiijie par aapke mainejar to oont nikle, aaj haan kal naa।)
उस नेता के बारे में यही कहा जाता है कि वो असली ऊँट है, आज कुछ बोलेगा कल कुछ और।
It's said about that politician that he's a real camel -- he'll say one thing today and something else tomorrow.
(us netaa ke baare men yahii kahaa jaataa hai ki vo aslii oont hai, aaj kuchh bolegaa kal kuchh aur।)
काश वो थोड़ा भरोसेमंद होता, हर बार ऊँट की तरह पलट जाता है।
I wish he were a bit more reliable -- he flip-flops like a camel every single time.
(kaash vo thodaa bharosemand hotaa, har baar oont kii tarah palat jaataa hai।)
इन साहब का ऊँट कब किस करवट बैठ जाए, इसका कोई हिसाब नहीं।
There's no calculating when and how this gentleman's camel-like nature will show up next.
(in saahab kaa oont kab kis karvat baith jaae, iskaa koii hisaab nahiin।)
उससे कोई उम्मीद मत रखो यार, वो तो ठहरा ऊँट, आज सुबह कुछ और शाम को कुछ और कहेगा।
Don't keep any expectations from him, buddy -- he's such a fickle character, he'll say one thing in the morning and something else by evening.
(usse koii ummiid mat rakho yaar, vo to thahraa oont, aaj subah kuchh aur shaam ko kuchh aur kahegaa।)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m.direct):
ऊँट
(oont)
(sg.m.oblique):
ऊँट
(oont)
(pl.m.direct):
ऊँट
(oont)
(pl.m.oblique):
ऊँटों
(oonton)