दोपहर (dopahar)
noun
A single everyday time-of-day noun meaning 'noon/afternoon'; used constantly for scheduling and greetings.
Sense
1
:
noon, midday, afternoon
noun, feminine
Synonyms: मध्याह्न (madhyaahn, literary/formal)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: In North Indian households, दोपहर (dopahar) is strongly associated with the midday meal and the customary afternoon rest -- many families eat lunch and then take a short nap during these hours, especially in summer when the sun is harshest. You'll often hear दोपहर का खाना (dopahar kaa khaanaa, 'afternoon/midday meal') as the standard way to refer to lunch, paired with शाम (shaam) for evening and रात (raat) for night.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often assume दोपहर (dopahar) means the whole afternoon in the English sense, but it centers more on midday and the early afternoon hours (roughly noon to 3-4pm); evening activities shift to शाम (shaam). 2) In greetings, the fixed phrase is दोपहर की नमस्ते (dopahar kii namaste) is not used the way English says 'good afternoon' -- Hindi speakers typically just say नमस्ते (namaste) regardless of time, so don't force a time-specific greeting.
Sample Sentences:
आज दोपहर बहुत गर्मी है।
It's very hot this afternoon.
(aaj dopahar bahut garmii hai।)
हम दोपहर का खाना बारह बजे खाते हैं।
We eat lunch at twelve o'clock.
(ham dopahar kaa khaanaa baarah baje khaate hain।)
मैं कल दोपहर तुमसे मिलूँगी।
I will meet you tomorrow afternoon.
(main kal dopahar tumse miloongii।)
दोपहर में बाहर मत जाओ, धूप बहुत तेज़ है।
Don't go outside in the afternoon, the sun is very harsh.
(dopahar men baahar mat jaao, dhoop bahut tez hai।)
पूरा परिवार दोपहर का खाना खाकर सो गया।
The whole family ate lunch and fell asleep.
(pooraa parivaar dopahar kaa khaanaa khaakar so gayaa।)
अगर दोपहर को छुट्टी होती, तो हम सब सो जाते।
If we had the afternoon off, we would all go to sleep.
(agar dopahar ko chhuttii hotii, to ham sab so jaate।)
दोपहर में दफ़्तर बंद रहता है।
The office remains closed in the afternoon.
(dopahar men daftar band rahtaa hai।)
कृपया दोपहर बारह बजे तक रिपोर्ट जमा कर दें।
Please submit the report by noon.
(kripyaa dopahar baarah baje tak riport jamaa kar den।)
दोपहर की तेज़ धूप में बच्चे सो रहे थे।
The children were sleeping in the harsh afternoon sun.
(dopahar kii tez dhoop men bachche so rahe the।)
शायद वे दोपहर तक पहुँच जाएँ।
Perhaps they'll arrive by noon.
(shaayad ve dopahar tak pahunch jaaen।)
दोपहर की बैठक टाल दी गई है।
The afternoon meeting has been postponed.
(dopahar kii baithak taal dii gaii hai।)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.f.direct):
दोपहर
(dopahar)
(sg.f.oblique):
दोपहर
(dopahar)
(pl.f.direct):
दोपहरें
(dopahren)
(pl.f.oblique):
दोपहरों
(dopahron)