हरी मिर्च (harii mirch)

noun A two-word noun phrase meaning 'green chili' -- the fresh, unripe form of मिर्च (mirch) as opposed to the dried red chili (laal mirch) used in most spice mixes.
Sense 1 : green chili pepper (the fresh vegetable/spice)
noun, feminine
Synonyms: हरी मिर्ची (harii mirchii, colloquial variant)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: Every North Indian kitchen keeps हरी मिर्च (harii mirch) on hand -- slit lengthwise and dropped into the tadka, or chopped raw into salads and chutneys for a sharp, fresh heat that's different from the smokier bite of लाल मिर्च (laal mirch, red chili). Ordering food, you'll often be asked 'हरी मिर्च डालूं?' (harii mirch daaloon?, 'should I add green chili?') since it's optional heat, not baked into the base masala like red chili powder usually is.
Common Mistakes: 1) हरी (harii) agrees in gender with the feminine noun मिर्च (mirch) -- learners sometimes default to the masculine हरा (haraa) out of habit from other nouns. 2) In everyday speech at the sabzi mandi or in a recipe, हरी मिर्च (harii mirch) is treated as a countable item ('do hari mirch' = two green chilies) even though मिर्च (mirch) alone can also refer to the spice/heat in general.
Sample Sentences:
मम्मी सब्ज़ी में हरी मिर्च डालती हैं। Mom adds green chili to the vegetables.
(mammii sabzii men harii mirch daaltii hain।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
क्या मैं इसमें हरी मिर्च डालूं? Should I add green chili to this?
(kyaa main ismen harii mirch daaloon?)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Subjunctive -- Voice: Active
बाज़ार से थोड़ी हरी मिर्च ले आना। Bring a little green chili from the market.
(baazaar se thodii harii mirch le aanaa।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Imperative -- Voice: Active
उसने तड़के में दो हरी मिर्च चीर कर डाल दीं। She slit two green chilies lengthwise and dropped them into the tadka.
(usne tadke men do harii mirch chiir kar daal diin।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
सलाद में बारीक कटी हरी मिर्च पड़ी है। There is finely chopped green chili in the salad.
(salaad men baariik katii harii mirch padii hai।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
अगर हरी मिर्च ज़्यादा तेज़ न होती, तो मैं और डाल देता। If the green chili weren't so strong, I would have added more.
(agar harii mirch zyaadaa tez n hotii, to main aur daal detaa।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Counterfactual -- Aspect: Habitual -- Voice: Active
इस चटनी में हरी मिर्च पिसी हुई है। There is ground green chili in this chutney.
(is chatnii men harii mirch pisii huii hai।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Passive
वेटर ने पूछा, हरी मिर्च डालूं? The waiter asked, 'Should I add green chili?'
(vetar ne poochhaa, harii mirch daaloon?)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
अगले हफ़्ते तक बाज़ार में हरी मिर्च के दाम बढ़ जाएंगे। By next week, the price of green chili in the market will have gone up.
(agle hafte tak baazaar men harii mirch ke daam badh jaaenge।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Tense: Future -- Voice: Active
किचन में हमेशा हरी मिर्च रखी रहती है। There is always green chili kept in the kitchen.
(kichan men hameshaa harii mirch rakhii rahtii hai।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Passive
अगर तीखा ज़्यादा पसंद हो, तो कच्ची हरी मिर्च के साथ खाइए। If you like it extra spicy, eat it with raw green chili.
(agar tiikhaa zyaadaa pasand ho, to kachchii harii mirch ke saath khaaie।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Subjunctive -- Voice: Active
Morphology
Noun
(sg.f.direct): हरी मिर्च (harii mirch)
(sg.f.oblique): हरी मिर्च (harii mirch)
(pl.f.direct): हरी मिर्चें (harii mirchen)
(pl.f.oblique): हरी मिर्चों (harii mirchon)