सहारा (sahaaraa)
noun
Mainly a noun meaning 'support, prop, reliance' (physical or emotional/financial), with a common idiomatic verb pairing सहारा लेना (sahaaraa lenaa, 'to take support/rely on').
Sense
1
:
emotional, financial, or social support; reliance, dependence on someone
noun, masculine
Synonyms: भरोसा (bharosaa, trust/reliance), आसरा (aasraa, variant sense overlap), टेक (tek)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: This is the sense behind lines like बुढ़ापे का सहारा (budhaape kaa sahaaraa, 'support for one's old age'), often said of children who are expected to look after aging parents -- a very common frame in Hindi family conversation and film dialogue about duty and dependence.
Common Mistakes: 1) सहारा है (sahaaraa hai) is often used with a को (ko)-marked person to mean 'X is Y's support/mainstay', e.g. वह मेरा सहारा है (vah meraa sahaaraa hai, 'he/she is my support') -- learners sometimes reach for भरोसा (bharosaa) here, which is closer to 'trust' than to 'being someone's mainstay.'
Sample Sentences:
बेटा ही बुढ़ापे का सहारा होता है।
A son is the one who becomes the support of one's old age.
(betaa hii budhaape kaa sahaaraa hotaa hai।)
पिता की मृत्यु के बाद वह अपनी माँ का एकमात्र सहारा है।
After her father's death, she is her mother's only support.
(pitaa kii mrityu ke baad vah apnii maan kaa ekmaatr sahaaraa hai।)
मुश्किल के दिनों में उसने मुझे बहुत सहारा दिया।
In difficult days, she gave me a lot of support.
(mushkil ke dinon men usne mujhe bahut sahaaraa diyaa।)
अगर तुम्हारा सहारा न होता, तो मैं यह तूफान अकेले नहीं झेल पाता।
If I hadn't had your support, I wouldn't have been able to weather this storm alone.
(agar tumhaaraa sahaaraa n hotaa, to main yah toophaan akele nahiin jhel paataa।)
काश किसी का सहारा मिल जाता।
If only someone's support would come my way.
(kaash kisii kaa sahaaraa mil jaataa।)
विधवा माँ अपने बच्चों के सहारे जी रही है।
The widowed mother is living relying on her children.
(vidhvaa maan apne bachchon ke sahaare jii rahii hai।)
बुढ़ापे में औलाद ही सबसे बड़ा सहारा बनती है।
In old age, children become the greatest support of all.
(budhaape men aulaad hii sabse badaa sahaaraa bantii hai।)
क्या तुम मुसीबत में मेरा सहारा बनोगे?
Will you become my support in times of trouble?
(kyaa tum musiibat men meraa sahaaraa banoge?)
जब कोई सहारा नहीं बचता, तो इंसान भगवान को याद करता है।
When no support is left, a person remembers God.
(jab koii sahaaraa nahiin bachtaa, to insaan bhagvaan ko yaad kartaa hai।)
उसे उम्मीद थी कि बुढ़ापे में उसका सहारा दिया जाएगा, मगर बेटों ने मुँह मोड़ लिया।
He had hoped that support would be given to him in his old age, but his sons turned away.
(use ummiid thii ki budhaape men uskaa sahaaraa diyaa jaaegaa, magar beton ne munh mod liyaa।)
बेटी हमेशा माँ-बाप का सहारा रही है, चाहे समाज कुछ भी कहे।
A daughter has always been her parents' support, no matter what society says.
(betii hameshaa maan-baap kaa sahaaraa rahii hai, chaahe samaaj kuchh bhii kahe।)
Sense
2
:
physical support or prop (something to lean on or hold)
noun, masculine
Synonyms: टेक (tek), आधार (aadhaar)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: Picture an elderly person walking with a stick or holding a wall for balance -- that's the core image of सहारा (sahaaraa). It's a very tactile, physical sense before it extends to the emotional one below.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often forget the verb सहारा लेना (sahaaraa lenaa) is the natural way to say 'to take support (of something)' -- it takes का (kaa) on the thing being leaned on, e.g. दीवार का सहारा लेना (diivaar kaa sahaaraa lenaa, 'to lean on the wall for support'), not पर (par) as an English speaker might expect.
Sample Sentences:
बुढ़िया लाठी के सहारे चल रही थी।
The old woman was walking with the support of her stick.
(budhiyaa laathii ke sahaare chal rahii thii।)
उसने दीवार का सहारा लेकर खुद को गिरने से बचाया।
He held onto the wall for support to stop himself from falling.
(usne diivaar kaa sahaaraa lekar khud ko girne se bachaayaa।)
चोट लगने के बाद वह बैसाखी के सहारे चलता है।
Since his injury, he walks with the support of crutches.
(chot lagne ke baad vah baisaakhii ke sahaare chaltaa hai।)
बच्चे को कुर्सी का सहारा दो, नहीं तो गिर जाएगा।
Give the child the support of the chair, or he'll fall.
(bachche ko kursii kaa sahaaraa do, nahiin to gir jaaegaa।)
अगर रेलिंग का सहारा न होता तो वह सीढ़ियों से गिर जाती।
If there hadn't been the support of the railing, she would have fallen down the stairs.
(agar reling kaa sahaaraa n hotaa to vah siidhiyon se gir jaatii।)
मरीज़ को उठते समय नर्स का सहारा दिया गया।
The patient was given the nurse's support while getting up.
(mariiz ko uthte samay nars kaa sahaaraa diyaa gayaa।)
पेड़ के तने को सहारा देने के लिए बांस बांधे गए हैं।
Bamboo poles have been tied to give support to the tree trunk.
(ped ke tane ko sahaaraa dene ke lie baans baandhe gae hain।)
शायद उसे किसी सहारे की ज़रूरत पड़े ताकि वह खड़ा रह सके।
He might need some support so that he can remain standing.
(shaayad use kisii sahaare kii zaroorat pade taaki vah khadaa rah sake।)
टूटी हुई मेज़ को दीवार का सहारा देकर रखा गया है।
The broken table has been propped up against the support of the wall.
(tootii huii mez ko diivaar kaa sahaaraa dekar rakhaa gayaa hai।)
कृपया मरीज़ को चलने में सहारा दीजिए।
Please give the patient support while he walks.
(kripyaa mariiz ko chalne men sahaaraa diijie।)
कमज़ोर टांग की वजह से वह छड़ी के सहारे ही खड़ा हो पाता है।
Because of his weak leg, he can only stand with the support of a cane.
(kamzor taang kii vajah se vah chhadii ke sahaare hii khadaa ho paataa hai।)
Sense
3
:
pretext, excuse, or means used to justify or accomplish something (idiomatic extension)
noun, masculine Occurs almost exclusively in the frame X के सहारे (ke sahaare, 'by means of / relying on X'), where सहारे (sahaare) functions like a postposition-ish phrase meaning 'with the help of, on the strength of.'
Synonyms: बहाना (bahaanaa, closer to 'excuse' specifically)
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: You'll often hear के सहारे (ke sahaare) in reflective or slightly poetic speech, like झूठे वादों के सहारे (jhoothe vaadon ke sahaare, 'on the strength of false promises') -- it carries a note of precariousness, of getting by on something thin or uncertain.
Common Mistakes: 1) उम्मीद के सहारे जीना (ummiid ke sahaare jiinaa, 'to live on hope alone') uses के सहारे (ke sahaare) almost like 'on the strength of' -- learners sometimes try को (ko) or से (se) instead of this fixed के सहारे (ke sahaare) construction.
Sample Sentences:
वह झूठे वादों के सहारे चुनाव जीत गया।
He won the election on the strength of false promises.
(vah jhoothe vaadon ke sahaare chunaav jiit gayaa।)
वह बीमारी के सहारे दफ्तर से छुट्टी ले लेता है।
He uses illness as an excuse to take leave from the office.
(vah biimaarii ke sahaare daphtar se chhuttii le letaa hai।)
किसी बहाने के सहारे वह हर बार बच निकलती है।
On the pretext of some excuse or other, she slips away every time.
(kisii bahaane ke sahaare vah har baar bach nikaltii hai।)
नेता लोग धर्म के सहारे वोट माँगते रहे हैं।
Politicians have kept asking for votes on the pretext of religion.
(netaa log dharm ke sahaare vot maangte rahe hain।)
काश वह किसी झूठे सहारे के बिना ही सच बोल पाता।
If only he could have spoken the truth without any false pretext.
(kaash vah kisii jhoothe sahaare ke binaa hii sach bol paataa।)
अगर उसे कोई सहारा न मिलता, तो वह यह झूठ न बोल पाता।
If he hadn't found some pretext, he wouldn't have been able to tell this lie.
(agar use koii sahaaraa n miltaa, to vah yah jhooth n bol paataa।)
इस बहाने का सहारा मत लो, सच बता दो।
Don't take shelter in this excuse -- just tell the truth.
(is bahaane kaa sahaaraa mat lo, sach bataa do।)
हो सकता है वह किसी और सहारे से यह काम निकाल ले।
It's possible he'll get this work done by some other pretext.
(ho saktaa hai vah kisii aur sahaare se yah kaam nikaal le।)
कमजोर तर्कों के सहारे यह मुकदमा नहीं जीता जा सकता।
This case cannot be won on the strength of weak arguments.
(kamjor tarkon ke sahaare yah mukadmaa nahiin jiitaa jaa saktaa।)
आधे-अधूरे सबूतों के सहारे उसे दोषी करार दिया गया था।
He was declared guilty on the basis of half-complete evidence.
(aadhe-adhoore sabooton ke sahaare use doshii karaar diyaa gayaa thaa।)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m.direct):
सहारा
(sahaaraa)
(sg.m.oblique):
सहारे
(sahaare)
(pl.m.direct):
सहारे
(sahaare)
(pl.m.oblique):
सहारों
(sahaaron)