जेठ (jeth)
noun
Two unrelated senses: a family-relations noun (husband's elder brother) and the name of a hot summer month in the traditional Hindu calendar.
Sense
1
:
husband's elder brother
noun, masculine
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: In a joint Indian family, in-law relations get very specific names rather than descriptive phrases, and जेठ (jeth) is one of the most commonly used -- a woman will refer to and address her husband's elder brother by this term, often with real social weight attached since he is traditionally treated with particular respect and a bit of formal distance.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often try to use भाई (bhaaii) with an adjective for 'elder' to express this relation, but Hindi has a dedicated kinship term -- जेठ (jeth) is the only natural way to say 'husband's elder brother,' just as देवर (devar) is used for the younger one. 2) Do not confuse with जेठा (jethaa), an adjective meaning 'firstborn/eldest,' which is a related but distinct word.
Sample Sentences:
मेरे जेठ बहुत भले इंसान हैं।
My husband's elder brother is a very good man.
(mere jeth bahut bhale insaan hain।)
शादी के बाद मैं अपने जेठ से घूँघट में बात करती थी।
After marriage, I used to talk to my husband's elder brother while wearing a veil.
(shaadii ke baad main apne jeth se ghoonghat men baat kartii thii।)
जेठ जी, आप चाय लेंगे?
Elder brother-in-law, will you have some tea?
(jeth jii, aap chaay lenge?)
उसके जेठ घर के सबसे बड़े फैसले लेते हैं।
Her husband's elder brother makes the biggest decisions in the house.
(uske jeth ghar ke sabse bade phaisle lete hain।)
जेठ के सामने घूँघट करना अब भी कहीं-कहीं चलता है।
Veiling oneself in front of one's husband's elder brother is still practiced in some places.
(jeth ke saamne ghoonghat karnaa ab bhii kahiin-kahiin chaltaa hai।)
अगर मेरे जेठ होते, तो घर का माहौल कुछ और होता।
If I had a husband's elder brother, the atmosphere at home would have been different.
(agar mere jeth hote, to ghar kaa maahaul kuchh aur hotaa।)
जेठ का इतना सम्मान करो कि कोई उंगली न उठाए।
Respect your husband's elder brother enough that no one can point a finger.
(jeth kaa itnaa sammaan karo ki koii unglii n uthaae।)
जेठ के आने से पहले सारा घर साफ कर दिया गया था।
Before the husband's elder brother arrived, the whole house had been cleaned.
(jeth ke aane se pahle saaraa ghar saaph kar diyaa gayaa thaa।)
शायद उसके जेठ इस बार त्योहार पर आएँ।
Perhaps her husband's elder brother will come for the festival this time.
(shaayad uske jeth is baar tyohaar par aaen।)
गाँव में बहुएँ अक्सर अपने जेठ का नाम सीधे नहीं लेतीं।
In villages, daughters-in-law often don't take their husband's elder brother's name directly.
(gaanv men bahuen aksar apne jeth kaa naam siidhe nahiin letiin।)
Sense
2
:
name of a summer month (May-June) in the Hindu calendar
noun, masculine
Frequency: low
Cultural Note: जेठ (jeth) is proverbially the hottest month of the North Indian year, and you will hear people say things like जेठ की दुपहरी (jeth kii dupahrii, 'the midday heat of Jeth') to evoke scorching, oppressive heat -- much like English speakers might invoke 'the dog days of summer.'
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes assume Hindi month names map neatly onto a single Gregorian month, but जेठ (jeth) spans roughly mid-May to mid-June, so it is best learned as 'peak summer' rather than pinned to one English month.
Sample Sentences:
जेठ के महीने में गर्मी अपने चरम पर होती है।
In the month of Jyeshtha, the heat is at its peak.
(jeth ke mahiine men garmii apne charam par hotii hai।)
जेठ की दुपहरी में बाहर निकलना मुश्किल होता है।
It's hard to go outside in the midday heat of Jeth.
(jeth kii dupahrii men baahar nikalnaa mushkil hotaa hai।)
पिछले जेठ में इतनी गर्मी पड़ी थी कि नल का पानी भी गरम हो जाता था।
Last Jyeshtha, it was so hot that even the tap water used to get warm.
(pichhle jeth men itnii garmii padii thii ki nal kaa paanii bhii garam ho jaataa thaa।)
अगर जेठ इतना न तपता, तो किसान इतनी परेशानी में न होते।
If Jyeshtha didn't scorch so much, the farmers wouldn't be in so much trouble.
(agar jeth itnaa n taptaa, to kisaan itnii pareshaanii men n hote।)
इस साल जेठ में बारिश हो गई, जिससे थोड़ी राहत मिली।
This year it rained in Jyeshtha, which brought a little relief.
(is saal jeth men baarish ho gaii, jisse thodii raahat milii।)
अगले जेठ तक यह बांध बनकर तैयार हो जाएगा।
By next Jyeshtha, this dam will be built and ready.
(agle jeth tak yah baandh bankar taiyaar ho jaaegaa।)
जेठ में खेतों की सिंचाई का पूरा इंतज़ाम कर लो।
Get the entire irrigation arrangement for the fields done in Jyeshtha.
(jeth men kheton kii sinchaaii kaa pooraa intzaam kar lo।)
पंचांग के अनुसार जेठ हिंदू वर्ष का तीसरा महीना माना जाता है।
According to the almanac, Jyeshtha is considered the third month of the Hindu year.
(panchaang ke anusaar jeth hindoo varsh kaa tiisraa mahiinaa maanaa jaataa hai।)
शायद इस बार जेठ में इतनी गर्मी न पड़े।
Perhaps this time it won't get so hot in Jyeshtha.
(shaayad is baar jeth men itnii garmii n pade।)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m.direct):
जेठ
(jeth)
(sg.m.oblique):
जेठ
(jeth)
(pl.m.direct):
जेठ
(jeth)
(pl.m.oblique):
जेठों
(jethon)