बूआ (booaa)

noun A kinship term meaning 'father's sister' (paternal aunt) -- one straightforward sense, but an important one in the Hindi family-vocabulary system.
Sense 1 : father's sister; paternal aunt
noun, feminine
Synonyms: फूफी (phoophii, regional variant, more common outside Delhi-NCR), पिता की बहन (pitaa kii bahan, descriptive phrase rather than a title)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: In most North Indian families, your father's side and mother's side get entirely different vocabularies -- बूआ (booaa) is specifically your dad's sister, distinct from मौसी (mausii) on your mom's side, and this distinction matters a lot in how families relate to each other (बूआ (booaa) is often seen as having a special, sometimes teasing, sometimes authoritative role at weddings and family functions). Her husband is your फूफा (phoophaa), forming a linked pair you'll want to learn together.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often use बूआ (booaa) loosely for 'aunt' in general, but Hindi kinship terms are precise -- your mother's sister is मौसी (mausii), and your uncle's wife is चाची (chaachii) or मामी (maamii) depending on which uncle. Mixing these up is a real, noticeable mistake to native ears. 2) बूआ (booaa) is used both as the kinship noun and as a direct address term (like calling out 'Aunty!'), so you'll hear children say बूआ (booaa) directly to her, not just about her.
Sample Sentences:
मेरी बूआ दिल्ली में रहती हैं। My aunt (father's sister) lives in Delhi.
(merii booaa dillii men rahtii hain।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
बूआ शादी में सबसे ज़्यादा नाची थीं। Aunt danced the most at the wedding.
(booaa shaadii men sabse zyaadaa naachii thiin।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
बूआ आ रही हैं, सब लोग तैयार हो जाओ। Aunt is coming, everyone get ready.
(booaa aa rahii hain, sab log taiyaar ho jaao।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Imperative -- Aspect: Continuous -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
बूआ ने मुझे बचपन में बहुत छेड़ा था। Aunt used to tease me a lot when I was a child.
(booaa ne mujhe bachpan men bahut chhedaa thaa।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
बूआ, आप कैसी हैं? Aunt, how are you?
(booaa, aap kaisii hain?)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Indicative -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
अगर बूआ यहाँ होती तो सब ठीक हो जाता। If aunt were here, everything would have been fine.
(agar booaa yahaan hotii to sab thiik ho jaataa।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Counterfactual -- Aspect: Habitual -- Voice: Active
बूआ के घर हर साल राखी पर जाना पड़ता है। We have to go to aunt's house every year on Raksha Bandhan.
(booaa ke ghar har saal raakhii par jaanaa padtaa hai।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
बूआ और फूफा दोनों शादी में आएंगे। Both aunt and uncle (her husband) will come to the wedding.
(booaa aur phoophaa donon shaadii men aaenge।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Tense: Future -- Voice: Active
काश बूआ की तबीयत जल्दी ठीक हो जाए। I wish aunt's health improves soon.
(kaash booaa kii tabiiyat jaldii thiik ho jaae।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Subjunctive -- Voice: Active
बूआ का रिश्तों में एक अलग ही रुतबा होता है। An aunt (father's sister) has a distinct standing in the family relationships.
(booaa kaa rishton men ek alag hii rutbaa hotaa hai।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
यह गहने बूआ के द्वारा दिए गए थे। These jewels were given by aunt.
(yah gahne booaa ke dvaaraa die gae the।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Passive
Morphology
Noun
(sg.f.direct): बूआ (booaa)
(sg.f.oblique): बूआ (booaa)
(pl.f.direct): बूआएँ (booaaen)
(pl.f.oblique): बूआओं (booaaon)