शब्द (shabd)
noun
The basic Hindi word for 'word' or 'sound' -- one main sense in everyday use, with a secondary literary/philosophical shading toward 'sound' itself.
Sense
1
:
word (a unit of language)
noun, masculine
Synonyms: लफ़्ज़ (lafz, everyday, common in speech), वाक्यांश (vaakyaansh, phrase, narrower)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: You will meet शब्द (shabd) constantly in school contexts -- शब्दकोश (shabdkosh, 'dictionary,' literally 'treasury of words') and शब्दावली (shabdaavlii, 'vocabulary') both build on it, so learning this root pays off across many compound nouns.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes use शब्द (shabd) where बात (baat) is meant -- शब्द (shabd) is a single lexical word, while बात (baat) covers a remark, matter, or thing said; 'don't say such things' is ऐसी बातें मत कहो (aisii baaten mat kaho, 'don't say such things'), not ऐसे शब्द (aise shabd).
Sample Sentences:
इस शब्द का मतलब क्या है?
What does this word mean?
(is shabd kaa matlab kyaa hai?)
मुझे यह शब्द समझ में नहीं आता।
I don't understand this word.
(mujhe yah shabd samajh men nahiin aataa।)
टीचर ने बोर्ड पर एक नया शब्द लिखा।
The teacher wrote a new word on the board.
(tiichar ne bord par ek nayaa shabd likhaa।)
कृपया हर शब्द को ध्यान से पढ़िए।
Please read every word carefully.
(kripyaa har shabd ko dhyaan se padhie।)
यह निबंध सिर्फ पचास शब्दों में लिखा जाना चाहिए।
This essay should be written in only fifty words.
(yah nibandh sirph pachaas shabdon men likhaa jaanaa chaahie।)
अगर मुझे वह शब्द याद होता, तो मैं तुम्हें बता देता।
If I remembered that word, I would have told you.
(agar mujhe vah shabd yaad hotaa, to main tumhen bataa detaa।)
बच्चे रोज़ दस नए शब्द सीखते हैं।
The children learn ten new words every day.
(bachche roz das nae shabd siikhte hain।)
इस कविता में हर शब्द बहुत सोच-समझकर चुना गया है।
In this poem, every word has been chosen very thoughtfully.
(is kavitaa men har shabd bahut soch-samajhkar chunaa gayaa hai।)
उसने गुस्से में ऐसे शब्द कह दिए जो उसे नहीं कहने चाहिए थे।
In anger she said such words that she shouldn't have said.
(usne gusse men aise shabd kah die jo use nahiin kahne chaahie the।)
क्या तुम इस शब्द का इस्तेमाल एक वाक्य में करके दिखाओगे?
Will you use this word in a sentence to show me?
(kyaa tum is shabd kaa istemaal ek vaaky men karke dikhaaoge?)
उसने अपनी बात एक शब्द में कह दी।
He said what he meant in just one word.
(usne apnii baat ek shabd men kah dii।)
Sense
2
:
sound, noise (literary/philosophical sense)
noun, masculine This older sense of शब्द (shabd) as 'sound' survives mainly in classical/philosophical registers (e.g. Sanskrit-derived discussions of sound as a sense-object) and in some fixed compounds; in ordinary conversation आवाज़ (aavaaz) is what people actually say for 'sound' or 'noise.'
Synonyms: आवाज़ (aavaaz, everyday word for sound/noise), ध्वनि (dhvani, more formal/technical)
Frequency: literary
Cultural Note: In Indian philosophy, शब्द (shabd) is one of the five sense-objects (alongside sight, touch, taste, smell) tied to the ear -- you might encounter this in a yoga or Ayurveda class rather than in daily chat.
Sample Sentences:
शब्द आकाश तत्व का गुण माना जाता है।
Sound is considered the quality of the element of ether.
(shabd aakaash tatv kaa gun maanaa jaataa hai।)
कान शब्द को ग्रहण करने की इंद्रिय है।
The ear is the sense organ that receives sound.
(kaan shabd ko grahan karne kii indriy hai।)
योग शास्त्र में शब्द को पाँच विषयों में से एक कहा गया है।
In the science of yoga, sound is said to be one of the five sense-objects.
(yog shaastr men shabd ko paanch vishyon men se ek kahaa gayaa hai।)
साधक ध्यान में शब्द से परे जाने का प्रयास करता है।
The practitioner attempts, in meditation, to go beyond sound.
(saadhak dhyaan men shabd se pare jaane kaa prayaas kartaa hai।)
यदि इंद्रियाँ शांत न होतीं, तो शब्द भी मन को विचलित न करता।
If the senses were not calm, sound too would not disturb the mind.
(yadi indriyaan shaant n hotiin, to shabd bhii man ko vichlit n kartaa।)
शब्द, स्पर्श, रूप, रस और गंध -- ये पाँच तन्मात्राएँ कहलाती हैं।
Sound, touch, form, taste, and smell -- these are called the five subtle sense-essences.
(shabd, sparsh, roop, ras aur gandh -- ye paanch tanmaatraaen kahlaatii hain।)
आयुर्वेद में शब्द को आकाश महाभूत से उत्पन्न बताया गया है।
In Ayurveda, sound is described as arising from the great element of ether.
(aayurved men shabd ko aakaash mahaabhoot se utpann bataayaa gayaa hai।)
गहरी समाधि में शब्द का अनुभव भी शांत हो जाता है।
In deep meditative absorption, even the experience of sound becomes still.
(gahrii samaadhi men shabd kaa anubhav bhii shaant ho jaataa hai।)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m.direct):
शब्द
(shabd)
(sg.m.oblique):
शब्द
(shabd)
(pl.m.direct):
शब्द
(shabd)
(pl.m.oblique):
शब्दों
(shabdon)