लहसुन (lahsun)

noun A simple, single-sense kitchen-vocabulary word: 'garlic', the everyday cooking ingredient.
Sense 1 : garlic (the bulb/cloves used as a cooking ingredient)
noun, masculine
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: You'll hear अदरक-लहसुन का पेस्ट (adrak-lahsun kaa pest, 'ginger-garlic paste') constantly in Indian kitchens -- it's the flavor base for a huge share of everyday cooking, kept ready in the fridge in most households. Some communities and religious traditions (certain Jain and Brahmin households, for instance) avoid लहसुन (lahsun) along with प्याज़ (pyaaz, 'onion') for dietary/religious reasons, so you may hear food described as बिना लहसुन-प्याज़ के (binaa lahsun-pyaaz ke, 'without garlic-onion') on menus, especially in temple towns or at satvik restaurants.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes treat लहसुन (lahsun) as countable the way English treats 'a garlic clove' -- Hindi speakers usually just say लहसुन (lahsun) for the whole bulb or for garlic in general, and specify कली (kalii, 'clove') when they mean a single clove, as in लहसुन की कली (lahsun kii kalii, 'a clove of garlic'). 2) It is almost always paired with अदरक (adrak, 'ginger') in cooking talk -- अदरक-लहसुन (adrak-lahsun) is practically a fixed duo, so learners should get used to hearing/using the two together rather than लहसुन alone in recipe contexts.
Sample Sentences:
इस सब्ज़ी में लहसुन डालो, बहुत अच्छा स्वाद आएगा। Add garlic to this vegetable dish, it'll taste really good.
(is sabzii men lahsun daalo, bahut achchhaa svaad aaegaa।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Imperative -- Voice: Active
माँ रोज़ सुबह अदरक-लहसुन का पेस्ट बनाती हैं। Mom makes ginger-garlic paste every morning.
(maan roz subah adrak-lahsun kaa pest banaatii hain।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
फ्रिज में लहसुन रखा है, निकाल लो। There's garlic kept in the fridge, take it out.
(phrij men lahsun rakhaa hai, nikaal lo।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
यह भोजनालय बिना लहसुन-प्याज़ के खाना बनाता है। This eatery cooks food without garlic and onion.
(yah bhojnaalay binaa lahsun-pyaaz ke khaanaa banaataa hai।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
क्या तुमने बाज़ार से लहसुन खरीदा था? Did you buy garlic from the market?
(kyaa tumne baazaar se lahsun khariidaa thaa?)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
अगर लहसुन ज़्यादा होता तो सब्ज़ी और तीखी लगती। If there had been more garlic, the vegetable would have tasted spicier.
(agar lahsun zyaadaa hotaa to sabzii aur tiikhii lagtii।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Counterfactual -- Aspect: Habitual -- Voice: Active
दाल में लहसुन का तड़का लगाया जाता है। A garlic tempering is added to the lentils.
(daal men lahsun kaa tadkaa lagaayaa jaataa hai।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Passive
हमारे घर में जैन रिश्तेदार आते हैं तो लहसुन नहीं इस्तेमाल किया जाता। When our Jain relatives visit, garlic isn't used in our house.
(hamaare ghar men jain rishtedaar aate hain to lahsun nahiin istemaal kiyaa jaataa।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Passive
कृपया इसमें लहसुन न डालें, मुझे एलर्जी है। Please don't put garlic in this, I'm allergic.
(kripyaa ismen lahsun n daalen, mujhe elarjii hai।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Imperative -- Voice: Active
लहसुन छीलते-छीलते उसकी उंगलियों में बदबू आ गई। From peeling garlic for so long, her fingers started smelling.
(lahsun chhiilte-chhiilte uskii ungliyon men badboo aa gaii।)
Register: Casual -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m.direct): लहसुन (lahsun)
(sg.m.oblique): लहसुन (lahsun)
(pl.m.direct): लहसुन (lahsun)
(pl.m.oblique): लहसुनों (lahsunon)