वचन (vachan)
noun
Primarily a formal noun meaning 'promise, word (given)' -- as in giving one's word -- and, in a completely separate grammatical sense, the technical term for 'number' (singular/plural) in Hindi grammar.
Sense
1
:
a solemn promise or word given
noun, masculine
Synonyms: वादा (vaadaa), प्रतिज्ञा (pratigyaa, formal)
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: This word carries real weight -- it shows up in stories about kings and sages keeping their वचन (vachan) even at great cost, and in phrases like राम का वचन (raam kaa vachan, 'Ram's word') where breaking one's word is treated as a moral failure. In daily life you'll hear it most in slightly formal or emotional contexts -- a parent extracting a serious promise from a child, or a hero in a film swearing one.
Common Mistakes: 1) वचन (vachan) sounds more solemn and formal than वादा (vaadaa) -- it's used for weighty commitments (a vow to a parent, a promise in a story or scripture), not casual promises like 'I'll call you back.' For everyday promises, वादा (vaadaa) is the natural choice. 2) The common phrase is वचन देना (vachan denaa, 'to give one's word') or वचन तोड़ना (vachan todnaa, 'to break one's word') -- learners sometimes reach for करना (karnaa) instead of देना (denaa) here.
Sample Sentences:
मुझे अपना वचन याद है।
I remember my promise.
(mujhe apnaa vachan yaad hai।)
उसने अपना वचन तोड़ दिया।
He broke his word.
(usne apnaa vachan tod diyaa।)
राजा हर हाल में अपना वचन निभाता था।
The king used to keep his word no matter what.
(raajaa har haal men apnaa vachan nibhaataa thaa।)
मुझे वचन दो कि तुम फिर कभी झूठ नहीं बोलोगे।
Give me your word that you will never lie again.
(mujhe vachan do ki tum phir kabhii jhooth nahiin bologe।)
अगर उसने वचन न दिया होता, तो हम उस पर भरोसा न करते।
If he had not given his word, we would not have trusted him.
(agar usne vachan n diyaa hotaa, to ham us par bharosaa n karte।)
राम का वचन कभी झूठा नहीं होता।
Ram's word is never false.
(raam kaa vachan kabhii jhoothaa nahiin hotaa।)
क्या तुम मुझे वचन देते हो कि हमेशा साथ रहोगे?
Do you give me your word that you will stay with me forever?
(kyaa tum mujhe vachan dete ho ki hameshaa saath rahoge?)
ऋषि ने अपने वचन की रक्षा के लिए अपना जीवन तक दे दिया।
The sage even gave his life to protect his word.
(rishi ne apne vachan kii rakshaa ke lie apnaa jiivan tak de diyaa।)
वचन दिया गया था कि किसी को नुकसान नहीं पहुँचाया जाएगा।
A promise had been given that no one would be harmed.
(vachan diyaa gayaa thaa ki kisii ko nuksaan nahiin pahunchaayaa jaaegaa।)
पिताजी ने मुझसे वचन लिया कि मैं पढ़ाई नहीं छोड़ूँगा।
My father made me promise that I would not give up my studies.
(pitaajii ne mujhse vachan liyaa ki main padhaaii nahiin chhodoongaa।)
Sense
2
:
grammatical number (singular/plural)
noun, masculine Used almost exclusively in the fixed grammatical terms एकवचन (ekavchan, 'singular') and बहुवचन (bahuvchan, 'plural').
Frequency: low
Cultural Note: You'll meet this sense in Hindi grammar class rather than in conversation -- it's the same वचन (vachan) as 'word/promise,' extended to mean the 'form' a noun takes, singular or plural. Think of it as 'how the word is spoken' -- one form or many.
Sample Sentences:
हिंदी में वचन दो प्रकार के होते हैं -- एकवचन और बहुवचन।
In Hindi, grammatical number is of two kinds -- singular and plural.
(hindii men vachan do prakaar ke hote hain -- ekavchan aur bahuvchan।)
इस वाक्य में क्रिया का वचन संज्ञा के अनुसार बदलता है।
In this sentence, the verb's number changes according to the noun.
(is vaaky men kriyaa kaa vachan sangyaa ke anusaar badaltaa hai।)
अध्यापिका ने पूछा कि इस शब्द का वचन क्या है।
The teacher asked what the grammatical number of this word is.
(adhyaapikaa ne poochhaa ki is shabd kaa vachan kyaa hai।)
कृपया इस संज्ञा का वचन बताइए।
Please tell me the grammatical number of this noun.
(kripyaa is sangyaa kaa vachan bataaie।)
यदि वचन बदल जाए, तो क्रिया का रूप भी बदल जाता है।
If the grammatical number changes, the form of the verb also changes.
(yadi vachan badal jaae, to kriyaa kaa roop bhii badal jaataa hai।)
अगर मैं वचन का नियम पहले से जानता, तो यह प्रश्न आसानी से हल कर लेता।
If I had known the rule of grammatical number beforehand, I would have solved this question easily.
(agar main vachan kaa niyam pahle se jaantaa, to yah prashn aasaanii se hal kar letaa।)
व्याकरण की किताब में वचन के नियम स्पष्ट रूप से समझाए गए हैं।
In the grammar book, the rules of grammatical number have been clearly explained.
(vyaakran kii kitaab men vachan ke niyam spasht roop se samjhaae gae hain।)
संज्ञा और सर्वनाम दोनों में वचन का भेद पाया जाता है।
The distinction of grammatical number is found in both nouns and pronouns.
(sangyaa aur sarvnaam donon men vachan kaa bhed paayaa jaataa hai।)
परीक्षा में एक प्रश्न वचन पहचानने से संबंधित था।
In the exam, one question was related to identifying grammatical number.
(pariikshaa men ek prashn vachan pahchaanne se sambandhit thaa।)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m.direct):
वचन
(vachan)
(sg.m.oblique):
वचन
(vachan)
(pl.m.direct):
वचन
(vachan)
(pl.m.oblique):
वचनों
(vachnon)