मूर्ख (moorkh)
adjective/noun
A common word for 'foolish/fool', used as both an adjective and a noun for a person; it can sting as an insult so tone matters.
Sense
1
:
foolish, stupid
adjective
Synonyms: बेवकूफ़ (bevkoof), बुद्धू (buddhoo, colloquial), नासमझ (naasmajh, less harsh), गधा (gadhaa, informal insult)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: You will hear this word a lot in fables and moral stories (पंचतंत्र panchtantr style tales), where the मूर्ख (moorkh) character learns a lesson the hard way -- it has a slightly bookish, moralizing flavor even in speech, unlike the more casual बेवकूफ़ (bevkoof).
Common Mistakes: 1) मूर्ख (moorkh) is a fairly direct, somewhat harsh word for 'foolish' -- in polite conversation about a mistake, native speakers often soften with नासमझ (naasmajh) or just describe the action as गलत (galat, wrong) rather than calling the person मूर्ख (moorkh) to their face. 2) Learners sometimes use it lightly the way English speakers use 'silly', but in Hindi it lands as a stronger insult than 'silly' -- context and tone matter a lot.
Sample Sentences:
वह इतना मूर्ख नहीं है जितना तुम समझते हो।
He isn't as foolish as you think.
(vah itnaa moorkh nahiin hai jitnaa tum samajhte ho।)
यह मूर्ख फैसला था जिसने सारी योजना बिगाड़ दी।
That was a foolish decision which ruined the whole plan.
(yah moorkh phaislaa thaa jisne saarii yojnaa bigaad dii।)
मूर्ख मत बनो, थोड़ा सोच-समझकर काम करो।
Don't be foolish, work with a little thought and care.
(moorkh mat bano, thodaa soch-samajhkar kaam karo।)
पंचतंत्र की इस कथा में राजा मूर्ख सलाहकारों की बातों में आ जाता है।
In this Panchatantra tale, the king falls for the words of foolish advisors.
(panchtantr kii is kathaa men raajaa moorkh salaahkaaron kii baaton men aa jaataa hai।)
अगर मैं इतना मूर्ख न होता तो अपनी सारी जमा-पूंजी न गँवाता।
If I hadn't been so foolish, I wouldn't have lost all my savings.
(agar main itnaa moorkh n hotaa to apnii saarii jamaa-poonjii n ganvaataa।)
क्या तुम्हें लगता है कि उसकी योजना मूर्खतापूर्ण नहीं बल्कि सिर्फ मूर्ख कहलाने लायक थोड़ी जल्दबाज़ी थी?
Do you think his plan wasn't foolish, just a bit of hastiness worthy of being called foolish?
(kyaa tumhen lagtaa hai ki uskii yojnaa moorkhtaapoorn nahiin balki sirph moorkh kahlaane laayak thodii jaldbaazii thii?)
गुरुजी ने कहा कि जो व्यक्ति क्रोध में निर्णय ले, वह मूर्ख कहलाता है।
The teacher said that a person who makes decisions in anger is called foolish.
(gurujii ne kahaa ki jo vyakti krodh men nirnay le, vah moorkh kahlaataa hai।)
उसकी मूर्ख हरकतों से पूरा परिवार परेशान रहता है।
The whole family is troubled by his foolish antics.
(uskii moorkh harakton se pooraa parivaar pareshaan rahtaa hai।)
यह मत सोचो कि सरल सवाल पूछना मूर्ख होने की निशानी है।
Don't think that asking simple questions is a sign of being foolish.
(yah mat socho ki saral savaal poochhnaa moorkh hone kii nishaanii hai।)
कहानी के अंत तक वह मूर्ख किसान अपनी गलती समझ चुका था।
By the end of the story, that foolish farmer had already realized his mistake.
(kahaanii ke ant tak vah moorkh kisaan apnii galtii samajh chukaa thaa।)
Sense
2
:
a fool, foolish person
noun, masculine/feminine
Synonyms: बेवकूफ़ (bevkoof), बुद्धू (buddhoo, colloquial), गधा (gadhaa, informal insult), अहमक़ (ahmaq, literary)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: Calling someone मूर्ख (moorkh) rather than बेवकूफ़ (bevkoof) can feel like it's echoing a schoolteacher or a storyteller scolding a character -- it carries a bit of that formal, cautionary weight even in casual use.
Common Mistakes: 1) As a direct address ("you fool!"), मूर्ख (moorkh) can sound almost theatrical or old-fashioned compared to बेवकूफ़ (bevkoof), which is what most people actually say in a heated moment today.
Sample Sentences:
वह सचमुच एक मूर्ख है।
He is truly a fool.
(vah sachmuch ek moorkh hai।)
मूर्खों की कोई कमी नहीं है इस दुनिया में।
There is no shortage of fools in this world.
(moorkhon kii koii kamii nahiin hai is duniyaa men।)
उस मूर्ख ने अपना सारा पैसा जुए में उड़ा दिया।
That fool blew all his money on gambling.
(us moorkh ne apnaa saaraa paisaa jue men udaa diyaa।)
मूर्ख वही मानी जाती है जो बार-बार एक ही गलती करती है।
She's considered a fool who makes the same mistake again and again.
(moorkh vahii maanii jaatii hai jo baar-baar ek hii galtii kartii hai।)
अरे मूर्ख, यह क्या कर डाला तूने!
Hey fool, what have you done!
(are moorkh, yah kyaa kar daalaa toone!)
गुरुजी ने कहा, 'मूर्ख वही है जो ज्ञान होते हुए भी अभिमान करता है।'
The teacher said, 'A fool is one who is arrogant even while possessing knowledge.'
(gurujii ne kahaa, 'moorkh vahii hai jo gyaan hote hue bhii abhimaan kartaa hai।')
यदि तुम इस समझौते पर हस्ताक्षर करते हो, तो तुम एक मूर्ख साबित होगे।
If you sign this agreement, you will prove to be a fool.
(yadi tum is samjhaute par hastaakshar karte ho, to tum ek moorkh saabit hoge।)
काश मैं उस मूर्ख की बातों में न आता।
I wish I hadn't fallen for that fool's words.
(kaash main us moorkh kii baaton men n aataa।)
कहानी में राजा एक मूर्ख निकला, जिसने अपने ही मंत्री की बातों पर भरोसा नहीं किया।
In the story, the king turned out to be a fool who did not trust his own minister's words.
(kahaanii men raajaa ek moorkh niklaa, jisne apne hii mantrii kii baaton par bharosaa nahiin kiyaa।)
क्या तुम मुझे मूर्ख समझते हो?
Do you think I am a fool?
(kyaa tum mujhe moorkh samajhte ho?)
मूर्खों की सभा में बुद्धिमान की बात भी अनसुनी रह जाती है।
In an assembly of fools, even a wise man's words go unheard.
(moorkhon kii sabhaa men buddhimaan kii baat bhii ansunii rah jaatii hai।)
Morphology
Adjective (invariant)
invariant:
मूर्ख
(moorkh)
Noun
(sg.m/f.direct):
मूर्ख
(moorkh)
(sg.m/f.oblique):
मूर्ख
(moorkh)
(pl.m/f.direct):
मूर्खें
(moorkhen)
(pl.m/f.oblique):
मूर्खों
(moorkhon)