मूली (moolii)
noun
A common root vegetable -- the white radish familiar from Indian kitchens, pickles, and the famous stuffed paratha (moolii).
Sense
1
:
radish (the vegetable)
noun, feminine
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: मूली (moolii) is best known to learners through मूली का पराठा (moolii kaa paraathaa, 'radish-stuffed flatbread'), a North Indian winter breakfast staple, and through मूली के पत्ते (moolii ke patte, 'radish greens'), which are cooked as a saag. Winters in Delhi-NCR markets bring stacks of long white मूली (moolii) alongside carrots and turnips.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes treat मूली (moolii) as masculine by default -- it is consistently feminine, so adjectives and verbs agreeing with it take feminine forms, e.g. मूली अच्छी है (moolii achchhii hai, 'the radish is good'), not अच्छा (achchhaa).
Sample Sentences:
सर्दियों में बाज़ार में ताज़ी मूली आ जाती है।
Fresh radishes arrive in the market in winter.
(sardiyon men baazaar men taazii moolii aa jaatii hai।)
माँ ने नाश्ते में मूली का पराठा बनाया।
Mom made radish-stuffed paratha for breakfast.
(maan ne naashte men moolii kaa paraathaa banaayaa।)
क्या तुम मूली के पत्तों की सब्ज़ी खाओगे?
Will you eat the radish-greens curry?
(kyaa tum moolii ke patton kii sabzii khaaoge?)
सलाद में मूली काटकर डालो।
Cut up some radish and add it to the salad.
(salaad men moolii kaatkar daalo।)
अगर बगीचे में जगह होती तो मैं मूली भी बोता।
If there were room in the garden, I would plant radishes too.
(agar bagiiche men jagah hotii to main moolii bhii botaa।)
मंडी में मूली बहुत सस्ती बिक रही थी।
Radishes were selling very cheap in the wholesale market.
(mandii men moolii bahut sastii bik rahii thii।)
खेत में मूली और गाजर साथ-साथ उगाई जाती हैं।
Radishes and carrots are grown together in the field.
(khet men moolii aur gaajar saath-saath ugaaii jaatii hain।)
दुकानदार ने कहा कि शायद कल तक मूली खत्म हो जाए।
The shopkeeper said the radishes might run out by tomorrow.
(dukaandaar ne kahaa ki shaayad kal tak moolii khatm ho jaae।)
इस मौसम की मूली दूसरी सब्ज़ियों से ज़्यादा मीठी होती है।
Radishes of this season are sweeter than other vegetables.
(is mausam kii moolii doosrii sabziyon se zyaadaa miithii hotii hai।)
कृपया गाजर के साथ थोड़ी मूली भी पैक कर दीजिए।
Please pack a little radish along with the carrots as well.
(kripyaa gaajar ke saath thodii moolii bhii paik kar diijie।)
उसने मूली को पतले-पतले टुकड़ों में काटा।
She cut the radish into thin slices.
(usne moolii ko patle-patle tukdon men kaataa।)
Sense
2
:
used idiomatically for something worthless or given away too easily
noun, feminine Appears in comparative idioms rather than as a standalone label for an object -- always in a phrase comparing something to मूली (moolii) to stress how cheap, plentiful, or easily obtained it is.
Frequency: low
Cultural Note: Because मूली (moolii) is cheap and sold in heavy bunches in Indian vegetable markets, it became shorthand in idiom for things that are plentiful and low-value -- similar to how English might say something is 'a dime a dozen.'
Common Mistakes: 1) This sense only surfaces inside a fixed comparison (like मूली की तरह बिकना (moolii kii tarah biknaa, 'to sell like radishes' -- i.e. dirt cheap or in huge quantity)); learners shouldn't use मूली (moolii) alone to mean 'worthless thing' outside such a comparison.
Sample Sentences:
क्या जान इतनी मूली है कि कोई भी उठाकर फेंक दे?
Is a life so worthless that anyone can just pick it up and throw it away?
(kyaa jaan itnii moolii hai ki koii bhii uthaakar phenk de?)
यहाँ नौकरियाँ मूली की तरह बँट रही थीं, जिसे चाहो ले लो।
Jobs were being handed out here like they were dirt cheap, take whichever you wanted.
(yahaan naukriyaan moolii kii tarah bant rahii thiin, jise chaaho le lo।)
अगर टिकट मूली के भाव मिलते तो हर कोई खरीद लेता।
If tickets were going for next to nothing, everyone would have bought them.
(agar tikat moolii ke bhaav milte to har koii khariid letaa।)
उसने अपनी इज्जत मूली के भाव बेच दी।
He sold his own honor for next to nothing.
(usne apnii ijjat moolii ke bhaav bech dii।)
मेहनत की कमाई को मूली समझकर मत उड़ाओ।
Don't blow through your hard-earned money as if it were worth nothing.
(mehnat kii kamaaii ko moolii samajhkar mat udaao।)
क्या समझ रखा है, यह ज़मीन मूली है जो इतनी सस्ती में दे दूँ?
What do you take this for, is this land worthless that I'd give it away so cheap?
(kyaa samajh rakhaa hai, yah zamiin moolii hai jo itnii sastii men de doon?)
इस मंडी में इज्जतें मूली की तरह बिकती हैं, इसीलिए मैं यहाँ से जाना चाहता हूँ।
In this marketplace reputations get sold like they're dirt cheap, that's why I want to leave.
(is mandii men ijjten moolii kii tarah biktii hain, isiilie main yahaan se jaanaa chaahtaa hoon।)
सत्ता के लालच में कई नेता अपना ज़मीर मूली के भाव बेच देते हैं।
In greed for power, many leaders sell their conscience for next to nothing.
(sattaa ke laalach men kaii netaa apnaa zamiir moolii ke bhaav bech dete hain।)
क्या यहाँ इंसानों की जान मूली-गाजर है जो इतनी आसानी से जाती है?
Are human lives worth nothing here, that they're lost so easily?
(kyaa yahaan insaanon kii jaan moolii-gaajar hai jo itnii aasaanii se jaatii hai?)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.f.direct):
मूली
(moolii)
(sg.f.oblique):
मूली
(moolii)
(pl.f.direct):
मूलियाँ
(mooliyaan)
(pl.f.oblique):
मूलियों
(mooliyon)