9 Tips To Improve Your Hindi Vocabulary – MostUsedWords

Hindi is the lingua franca of the Hindi belt and to a lesser extent other parts of India (usually in a simplified or pidginized variety such as Bazaar Hindustani or Haflong Hindi). Hindi, or more specifically Modern Standard, is a language spoken in India. Hindi is an Indo-Aryan language that is mostly spoken in India. Outside of India, several other languages are officially known as “Hindi,” but they do not belong to the Standard Hindi language mentioned here and instead are descended from other dialects, such as Awadhi and Bhojpuri. Fiji Hindi, which is the official language of Fiji, and Caribbean Hindustani, which is spoken in Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, and Suriname, are two examples. Apart from the script and formal vocabulary, standard Hindi is mutually intelligible with Standard Urdu, another recognized register of Hindustani as both share a common colloquial base. The terms “Hindi” and “Hindu” trace back to Old Persian which derived these names from the Sanskrit name Sindhu, referring to the river Indus. The Greek cognates of the same terms are “Indus” (for the river) and “India” (for the land of the river). The word Hindi was initially used to refer to people who lived in the Indo-Gangetic Plain.  It was derived from the Classical Persian word Hind (Iranian Persian pronunciation: Hendi), which means “heart.” “Hind-related or belonging to Hind (India). ” Amir Khusrow, for example, used the word Hindav or Hindu (from Persian: “of or belonging to the Hindu/Indian people”) in his poetry.

1. Listen to as many authentic audio resources as you can find. 

Listening to Hindi is a great way for not only learning the rhythm of the language but also to pick new words and phrases from! However, I suggest you actually see someone speak in order to pick up on different words, expressions,  phrases, honorifics and slangs used, besides picking up visual cues and body language. Body language and facial expressions are as important as memorising your Hindi vocabulary when learning a new language. To expand your vocabulary significantly, the best way is to catch Hindi expressions and phrases in context, not just words when someone is conversing with you or you hear people talk to each other. 

2. Improve your Hindi vocabulary by watching online video blogs, tutorials and YouTube videos in Hindi about topics that interest you.

Don’t fall for ‘Indian’ videos; India is a motherland of more than 22 different languages. Look specifically for Hindi videos. 

3. Read relevant, authentic, error-free Hindi literature

That could range from newspapers to children’s books and magazines!

4. Watch Indian TV via satellite or online libraries.

Look for relevant TV relays apt for your learning level and speed to grasp better.

5. Watch Bollywood movies. 

Not only will you enjoy watching but and learn about the Indian culture, you will also practice your Hindi through listening to dialogues. Try the shadowing technique to further your learning. 

6. Converse using newly acquired words in Hindi with Conversation Partners, with yourself in the mirror, your pet, your plants

Even though improving your listening skills is great for a start, it is just not enough for your conversation skills. To Improve your conversation, you need a vast vocabulary and practical practice of an actual conversation. Find someone who speaks Hindi and who wants to learn to speak English, with each of you spending time talking exclusively in each language. Also, there are various ways you can get in touch with a potential conversation partner. First, and but obvious; to meet up with a language partner in person. If there’s no one you can meet in person,  then look for websites, such as Conversation Exchange, Italki, My Language Exchange, that can pair you up with a native Hindi speaker.

7. There are also a number of apps and websites that would let you chat with people from knowing Hindi. And while the exchange is in writing(not ideal for practising speaking), there’s still scope for improving your vocabulary. It could serve as an intermediate solution for learning while still leaving you time to order your thoughts. You could try Open Language Exchange, Scrabbin, Tandem (app), HelloTalk (app) and many more.

8. Immerse Yourself in Hindi Language and Culture

The best possible way of learning a language, undoubtedly, is through immersion. Travel to India to learn better. This means that in that time you will be speaking nothing but Hindi, hearing nothing but Hindi and reading nothing but the Hindi script. Stay at the local BnB or a studio apartment, and get forced to interact with locals, going to the market, or taking on a small job for a few weeks. Choose to stay in India in a place where Hindi is used in day to day conversations( While Hindi is the official language of India for many purposes, it is only one of many;) thus I recommend you stay in the Hindi belt of northern India, in one of the following states:

Delhi, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh. Places, such as Mumbai, have been heavily influenced by the Marathi language, so unless you have an internship at a Bollywood studio, you should stick to the areas above. 

9. Live as an au-pair in India

To stay longer, become an au-pair. As an au-pair, live with a Hindi-speaking family and help around the house (often used as nannies). In exchange, they will speak Hindi to you and you will live in India with free room and board. You will generally have a little bit of pocket money and some au-pair agencies will also offer Hindi language classes to help you with your possessive pronouns and subjunctive.

Hindi has been described as a standardized and Sanskritised register of the Hindustani language, which itself is based primarily on the Khariboli dialect of Delhi and neighbouring areas of Northern India. Hindi, written in the Devanagari script, is one of the two official languages of the Indian government, along with English. It is an official language in nine states and three union territories, as well as a secondary official language in three other states. Hindi is also one of the Republic of India’s 22 scheduled languages.   As a linguistic variety, Hindi is the fourth most-spoken first language in the world, after Mandarin, Spanish and English. Hindi, along with Urdu as Hindustani, is the world’s third most spoken language, behind only Mandarin and English.

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