Pronunciation guide: Devanagari, IAST and endings
Vowels
| अ | a | a in “about” |
| आ | ā | a in “father” (long) |
| इ | i | i in “sit” |
| ई | ī | ee in “see” (long) |
| उ | u | u in “put” |
| ऊ | ū | oo in “food” (long) |
| ऋ | ṛ | vowel r, like “ri” in “rich” (short) |
| ॠ | ṝ | the same, held longer |
| ऌ | ḷ | vowel l, like “le” in “table” |
| ए | e | ay in “day” (always long) |
| ऐ | ai | ai in “aisle” |
| ओ | o | o in “go” (always long) |
| औ | au | ow in “now” |
Vowel signs (mātrās) after a consonant: का kā · कि ki · की kī · कु ku · कू kū · कृ kṛ · के ke · कै kai · को ko · कौ kau. A consonant with no sign has a built-in short a (क = ka).
Consonants
Throat (velar)
| क | k | k in “skin” |
| ख | kh | k with a puff, “blockhead” |
| ग | g | g in “go” |
| घ | gh | gh in “doghouse” |
| ङ | ṅ | ng in “sing” |
Palate
| च | c | ch in “church” |
| छ | ch | ch with a puff, “staunch heart” |
| ज | j | j in “jam” |
| झ | jh | dgeh in “hedgehog” |
| ञ | ñ | ny in “canyon” |
Tongue curled back (retroflex)
| ट | ṭ | t with the tongue tip curled back |
| ठ | ṭh | the same with a puff |
| ड | ḍ | d, tongue curled back |
| ढ | ḍh | the same with a puff |
| ण | ṇ | n, tongue curled back |
Teeth (dental)
| त | t | t with the tongue on the teeth (French t) |
| थ | th | t with a puff, “at home” (never “thin”) |
| द | d | d on the teeth |
| ध | dh | dh in “adhere” |
| न | n | n in “nut” |
Lips
| प | p | p in “spin” |
| फ | ph | p with a puff, “uphill” (never “f”) |
| ब | b | b in “bat” |
| भ | bh | bh in “abhor” |
| म | m | m in “mat” |
Others
| य | y | y in “yes” |
| र | r | a light tapped r |
| ल | l | l in “love” |
| व | v | between v and w |
| श | ś | sh in “shine” |
| ष | ṣ | sh with the tongue curled back |
| स | s | s in “sun” |
| ह | h | h in “hand” |
An h after a consonant (kh, gh, th, dh, ph, bh…) means a puff of breath; it is never the English “th”, “ph” or “sh” sound.
Special signs
| कं | ṃ | anusvāra: a nasal hum, sounding like the nasal of the next consonant (saṃskṛta) |
| कः | ḥ | visarga: a soft breath echoing the vowel before it (devaḥ ≈ “deva-ha”) |
| क् | — | virāma: removes the built-in a (क ka → क् k) |
| कँ | m̐ | candrabindu: the vowel is said through the nose |
| कऽ | ’ | avagraha: an a dropped after e or o (so ’ham = so aham) |
What the marks in IAST mean
- Line on top (ā ī ū ṝ): a long vowel, held about twice as long.
- Dot under r, l (ṛ ṝ ḷ): r or l used as a vowel.
- Dot under t, d, n, s (ṭ ḍ ṇ ṣ): tongue tip curled back (retroflex).
- ṃ: anusvāra (nasal hum) · ḥ: visarga (echoing breath).
- ṅ: ng as in “sing” · ñ: ny as in “canyon” · ś: sh as in “shine”.
Long and short syllables, and stress
A syllable is heavy if its vowel is long (ā ī ū ṝ e ai o au), or it is followed by two consonants, or it ends in ṃ or ḥ; otherwise it is light. Usual modern stress (as in Latin): stress the second-last syllable if it is heavy (saṃ·skṛ·ta: skṛ is light, so the stress falls on the heavy saṃ; ma·hā·bhā·ra·ta; rā·mā·ya·ṇa); if not, go back to the third-last, then the fourth-last. Old Vedic pitch accents are not shown.
Common endings (inflections)
Nouns: deva (masculine, “god”)
| devaḥ | the god (subject) | devāḥ | the gods |
| devam | the god (object) | devān | the gods (object) |
| devena | by / with the god | devaiḥ | by the gods |
| devāya | to / for the god | devebhyaḥ | to / for the gods |
| devāt | from the god | devebhyaḥ | from the gods |
| devasya | of the god | devānām | of the gods |
| deve | in / on the god | deveṣu | in the gods |
| he deva | O god! | he devāḥ | O gods! |
Verbs: bhū “to be, become”, present tense
| bhavati | he / she / it is | bhavanti | they are |
| bhavasi | you are (one person) | bhavatha | you are (several) |
| bhavāmi | I am | bhavāmaḥ | we are |
Dictionary headwords are stems (deva, bhū); in texts the words carry these endings, and sounds join across word boundaries (sandhi).
Sanskrit Dictionary
Dictionary scope: अ a, आ ā, ब b, भ bh, इ i, ई ī, उ u, ऊ ū, ऋ ṛ, ॠ ṝ, ऌ ḷ, ए e, ऐ ai, ओ o, औ au, क k, ख kh, ग g, घ gh, ङ ṅ, च c, छ ch, ज j, झ jh, ञ ñ, ट ṭ, ठ ṭh, ड ḍ, ढ ḍh, ण ṇ, त t, थ th, द d, ध dh, न n, प p, फ ph, म m, य y, र r, ल l, व v, श ś, ष ṣ, स s and ह h · 114,538 entries
Every headword in Monier Williams’ Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1872), in Sanskrit alphabetical order. Jump by letter above, use the page tabs, or keep scrolling — more words load as you go.
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55,387 headwords · page 19 of 554
- अनास्वादित an-āsvāditauntasted.
- अनाहत an-āhataunbeaten, unwounded, intact; new and unbleached (as cloth); produced otherwise than by…
- अनाहार an-āhāraabstinence, not taking food; non-seizure; non-production; (as, ā, am), one who abstains…
- अनाहारिन् an-āhārinnot taking (food); fasting.
- अनाहार्य an-āhāryanot to be seized or taken, not producible; not to be eaten.
- अनाहिताग्नि an-āhitāgnia householder who has neglected to perform the Agnyādhāna.
- अनाहुति an-āhutinon-sacrificing; a sacrifice unworthy of its name.
- अनाहूत an-āhūtauncalled, uninvited.
- अनाह्लाद an-āhlādaabsence of joy; (as, ā, am), gloomy, not cheerful.
- अनाह्लादित an-āhlāditanot exhilarated.
- अनिःशस्त a-niḥśastaunpraised.
- अनिकामतस् a-nikāmatasinvoluntarily, unintentionally.
- अनिकेत a-niketaor a-niketana, as, ā, am, houseless.
- अनिक्षिप्तधूर a-nikṣipta-dhūraname of a Bodhisattva or deified Buddhist saint.
- अनिक्षु an-ikṣunot (true) sugarcane; a sort of long grass or reed, Saccharum Spontaneum. (An may here…
- अनिगीर्ण a-nigīrṇanot swallowed, not supplied (as an ellipsis).
- अनिग्रह a-nigrahaunrestrained; (as), m. non-restraint; non-refutation; not owning one's self refuted.
- अनिघातेषु a-nighāteṣuname of a man (having arrows that strike no one).
- अनिङ्ग्य an-iṅgyanot divisible; a word not divisible.
- अनिच्छ an-icchaor an-icchaka, as, ā, am, or an-icchat, an, antī or atī, at, or an-icchu, us, us, u, or…
- अनिच्छा an-icchāabsence of wish or design, indifference.
- अनिजक a-nijakanot one's own, belonging to another.
- अनित anita(etym. doubtful), destitute. of.
- अनित्य a-nityanot everlasting, transient; occasional, incidental; irregular, unusual; unstable…
- अनिदान a-nidānacauseless, groundless.
- अनिद्र a-nidrasleepless, awake; (ā), f. sleeplessness.
- अनिद्रित a-nidritanot asleep, awake.
- अनिधृष्ट a-nidhṛṣṭaunchecked, unsubdued.
- अनिध्म an-idhmahaving or requiring no fuel.
- अनिन an-inahaving no master.
- अनिन्दित a-ninditairreproachable, not despised, pious, virtuous, free.
- अनिन्द्य a-nindyaor a-nindanīya, as, ā, am, unblamable, faultless.
- अनिन्द्र an-indradeprived of Indra; dispensing with or disregarding Indra.
- अनिन्द्रिय an-indriyathat which is not the senses, the soul, the reason.
- अनिपद्यमान a-nipadyamānanot falling down (to sleep), untiring.
- अनिपात a-nipāta(not a fall), continuance of life.
- अनिपुण a-nipuṇaunskilled, not clever or conversant.
- अनिबद्ध a-nibaddhanot tied down, not bound, unattached, incoherent, unconnected.
- अनिबाध a-nibādhaunobstructed, unlimited; (as), m. liberty.
- अनिभृत a-nibhṛtanot private, not reserved, immodest, bold, public.
- अनिभृष्ट a-nibhṛṣṭaunabated; unimpaired; undefeated.
- अनिभ्य an-ibhyanot wealthy.
- अनिमन् animana mote. See aṇiman.
- अनिमन्त्रित a-nimantritauninvited.
- अनिमान a-nimānaunbounded, immense.
- अनिमित्त a-nimittahaving no adequate occasion, causeless, groundless; (am), n. absence of an adequate cause…
- अनिमिष् a-nimiṣabsence of winking (only used in acc. and inst. cases).
- अनिमिष a-nimiṣaor a-nimeṣa, as, ā, am, not winking, looking steadily, vigilant; open as eyes or flowers…
- अनिमिषीय animiṣīyarelating to those who do not wink (i.e. to the gods).
- अनियत a-niyatanot regulated, uncontrolled, not fixed, uncertain, unrestricted, irregular, casual.
- अनियम a-niyamaabsence of control or rule or fixed order or obligation, unsettledness; indecorous or…
- अनियमित a-niyamitahaving no rule or law; irregular.
- अनियुक्त a-niyuktanot appointed, not authoritative; (as), m. an assessor at a court who has not been…
- अनियोगिन् a-niyoginnot attached or clinging to.
- अनिर an-iradestitute of food (or vigour ?), or of a sacrificial offering; (ā), f. want of food…
- अनिराकरिष्णु a-nirākariṣṇunot obstructive, not censorious.
- अनिराकृत a-nirākṛtaunobstructed.
- अनिरुक्त a-niruktaunuttered, not articulated, not clearly explained, unspeakable, not plain, vague.
- अनिरुद्ध a-niruddhaunobstructed, ungovernable, self-willed; (as), m. a spy, a secret emissary (?); the son…
- अनिरूपित a-nirūpitanot determined, undefined.
- अनिर्जित a-nirjitaunconquered, unvanquished.
- अनिर्णय a-nirṇayauncertainty, want of decision.
- अनिर्णीत a-nirṇītaunascertained, undetermined.
- अनिर्णेय a-nirṇeyanot to be decided.
- अनिर्दश a-nirdaśaor a-nir-daśāha (˚śaah˚), as, ā, am, within the ten days of impurity after childbirth or…
- अनिर्दिष्ट a-nirdiṣṭaunexplained, undefined.
- अनिर्देश a-nirdeśaabsence or unsatisfactoriness of rule or direction.
- अनिर्देश्य a-nir-deśyaor a-nirdiśya, as, ā, am, undefinable, inexplicable, incomparable.
- अनिर्धारित a-nirdhāritaundetermined, unascertained, undefined.
- अनिर्धार्य a-nirdhāryaundeterminable, not to be agreed upon.
- अनिर्भर a-nirbharalittle, slight, light.
- अनिर्भेद a-nirbheda(the act of not blurting out), not revealing.
- अनिर्मल a-nirmaladirty, foul, turbid.
- अनिर्माल्या a-nirmālyāa plant (Mendicago Esculenta, Rox).
- अनिर्लोचित a-nirlocitanot carefully looked at, not considered.
- अनिर्वचनीय a-nirvacanīyaor a-nirvācya, as, ā, am, unutterable, indescribable; improper to be mentioned.
- अनिर्वर्त्यमान a-nirvartyamānanot being brought to a close.
- अनिर्वाण a-nirvāṇaunextinguished.
- अनिर्वाह a-nirvāhanon-accomplishment, non-completion; inconclusiveness; insufficiency of income, the state…
- अनिर्वाह्य a-nirvāhyadifficult to be managed.
- अनिर्विण्ण a-nirviṇṇanot downcast.
- अनिर्विद् a-nirvidfree from causes of depression.
- अनिर्वेद a-nirvedanon-depression, self-reliance.
- अनिर्वृत a-nirvṛtaor a-nirvṛtta, as, ā, am, unaccomplished, unfulfilled; discontented; unhappy, ill at…
- अनिर्वृति a-nirvṛtior a-nirvṛtti, is, f. incompleteness, discontent, misery.
- अनिर्वेश a-nirveśadestitute of employment, wretched.
- अनिल anilaair or wind, considered also as a deity; one of the subordinate deities, forty-nine of…
- अनिलम्भसमाधि a-nilambha-samādhi(i.e. unpropped meditation), name of a peculiar kind of meditation among Buddhists.
- अनिलयन a-nilayanahaving no (fixed) home.
- अनिलोचित a-nilocitaSee anirlocita.
- अनिलोडित a-niloḍitainexperienced.
- अनिवर्तन a-nivartananot turning away, firm, steadfast; improper to be abandoned, right.
- अनिवर्तिन् a-nivartinnot turning back, brave, not returning.
- अनिवारित a-nivāritaunchecked, unimpeded, unopposed, unforbidden.
- अनिवार्य a-nivāryanot to be warded off, inavertible, unavoidable, irresistible.
- अनिविशमान a-niviśamānanot retiring to rest, restless.
- अनिवृत a-nivṛtaunchecked, not impeded.
- अनिवेदित a-niveditauntold, unmentioned.
- अनिवेद्य a-nivedyanot having announced.
- अनिवेशन a-niveśanahaving no place of rest.
Source and licence. Monier Williams, A Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Etymologically and Philologically Arranged (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1872; first edition). Digital text: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries (MW72, csl-orig/v02/mw72), © Cologne Digital Sanskrit Lexicon project contributors, Cologne University, accessed 7 October 2026, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, provided without warranty.
Changes made here: entries for अ a, आ ā, ब b, भ bh, इ i, ई ī, उ u, ऊ ū, ऋ ṛ, ॠ ṝ, ऌ ḷ, ए e, ऐ ai, ओ o, औ au, क k, ख kh, ग g, घ gh, ङ ṅ, च c, छ ch, ज j, झ jh, ञ ñ, ट ṭ, ठ ṭh, ड ḍ, ढ ḍh, ण ṇ, त t, थ th, द d, ध dh, न n, प p, फ ph, म m, य y, र r, ल l, व v, श ś, ष ṣ, स s and ह h only; meanings trimmed for length and MW abbreviations expanded; Devanagari generated from the SLP1 keys with indic_transliteration; spelling notes, IPA pronunciations and labelled (“inferred”/“not given”) etymologies added. This adapted dictionary text is shared under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence. Fonts: Noto Serif and Noto Serif Devanagari (SIL Open Font License).