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.
Search in IAST (ātman), plain letters (atman), Devanagari (आत्मन्) or English (fire). Pronunciation key · English index · Random entry
Jump to letter
All words A–Z
55,387 headwords · page 192 of 554
- छिद्1 chidchinatti, chintte, ciccheda, cicchide, chetsyati, -te, acchidat or acchaitsīt, acchitta…
- छित्ति chitticutting, division; name of a tree, = karañja.
- छित्त्वर chittvaracutting or fit for cutting (as a weapon etc.), trenchant; hostile, inimical, a foe…
- छित्त्वा chittvāhaving cut, amputated, divided.
- छिद्2 chid(at the end of a compound) cutting, cutting through, tearing asunder, splitting…
- छिदक chidakaIndra's thunderbolt or diamond.
- छिदा chidācutting, dividing.
- छिदि chidicutting or tearing off, splitting; (is), f. an axe.
- छिदिर chidiraan axe; a sword; fire; a rope, cord.
- छिदुर chiduracutting, dividing, what cuts or divides; easily breaking; hostile, a foe; roguish, a…
- छिद्यमान chidyamānabeing cut, cut.
- छिद्र chidracontaining holes, pierced; (am), n. a hole, slit, incision, cleft, opening, fissure…
- छिद्रय chidrayachidrayati, -yitum, to pierce, perforate, bore, make openings or holes, to perforate the…
- छिद्रापय chidrāpaya-payati, -yitum, to pierce, perforate.
- छिद्रित chidritapierced, perforated, having holes, orifices or openings.
- छिद्रिन् chidrinhaving holes, hollow.
- छिद्वर chidvara= chittvara
- छिन्दक chindakaname of a family or race.
- छिन्न chinnacut, divided, torn, broken, destroyed; decaying, declining, exhausted, tired; (ā), f. a…
- छिन्नक chinnakahaving a little cut off, incised; (Compar. chinnaka-tara = chinnataraka.)
- छेत्तव्य chettavyato be cut, to be cut off etc.
- छेत्तृ chettṛwho or what cuts, a cutter, a wood-cutter; destroying, removing, solving, a resolver of…
- छेद cheda(at the end of comp.) cutting, cutting off; (as), m. a cutting or dividing, divisor, the…
- छेदक chedakacutting off, dividing; the denominator of a fraction;
- छेदन chedanacutting asunder, splitting; destroying, solving, removing; (am), n. cutting, cutting off…
- छेदनीय chedanīyato be cut or divided, divisible.
- छेदि chedicutting off; breaking; (is), m. a carpenter.
- छेदित cheditacut, divided.
- छेदितव्य cheditavyato be cut or divided, divisible.
- छेदिन् chedincutting off, tearing off or asunder; destroying, removing.
- छेद्य chedyato be cut or divided, divisible; to be cut off or amputated, to be split, to be…
- छैदिक chaidikaa ratan, a cane.
- छिप्पिका chippikāa kind of bird (?);
- छिलिहिण्ड chilihiṇḍaname of a plant, = pātāla-garuḍa.
- छुच्छुन्दर chucchundaraor (i, is or ī), f. the musk-rat or shrew.
- छुच्छू chucchūor chucchū-piṅgalā, f. a kind of animal.
- छुट् chuṭ(a various reading for cuṭ), cl. 6. 10. P. chuṭati, choṭayati, etc., to cut;
- छुड् chuḍ(a various reading for thuḍ), cl. 6. P. chuḍati, etc., to cover.
- छुड्ड chuḍḍaname of several men; (ā), f., name of a woman.
- छुद्र chudraretaliation, counteraction, remedying; a ray.
- छुप् chupchupati, cucchopa, chopsyati, acchaupsīt, choptum, to touch.
- छुप chupatouch, touching; a small tree, a shrub, a bush; air, wind; war, combat.
- छुबुक chubukathe chin;
- छुर् churchurati, cucchora, churitum, etc., to cut, engrave, incise, etch: Caus. churayati and…
- छुरा churālime.
- छुरिका churikāa knife.
- छुरित churitacut, inlaid, set, coated, spread; blended, intermingled.
- छुरी churīa knife, = kṣurī.
- छूरिका chūrikā= churikā in chūrikā-pattrī, name of a plant, = śvetā, Andropogon Aciculatus; the mouth…
- छूरी chūrī= churī.
- छोरण choraṇaabandoning, leaving.
- छृद् chṛdchṛṇatti, caccharda, chardiṣyati or chartsyati, charditum, to pour out; P. and A…
- छृप् chṛp(a various reading for chṛd), cl. 1. 10. P. charpati, charpayati, etc., to kindle…
- छेक chekatame, domesticated (as a bird or beast); citizen, town-bred, shrewd, sharp, smart…
- छेकाल chekālaor chekila, as, ā, am, = cheka above.
- छेत्तव्य chettavyaSee under 1. chid.
- छेमण्ड chemaṇḍaa fatherless child;
- छेलु cheluthe plant Vernonia Anthelmintica.
- छैदिक chaidikaSee under 1. chid.
- छो chochyati, cacchau, chāsyati, acchāt or acchāsīt, chātum, to cut, divide, mow, reap: Caus…
- छात chātaor chita, as, ā, am, cut, divided, thin, feeble, emaciated.
- छोज chojaname of a man.
- छोटिका choṭikāsnapping the thumb and forefinger together.
- छोटिन् choṭina fisherman.
- छोरण choraṇaSee under rt. chur.
- छोलङ्ग cholaṅga= mātulu ga, a citron, lime;
- छ्यु chyuchyavate, etc., to go, move, approach.
- ज1 jathe third letter of the second or palatal class of consonants, having the sound of j in…
- ज2 jaborn from, descended from, a son or daughter of, produced or caused by, born in, produced…
- ज3 jaspeedy, swift; victorious, triumphant, conquering; eaten; (as), m. speed; enjoyment…
- जंस् jaṃsjaṃsayati, -yitum, to protect; to liberate.
- जंह् jaṃhonly in Intens. jaṅgahe, to strike with the wings or feet, to kick; (Sāy. who derives…
- जंहस् jaṃhasflapping of the wings; (Sāy.) velocity, speed;
- जक jakaname of a Brāhman.
- जकुट jakuṭaa dog; the Malaya mountains; (am), n. a pair; (as, am), m. n. the egg-plant, Solanum…
- जक्ष्1 jakṣjakṣiti, 3rd pl. jakṣati (Gram. 290. b); Impf. ajakṣīt and ajakṣat (Pāṇ. VII. 3, 98, 99)…
- जक्षण jakṣaṇaeating, consuming.
- जक्षि jakṣieating, consuming.
- जक्षिवस् jakṣivasone who has eaten.
- जग्ध jagdhaeaten; (am), n. a place where a person has eaten.
- जग्धि jagdhieating, consuming; food, victuals;
- जक्ष्2 jakṣjakṣiti, etc., to laugh.
- जक्ष jakṣaa Prākṛt form for yakṣa.
- जक्ष्म jakṣmajakṣman, ā, m. two Prākṛt forms for yakṣman.
- जगत् jagatmoving, movable, locomotive, transitory; (t), n. that which moves or is alive, men and…
- जगन्वस् jaganvas(perf. part.), one who has gone.
- जग्मि jagmigoing, being in constant motion; going to, hastening towards (with acc. or loc.); (is)…
- जग्मिवस् jagmivaswho or what has gone.
- जङ्गम jaṅgamamoving, movable, locomotive, that which has motion as opposed to that which is…
- जगद jagadaan attendant, a guardian.
- जगद्दल jagaddalaname of a king of the Darads.
- जगनु jaganuor jagannu, us, m. a living being, an animal; an insect; fire or its deity.
- जगर jagaraarmour, mail;
- जगल jagalafraudulent, knavish; (as), m. a kind of intoxicating beverage, any fluid suitable for…
- जगुरि jagurileading, conducting.
- जग्गिक jaggikaname of a man.
- जग्ध jagdhaSee under 1. jakṣ.
- जग्मि jagmiSee under jagat.
- जघन jaghanain the later language always n., the hinder part, the buttock, the hip and loins, the…
- जघनिन् jaghaninhaving stout hips or large buttocks.
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).