Hindi · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "बोलना" in Hindi?

Q: How do you pronounce बोलना in Hindi?

बोलना is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /boːl.naː/. It means “to speak / to talk.” BOHL-naa with a pure long o and a clear l — two beats, since the schwa after ल drops.

BOHL-naa with a pure long o and a clear l — two beats, since the schwa after ल drops.

बोलना /boːl.naː/

bolnaa

Heavy closed syllable followed by heavy open syllable — well balanced, with schwa deletion keeping it to two beats. If you hear yourself saying bo-la-naa, you have restored a vowel that the language removes.

Listen: बोलना

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Sound it out

bo Unaspirated voiced ब and a long ओ held in one position, without the lip movement English adds to "boh."

l A front, clear l. This is where English speakers most obviously give themselves away, because a pre-consonantal l is automatically velarised in English.

naa Teeth-contact n, then a long aa; the ending marks the citation form of every verb, so its vowel is never reduced.

Hear it in a sentence

क्या आप हिंदी बोलते हैं?

Kyaa aap Hindee bolte haiṁ?

Do you speak Hindi?

Listen: क्या आप हिंदी बोलते हैं?

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"Kyaa aap Hindee bolte haiṁ?" uses the habitual bolte with plural-polite agreement, so the nasal on haiṁ is not optional. Hindee itself has a dental d and a long ee, which contrast nicely with the retroflex-free, dental-heavy consonants of bolte.

Where English speakers slip

Two English habits collide here: the diphthong in "bowl" and the dark l that follows it. Hindi wants a motionless o and a bright l with the tongue tip firmly on the ridge. Say the Italian word "bolla" for a model of the l quality, then attach the -naa.