Hindi · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "नाम" in Hindi?

naam — a dental n, a long open aa, and a bilabial m. Longer than English "numb," and made further forward.

नाम /naːm/

naam

One syllable whose whole substance is the long vowel. Because it usually appears with the possessive in questions like aapkaa naam, English rhythm wants to reduce it as the second word of a phrase — hold its length anyway.

Listen: नाम

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Sound it out

n The nasal is made on the teeth rather than the ridge, which gives the word a brighter, more forward start than an English n would.

aam A long open आ with the duration of "palm," closed by m.

Hear it in a sentence

आपका नाम क्या है?

Aapkaa naam kyaa hai?

What is your name?

Listen: आपका नाम क्या है?

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"Aapkaa naam kyaa hai?" makes aapkaa masculine to agree with naam, not with the person being asked — the possessive is tuned to the name. Kyaa then sits before the copula rather than at the front of the clause.

Where English speakers slip

The n comes out alveolar, which retracts the whole word, and the vowel gets shortened toward English "nam." Push the tongue tip onto the teeth and give the vowel the same length you would give the aa in aap.