Hindi · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "पाँच" in Hindi?

Q: How do you pronounce पाँच in Hindi?

पाँच is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /pãːtʃ/. It means “five.” paanch with the n dissolved into the vowel: a long nasalized aa followed directly by an unaspirated ch.

paanch with the n dissolved into the vowel: a long nasalized aa followed directly by an unaspirated ch.

पाँच /pãːtʃ/

paaṁch

One superheavy syllable — long vowel, nasality, and a consonant coda — which is as much weight as a Hindi syllable can carry. There is no second syllable to compete with it, so simply give it its full time.

Listen: पाँच

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Sound it out

p Unaspirated प. No puff at all, which is unnatural for English speakers before a stressed vowel.

aaṁ The chandrabindu nasalizes the long aa itself; the soft palate lowers for the whole vowel rather than a separate n being pronounced.

ch Palatal च closing the syllable, again with no aspiration. The nasal airflow stops the instant the ch closure forms.

Hear it in a sentence

मेरे पास पाँच सौ रुपये हैं।

Mere paas paaṁch sau rupaye haiṁ.

I have five hundred rupees.

Listen: मेरे पास पाँच सौ रुपये हैं।

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"Mere paas paaṁch sau rupaye haiṁ" chains paaṁch with sau, so a nasalized long aa is immediately followed by the diphthongal au of sau; the contrast between them is a good listening drill. Rupaye is the plural form, agreeing with haiṁ.

Where English speakers slip

Most learners insert an actual n consonant, producing "paanch" with the tongue touching the ridge before the ch. Hindi wants the nasality carried by the vowel with no separate closure, and it wants the p unaspirated — the double puff-plus-n version is instantly identifiable as foreign.