Hindi · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "ट्रेन" in Hindi?

Q: How do you pronounce ट्रेन in Hindi?

ट्रेन is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /ʈɾeːn/. It means “train.” ṭrayn — the t is retroflex, tongue curled back, and the r is a tap; not the English word "train."

ṭrayn — the t is retroflex, tongue curled back, and the r is a tap; not the English word "train."

ट्रेन /ʈɾeːn/

ṭren

The cluster at the front adds no beat, so the word stays monosyllabic no matter how much work the tongue is doing. Its length sits in the vowel between the cluster and the nasal.

Listen: ट्रेन

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Sound it out

ṭr Hindi maps English tr- onto a retroflex ट plus a tapped र, because the English cluster sounds retroflex to Hindi ears. Curl the tongue tip back for the stop, then flick it forward for the r.

e Long ए held motionless — not the diphthong English uses in "train."

n The nasal closes on the teeth, which gives the syllable a bright finish rather than the slightly retracted one English supplies.

Hear it in a sentence

मैं दिल्ली की ट्रेन ले रहा हूँ।

Maiṁ Dillee kee ṭren le rahaa hooṁ.

I am taking the train to Delhi.

Listen: मैं दिल्ली की ट्रेन ले रहा हूँ।

Free browser voice. Hear it read by a real native speaker inside the LingoDrop app.

"Maiṁ Dillee kee ṭren le rahaa hooṁ" uses kee because ṭren is feminine in Hindi, and the bare stem le carries the progressive. Dillee's doubled l sits just before the retroflex cluster, so the tongue moves from a long front contact to a curled-back one.

Where English speakers slip

English speakers simply say "train," which gives an alveolar t, an English r and a diphthongised vowel. All three have been changed in the Hindi version. The retroflex is the most audible fix — curl the tongue back before you start the word.