यह कौन है?
Chapter Objectives
By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:
- Identify a person using यह ("this") and वह ("that").
- Ask who someone is with यह कौन है? and answer in a short nominal sentence.
- State a person's basic role, occupation, or relationship using है.
- Recognize that Hindi nouns for people carry grammatical gender, without yet assigning gender productively to every noun.
- Recognize twelve new Devanagari consonants and read them inside familiar words.
- Read and copy short identity labels and classroom captions.
- Introduce two people to a partner using controlled nominal sentences.
Communication Scenario
It is the second week of Priya's Hindi class. Mr. Sharma has brought in photographs of his own family and a few classroom objects to help everyone practice pointing things out and asking who is who. Priya sits next to a new classmate, Anil, and the two of them begin comparing photos: a picture of Anil's sister, a picture of Mr. Sharma's colleague, a picture of a family friend. Almost every sentence in the room this week follows the same small shape: point at something, say यह or वह, and finish with है.
- This chapter gives you the language Priya and Anil use to point at people and ask who they are.
- It also expands your Devanagari consonant set so that you can read more of the words already appearing around you in class.
Where This Chapter Fits
Chapter 2 builds directly on the greetings, names, and courtesy formulas from Chapter 1. It adds a new tool for identifying people, a first nominal sentence pattern with है, and a first, careful look at grammatical gender through people-words. It does not require full pronoun analysis, full copula analysis, or a plural system — those systems continue to grow gradually across the volume.
Coming Into This Chapter
You can already greet someone, introduce yourself with मैं ... हूँ, ask a name with आपका नाम क्या है?, and read the Devanagari independent vowels and your first seven consonants.
New in This Chapter
यह and वह for identification; यह कौन है? and short answers; nominal predicates with है; a first look at masculine and feminine nouns through people-words; and twelve new consonants, including च, छ, ज, झ, ट, ठ, ड, ढ, त, थ, द, and ध.
Looking Forward
Chapter 3 uses possessives such as मेरा and मेरी to talk about family and friends, and begins to connect adjective agreement to the gender you notice here.
Core Vocabulary
Read across each row: the Devanagari form first, then a romanized pronunciation guide, then the English meaning. As in Chapter 1, romanization is a temporary support — start relying on the Devanagari as soon as the shapes feel familiar.
| Devanagari | Romanization | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| यह | yah | this / this person | used for someone or something nearby |
| वह | vah | that / that person | used for someone or something farther away |
| कौन | kaun | who | question word for people |
| है | hai | is | formulaic copula form used with यह/वह |
| लड़का | ladkaa | boy | masculine noun |
| लड़की | ladkee | girl | feminine noun |
| आदमी | aadmee | man | masculine noun |
| औरत | aurat | woman | feminine noun |
| दोस्त | dost | friend | same form for male or female friend; gender shown elsewhere in the sentence |
| अध्यापक | adhyaapak | teacher (male) | masculine noun |
| अध्यापिका | adhyaapikaa | teacher (female) | feminine noun |
| छात्र | chhaatr | student (male) | masculine noun |
| छात्रा | chhaatraa | student (female) | feminine noun |
| डॉक्टर | doctar | doctor | same form for any gender |
| कोई नहीं | koee naheen | no one | receptive here; useful in short answers |
संख्याएँ 0–20 — Numbers 0–20 (recognition and supported use):
| Devanagari | Romanization | English |
|---|---|---|
| ग्यारह | gyaarah | 11 |
| बारह | baarah | 12 |
| तेरह | terah | 13 |
| चौदह | chaudah | 14 |
| पंद्रह | pandrah | 15 |
| सोलह | solah | 16 |
| सत्रह | satrah | 17 |
| अठारह | atthaarah | 18 |
| उन्नीस | unnees | 19 |
| बीस | bees | 20 |
As in Chapter 1, numbers here are reference support, recycled from 0–10 and extended to 20. You are not yet expected to build full sentences with them.
Receptive vocabulary (recognize only, do not produce yet): additional occupations such as इंजीनियर and नर्स; respectful titles used with names; ये and वे as plural or respectful forms of यह and वह, which you will begin using productively in a later chapter; a range of common names from different communities.
Devanagari and Pronunciation
Chapter 1 introduced the ten independent vowels and your first seven consonants. This chapter adds twelve more consonants and your first two dependent vowel signs, or matras. A matra is a mark attached to a consonant to show a vowel other than the consonant's built-in "a" sound.
2.1 Twelve new consonants
These consonants appear in this chapter's vocabulary and dialogue. As in Chapter 1, each is shown with its inherent vowel.
Hindi distinguishes two families of consonants that English speakers often hear as the same sound. Dental consonants, such as त and द, are made with the tongue tip touching the back of the upper front teeth. Retroflex consonants, such as ट and ड, are made with the tongue tip curled back to touch the roof of the mouth. This is a real, meaning-changing contrast, not a matter of accent. Say तीन ("three") and then टीका ("mark, vaccine") slowly, and notice where your tongue touches each time.
2.2 First matras: आ, इ, and ई
A matra attaches to a consonant to replace its inherent "a" vowel with a different vowel sound. The independent vowel and its matra form look different, but the sound relationship is the same one you already practiced in Chapter 1.
Look closely at कि: the small hook for the इ matra is written before the consonant, on its left side, but it is pronounced after the consonant sound. Do not read कि as "ik" — it is pronounced "ki." You will meet this left-side matra again throughout the course, so it is worth noticing carefully now.
2.3 Listening for कौन, यह, and वह
Listen for the question word कौन rising gently at the end of a question, and for the short, level statement intonation of an answer built with यह or वह and है.
Grammar and Sentence Patterns
2.4 Identifying people with यह and वह
Purpose: point out a person or thing that is near or far.
यह identifies someone or something close to you; वह identifies someone or something farther away. Both words work the same way whether you are pointing at a person, a photo, or an object.
- यह मेरा दोस्त है। Yah meraa dost hai. This is my friend.
- वह अध्यापक है। Vah adhyaapak hai. That is the teacher.
मेरा ("my") appears here in a fixed phrase only; its full pattern of agreement is introduced in Chapter 3.
2.5 Asking who: यह कौन है?
Purpose: ask who a nearby person is, and answer briefly.
2.6 Nominal predicates with है
Purpose: state who or what someone is, using one fixed pattern.
A Hindi sentence that identifies or describes someone often has no separate word for "a" or "an," and simply places the noun before है: यह/वह [नाम या भूमिका] है। Treat है as a formulaic form for now, matching यह and वह. You already met हूँ in Chapter 1 for "I am"; the fuller system connecting हूँ, है, and हैं continues to develop gradually across the volume.
- यह लड़का है। Yah ladkaa hai. This is a boy.
- वह छात्रा है। Vah chhaatraa hai. That is a (female) student.
2.7 A first look at gender through people-words
Purpose: notice that many Hindi nouns for people come in matched masculine and feminine forms.
Every Hindi noun has a grammatical gender, masculine or feminine. For words describing people, gender usually lines up with the person's gender, as in अध्यापक (male teacher) and अध्यापिका (female teacher), or छात्र and छात्रा. Some people-words, such as दोस्त and डॉक्टर, keep the same form for any gender, with gender shown elsewhere in the sentence once you learn more agreement patterns. You are not yet expected to assign gender to every noun you meet — this chapter only asks you to notice gender in these specific, familiar words.
2.8 आप, honorific हैं, and respectful reference
Purpose: recognize that respectful reference sometimes uses a plural-looking verb form.
You may hear हैं used respectfully for a single person, especially an elder or someone addressed with आप. Treat this as recognition-only for now; you are not expected to produce हैं independently until later chapters activate it.
Model Dialogue
Setting: Priya and Anil compare family photographs during a break in class.
भी ("also") and हमारी कक्षा में ("in our class") appear here receptively, glossed for context only; their grammar is not analyzed until later chapters.
समझ के प्रश्न — Comprehension questions:
- सुनीता कौन है? (Who is Sunita?)
- प्रिया का अध्यापक कहाँ है — पास में या दूर? (Is Priya's teacher near or far, based on the word she uses?)
- What does Priya say about the girl in the last photo?
Listening Practice
Ask your instructor, a study partner, or a fluent Hindi speaker to read the model dialogue above aloud, at a natural pace, twice. On the first listen, notice only which words are यह and which are वह. On the second listen, complete the table below.
If no speaker is available, this is a Listening Script for Independent Use. Read the passage aloud yourself, slowly and clearly at first, then at a more natural pace. Any spoken model should be verified by a fluent Hindi speaker before being treated as a pronunciation standard.
एक और परिचय — Another introduction:
"यह कौन है? यह मेरा दोस्त है। यह राज है। और वह छात्रा है। वह मीरा है। वह हमारी कक्षा में है।"
सुनने का काम — Listening task:
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| पहले व्यक्ति का नाम क्या है? (What is the first person's name?) | ______ |
| दूसरे व्यक्ति का नाम क्या है? (What is the second person's name?) | ______ |
| Which word, यह or वह, is used for the student, Meera? | ______ |
Reading Practice
Read the two identity labels below aloud, sounding out each Devanagari word slowly. These are the kind of simple captions Mr. Sharma writes under the photographs he brings to class.
यह अनिल है।
यह छात्र है।
वह सुनीता जी है।
समझ के प्रश्न — Comprehension questions:
- Which label uses यह, and which uses वह?
- Which label describes a teacher, and which describes a student?
Writing Workshop
Create your own short identity label for a real or imagined person, following the model labels above. Your label should identify the person with यह or वह, give a name, and state a role or relationship.
लेखन कार्य — Writing task: Write two or three short sentences in Devanagari, copying letter shapes and matras carefully.
- Choose यह or वह. Decide whether the person is near or far in your description.
- Give a name. Use the pattern यह/वह [नाम] है।
- Add a role. Use one role word from this chapter, such as दोस्त, छात्र, or अध्यापिका.
- Check your letters and matras. Compare each Devanagari letter and matra you wrote against the charts above, paying special attention to the left-side कि-type matra.
संपादन सूची — Editing checklist:
- The label uses यह or वह correctly for the situation described.
- The label gives a name and a role or relationship.
- Devanagari letters and matras are copied carefully and clearly.
- A danda (।) ends each sentence.
Speaking Practice
नियंत्रित अभ्यास — Controlled practice: reading the model dialogue aloud
Read the model dialogue above aloud twice: once slowly, sounding out each word, and once at a more natural pace. Pay attention to the dental-retroflex contrast in दोस्त and छात्रा.
संचार कार्य — Communicative task: introduce two people
With a partner, use two photos, drawings, or classroom objects standing in for people. Point at the first and say यह ... है।, then point at the second and say वह ... है। Ask your partner यह कौन है? or वह कौन है? about their own choices.
अकेले अभ्यास — Solo alternative
Record yourself identifying two people from photos or your imagination, using both यह and वह at least once each. Listen back and check your dental versus retroflex pronunciation in any त/ट or द/ड words that appear.
Culture and Communication
Hindi speakers work in every kind of occupation, in cities, towns, and villages, across India and around the world. When you practice identifying people by role, such as अध्यापक, छात्रा, or डॉक्टर, avoid assuming that any one occupation, community, or setting represents all Hindi speakers.
Even a simple identification, such as introducing a teacher or an elder, often benefits from respectful address. Notice how जी appears after सुनीता in the reading passage above. As in Chapter 1, जी is not automatic with every name — it depends on relationship, age, and context.
Common Mistakes
Error: Reading the left-side matra in कि in the visual order it is written, producing "ik" instead of "ki."
Correction: Remember that this matra is written before the consonant but pronounced after it. कि is always "ki," never "ik."
Error: Pronouncing त and ट, or द and ड, identically.
Correction: Practice the tongue-position contrast from the Pronunciation Focus box above. Dental consonants touch the teeth; retroflex consonants curl the tongue tip back.
Error: Guessing that every word ending in an आ-type sound must be masculine, or every word ending in an ई-type sound must be feminine.
Correction: These patterns are common tendencies, not fixed rules. For now, simply learn the gender of each people-word in this chapter as you meet it. Broader gender patterns develop gradually in later chapters.
Chapter Review
भाग A — समझ (Comprehension)
1. Return to the model dialogue and answer in English:
- How does Priya describe Sunita?
- How does Priya describe her teacher?
भाग B — व्याकरण (Grammar)
1. Choose यह or वह for each situation:
- Pointing at a photo right in front of you: ______
- Pointing at someone across the room: ______
2. Complete the sentence with the correct gendered noun: वह मेरी ______ है। (female teacher)
भाग C — पठन (Reading)
1. Return to the two identity labels above and answer:
- पहले लेबल में कौन है? (Who is in the first label?)
- दूसरे लेबल में कौन है? (Who is in the second label?)
भाग D — लेखन (Writing)
1. Write a three-sentence identity label for someone real or imaginary, using यह or वह, a name, and a role word.
भाग E — वाचन (Speaking)
1. Point out two people (real, in photos, or imagined) to a partner, using यह for one and वह for the other, without reading from a script.
Cumulative Review — Chapter 1
Greet a partner using a formula from Chapter 1, then introduce yourself with मैं ... हूँ before beginning the identification tasks above.
Devanagari Recognition Check
Circle or say aloud the two consonants below that form a dental-retroflex pair, then find a second such pair.
त ट द ड च ज
Practical Performance Task
Chapter 2 Performance Task
Identify and Introduce Two People
Complete the following four connected tasks in order, as Priya and Anil do while comparing photographs in class.
- Listen to the model dialogue, or a similar exchange read by your instructor or partner, and complete the listening table above.
- Read the two identity labels above and answer the comprehension questions.
- Write your own identity label, following the writing workshop steps and editing checklist.
- Speak by identifying and introducing two people to a partner, recording, or instructor, using both यह and वह, without reading from a script.
| Criterion | What is assessed |
|---|---|
| यह/वह accuracy | यह and वह are chosen appropriately for near and far reference. |
| Nominal sentence formation | The learner produces controlled sentences ending in है. |
| Vocabulary use | At least two role or relationship words from this chapter are used correctly. |
| Devanagari recognition | Scheduled consonants and matras are read and copied with reasonable accuracy. |
| Task completion | All four tasks are completed and connect clearly across listening, reading, writing, and speaking. |
This task assesses only what this chapter has taught. It does not require full gender assignment, plural forms, oblique forms, or full copula conjugation, all of which develop gradually across the volume.
Answer Key
Model Dialogue — Comprehension
- Priya describes Sunita as her friend (यह मेरी दोस्त है। यह सुनीता है।).
- Priya describes her teacher with वह, since he appears farther away in the photo (वह मेरा अध्यापक है।).
- She says the girl is a student who is also in their class (यह छात्रा है। यह भी हमारी कक्षा में है।).
Listening
- Raj
- Meera
- वह
Reading — Comprehension
- The first label uses यह (Anil); the second uses वह (Ms. Sunita).
- The first label describes a student (Anil); the second describes a teacher (Ms. Sunita).
Chapter Review — भाग B
- (a) यह (b) वह
- अध्यापिका
Chapter Review — भाग C
- (a) Anil, a student (b) Ms. Sunita, a teacher
Devanagari Recognition Check — Correct answers
त / ट is one dental-retroflex pair; द / ड is the other.
Looking Ahead
अब आप क्या कर सकते हैं — What you can do now
You can identify people who are near or far using यह and वह, ask and answer यह/वह कौन है?, and state a person's name or role with a controlled nominal sentence ending in है. You can also recognize twelve new Devanagari consonants, read your first two matras, and notice the dental-retroflex contrast as a real Hindi sound system.