पढ़ाई, काम, और अनुमति
Chapter Objectives
By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:
- Describe study and workplace tasks, schedules, deadlines, and meetings in more detail.
- Ask for permission or clarification politely in institutional contexts using expanded सकना and polite request structures such as क्या मैं...? and क्या आप...?.
- Distinguish ability, permission, obligation, necessity, and preference using सकना, चाहिए, ज़रूरी है, ज़रूरत है, and करना पड़ता है.
- Recognize पाना in ability/result contexts.
- Use infinitive complements after चाहना, सकना, पड़ना, and चाहिए.
- Write a short, polite institutional email or message requesting permission or reporting progress.
- Understand announcements and instructions in a school or workplace setting.
Communication Scenario
Now that Arjun's headache has passed and the tap is fixed, he turns back to his class project. The deadline is close, but he needs to leave town for a family matter for two days. He must ask his professor for a short extension, and separately, he needs to ask his manager at his part-time job for permission to change his shift for the same days. Priya, who works with him on the project, agrees to send him a progress update by message.
- Notice how Arjun uses polite request forms rather than simply stating what he needs.
- Notice how the professor and the manager distinguish what is possible (सकना) from what is necessary (ज़रूरी है, चाहिए).
- Notice how formal address and honorific agreement remain consistent throughout an institutional exchange.
Where This Chapter Fits
Chapter 12 continues Unit III, समस्या, सेवा, और विचार. It builds directly on Chapter 11's advice, softeners, and experiencer patterns, shifting the communicative focus toward institutional permission, ability, and formal requests in study and work settings.
Coming Into This Chapter
From Chapter 11, learners already control softened polite imperatives (ज़रा, कृपया, अगर हो सके तो), basic सकना for ability, and चाहिए for advice and need.
New in This Chapter
Learners expand सकना to cover institutional permission, recognize पाना in ability/result contexts, add ज़रूरी है, ज़रूरत है, and करना पड़ता है to the obligation system, and practice formal polite request frames and infinitive complements.
Looking Forward
Chapter 13, फ़ोन, संदेश, और मीडिया, builds on this chapter's formal message conventions while introducing reported information with कि.
Core Vocabulary
12.1 Education and Workplace Tasks
| Hindi | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| प्रोजेक्ट | project | masculine noun; common in study/work Hindi |
| रिपोर्ट | report | feminine noun |
| प्रस्तुति | presentation | feminine noun; more formal register |
| समय सीमा | deadline | feminine compound noun |
| विस्तार | extension | masculine noun |
| मीटिंग / बैठक | meeting | मीटिंग common in speech; बैठक more formal/written |
| शिफ़्ट / पारी | work shift | शिफ़्ट common in speech; पारी formal alternative |
| प्रगति | progress | feminine noun |
12.2 Permission and Rules
| Hindi | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| अनुमति | permission | feminine noun; more formal than इजाज़त |
| इजाज़त | permission | feminine noun; common in speech |
| नियम | rule | masculine noun |
| छुट्टी | leave, day off, holiday | feminine noun |
| आवेदन | application, request | masculine noun; formal written context |
| मंज़ूर होना | to be approved | used for requests and applications |
12.3 Progress and Completion
| Hindi | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| पूरा करना | to complete | transitive; takes ने in perfective |
| जमा करना | to submit | transitive; used for assignments, forms |
| देर से | late (adverb) | |
| समय पर | on time | |
| अभी तक | so far, until now | often used with progress reports |
12.4 Formal Message Conventions
| Hindi | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| आदरणीय | respected (formal salutation) | used before a title or name in formal letters/emails |
| सादर | with respect (formal closing) | common formal email closing |
| निवेदन है कि... | it is requested that... | formulaic formal request opening |
Receptive vocabulary: एचआर, सुपरवाइज़र, सेमेस्टर, and other common Hindi-English institutional terms may appear in listening or reading; they are recognition-only unless a learner already knows them from other contexts.
Pronunciation and Schwa Deletion
Formal institutional speech is generally slower and more evenly paced than casual conversation. Compare the brisk, casual शिफ़्ट बदल दो with the more measured क्या मैं अपनी शिफ़्ट बदल सकता हूँ?, which is spoken with clear phrase breaks and a polite, level tone.
Notice that समय सीमा is read as approximately sa-may see-ma, with the final inherent vowel of समय retained because it stands as an independent word, while अनुमति is read as approximately a-nu-mati, with the middle inherent vowel retained but the final one dropped in normal speech.
Listen carefully to the difference between मैं जा सकता हूँ (I am able to go / I may go) and मैं जाना चाहता हूँ (I want to go). The gender-marked forms सकता/सकती and चाहता/चाहती sound similar but express very different meanings; slow down and enunciate the verb stem clearly.
Grammar and Sentence Patterns
12.5 Expanded सकना for ability and permission
You already know सकना for ability, as in मैं हिंदी बोल सकता हूँ. This chapter extends the same structure to asking for and granting institutional permission.
Form: [subject] + [verb stem] + सक + [agreement] + [tense auxiliary]. The same form covers both physical/mental ability and social permission; context and question framing distinguish them. A question with क्या मैं...सकता/सकती हूँ? is understood as a request for permission, not a request for information about capability.
12.6 Obligation and necessity: चाहिए, ज़रूरी है, ज़रूरत है, करना पड़ता है
Form and meaning: चाहिए expresses a personal recommendation or expectation directed at the experiencer with को; ज़रूरी है states a general necessity, often about the situation rather than the person; ज़रूरत है expresses a need for something (a noun or infinitive), again typically with को; करना पड़ता है expresses an obligation imposed by circumstances, and its tense changes to show when the obligation applied (करना पड़ा, करना पड़ेगा).
Do not treat these four expressions as interchangeable. Each carries a slightly different shade of "must" or "need," and choosing the right one is part of natural, polite institutional Hindi.
12.7 Polite request structures
These four frames — क्या मैं...?, क्या आप...?, कृपया..., and मुझे...चाहिए — form the core polite-request toolkit for institutional Hindi. क्या मैं...? asks permission for the speaker's own action; क्या आप...? politely asks the listener to do something; कृपया softens an instruction or request; मुझे...चाहिए states a need directly but politely.
12.8 Infinitive complements
Form: [infinitive] + चाहना, सकना, पड़ना, or चाहिए. The infinitive typically agrees in gender and number with the object it governs when there is no other agreement trigger, as in यह रिपोर्ट लिखनी चाहिए (feminine singular रिपोर्ट triggers लिखनी), while चाहना and सकना agree with the subject.
12.9 Formal pronoun and honorific agreement
Institutional communication consistently uses आप and honorific plural verb agreement, even when addressing a single person of authority such as a professor, manager, or officer. Maintain this consistently across an entire email or conversation; do not shift to तुम partway through a formal exchange.
This chapter does not introduce advanced bureaucratic Hindi, specialized academic writing conventions, or complex indirect request structures. पाना is presented only as recognition vocabulary. Those extensions belong to later chapters and volumes.
Model Dialogue
Setting: Arjun speaks with his professor after class, then messages his manager about his part-time job shift.
Later, a message to his manager:
समझ के प्रश्न — Comprehension questions:
- अर्जुन प्रोफ़ेसर से क्या अनुमति माँगता है? (What permission does Arjun ask the professor for?)
- प्रोफ़ेसर को क्या चाहिए, इससे पहले कि वह अनुमति दें? (What does the professor need before granting permission?)
- मैनेजर अर्जुन से क्या करने को कहती है? (What does the manager ask Arjun to do?)
Listening Practice
Ask your instructor, a study partner, or a fluent Hindi speaker to read the passage below aloud twice. On the first listen, note the situation and the outcome. On the second listen, complete the table.
If no speaker is available, this is a Listening Script for Independent Use. Read the passage slowly at first, then at a natural pace. Any spoken model should be verified by a fluent Hindi speaker before being treated as a pronunciation standard.
नेहा की समस्या — Neha's Situation:
"मुझे अपनी क्लास का प्रोजेक्ट अगले सोमवार तक जमा करना है, लेकिन मुझे अभी तक आधा काम ही पूरा हुआ है। इसलिए मैंने अपने शिक्षक को ईमेल भेजा और पूछा, 'क्या मैं दो दिन बाद प्रोजेक्ट जमा कर सकती हूँ?' शिक्षक ने जवाब दिया कि यह ठीक है, लेकिन मुझे एक छोटा-सा कारण लिखकर भेजना ज़रूरी है। मैंने लिखा कि मुझे अपनी बहन की शादी में जाना पड़ रहा है, इसलिए मुझे थोड़े और समय की ज़रूरत है। शिक्षक ने मेरा आवेदन मंज़ूर कर लिया, और अब मैं आराम से अपना काम पूरा कर सकती हूँ।"
सुनने का काम — Listening task:
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| नेहा को क्या समस्या है? (What problem does Neha have?) | ______ |
| नेहा ने शिक्षक से क्या पूछा? (What did Neha ask the teacher?) | ______ |
| शिक्षक ने क्या माँगा? (What did the teacher require?) | ______ |
| नेहा ने अपने आवेदन में क्या कारण लिखा? (What reason did Neha write in her request?) | ______ |
Reading Practice
Read the short formal email Arjun sent to his professor, then answer the questions.
नमस्ते। मुझे अगले हफ़्ते एक पारिवारिक काम से दो दिन के लिए बाहर जाना पड़ रहा है। इसलिए मेरा निवेदन है कि मुझे प्रोजेक्ट रिपोर्ट दो दिन बाद जमा करने की अनुमति दी जाए। मैं यह वादा करता हूँ कि मैं वापस आते ही अपना काम पूरा कर लूँगा। कृपया मुझे बताइए कि क्या यह ठीक है।
सादर,
अर्जुन
समझ के प्रश्न — Comprehension questions:
- What does Arjun request in the email?
- What does Arjun promise to do?
- What formal salutation and closing does Arjun use?
Writing Workshop
Write a short formal email or message titled अनुमति के लिए अनुरोध, requesting permission from a teacher, professor, or manager.
लेखन कार्य — Writing task: Write a connected message of 120-180 words in Devanagari. Your message must include: (1) a formal salutation such as आदरणीय, (2) a clear statement of the situation, (3) a polite request for permission using क्या मैं...? or अनुमति दी जाए, (4) at least one obligation or necessity expression (चाहिए, ज़रूरी है, ज़रूरत है, or करना पड़ता है), (5) an infinitive complement pattern, and (6) a formal closing such as सादर.
- Choose your situation. Pick a schedule conflict, a deadline problem, or a shift change.
- Open formally. Use आदरणीय and a brief greeting.
- State the situation and make your request. Use क्या मैं...? or a formal request frame.
- Explain the necessity. Use at least one obligation expression.
- Close politely. Use सादर and your name.
संपादन सूची — Editing checklist:
- आप and honorific plural agreement are used consistently throughout.
- The polite request frame is natural and not a direct translation from English.
- The correct obligation expression is chosen for its intended meaning.
- Infinitive complements agree correctly where required.
- Formal salutation and closing are present and appropriate.
- Spelling, matras, word spacing, and dandas are correct throughout.
Speaking Practice
नियंत्रित अभ्यास — Controlled practice: asking permission
With a partner, take turns asking permission for a common institutional situation (submitting work late, changing a shift, leaving early) using क्या मैं...सकता/सकती हूँ?, and responding with an obligation expression.
संचार कार्य — Communicative task: अनुमति माँगना
Role-play a conversation between a student/employee and a professor/manager with a partner. One person explains a situation and asks for permission; the other grants or conditionally grants permission, stating what is necessary.
अकेले अभ्यास — Solo alternative
Record yourself asking for permission in two different institutional situations, using at least one सकना question and one obligation expression in each.
Culture and Communication
Requests to professors, managers, and officials are typically formal, even when the underlying relationship is friendly. Written requests often include a brief formal salutation and closing, and a clearly stated reason. Learners should default to the formal patterns in this chapter when addressing someone in an institutional role.
English-origin words such as प्रोजेक्ट, रिपोर्ट, and शिफ़्ट are extremely common in Hindi-speaking study and work settings across many regions and institutions. This reflects real, everyday bilingual usage rather than a weakness in the Hindi sentence, which remains structured entirely by Hindi grammar.
Common Mistakes
Error: Writing मैं जाना सकता हूँ to mean "I want to go."
Correction: मैं जाना चाहता हूँ। (I want to go.) versus मैं जा सकता हूँ। (I am able to / may go.) सकना attaches directly to the verb stem, not to the infinitive.
Error: Writing आपको मुझे एक लिखित आवेदन चाहिए to state a general institutional requirement.
Correction: आपको मुझे एक लिखित आवेदन देना ज़रूरी है। ज़रूरी है better expresses a general necessity tied to the situation, not a personal preference.
Error: Starting with आप बता सकते हैं? and later writing तुम मुझे बताओ in the same formal email.
Correction: Keep आप and honorific plural agreement consistent throughout a formal exchange; do not shift to तुम.
Error: Freely producing new sentences with पाना in untaught patterns.
Correction: At this stage, recognize पाना in context (for example, मैं समय पर नहीं आ पाया) rather than generating new combinations independently. Full productive control develops in a later volume.
Chapter Review
भाग A — समझ (Comprehension)
1. Return to the Model Dialogue and Reading passage and answer in English:
- What two permissions does Arjun ask for in this chapter, and what condition does each person set?
- What does Arjun's email promise to do once he returns?
भाग B — व्याकरण (Grammar)
1. Complete each sentence with the correct form:
- क्या मैं कल छुट्टी ______ (सकना)?
- यह काम समय पर पूरा करना ______ (ज़रूरी) है।
- मुझे थोड़े और समय की ______ (ज़रूरत) है।
- कभी-कभी मुझे देर तक काम ______ (करना पड़ना)।
2. Rewrite each sentence using the correct polite request frame: (a) मुझे यह पूछना है। → (using क्या मैं...?) (b) यह बताओ। → (using कृपया and formal address)
भाग C — पठन (Reading)
1. Return to Arjun's email above and answer: What formal salutation and closing does the email use, and why are they appropriate here?
भाग D — लेखन (Writing)
1. Write your 120-180 word message अनुमति के लिए अनुरोध, following all six required elements from the Writing Workshop above.
भाग E — वाचन (Speaking)
1. Role-play an institutional permission request with a partner (or record it), including a situation, a polite request, and a condition or obligation in the response.
Cumulative Review
This chapter recycles Chapter 11's softeners and polite imperatives while introducing expanded सकना for permission, ज़रूरी है, ज़रूरत है, and करना पड़ता है for obligation, recognition of पाना, formal polite request frames, infinitive complements, and consistent formal honorific agreement.
Practical Performance Task
अनुमति माँगना — Asking for Permission
Complete the following connected tasks in order.
- Listen to Neha's story above and complete the listening table.
- Speak a role-play with a partner (or record it) asking for institutional permission and receiving a conditional response.
- Read Arjun's email above and answer the comprehension questions.
- Write your own 120-180 word email titled अनुमति के लिए अनुरोध, following the Writing Workshop checklist.
| Criterion | What is assessed |
|---|---|
| Ability and permission | Accurate use of expanded सकना for institutional permission. |
| Obligation and necessity | Correct choice among चाहिए, ज़रूरी है, ज़रूरत है, and करना पड़ता है. |
| Polite request structures | Natural use of क्या मैं...?, क्या आप...?, and कृपया. |
| Infinitive complements | Correct agreement in infinitive + चाहना/सकना/पड़ना/चाहिए patterns. |
| Formal register | Consistent आप and honorific agreement; appropriate salutation and closing. |
| Devanagari and pronunciation | Correct spelling and punctuation; intelligible formal speech rhythm. |
This task integrates institutional permission, obligation, and formal request language. It does not require advanced bureaucratic Hindi, specialized academic writing, or complex indirect requests, which begin in later chapters and volumes.
Answer Key
Model Dialogue — Comprehension
- Arjun asks his professor for a two-day extension on his project report, and the professor requires a written request by that evening. He also asks his manager to change his shift, and the manager requires notice by the next day so the shift can be arranged.
- Arjun's email promises that he will complete his work as soon as he returns.
- The manager tells Arjun he should let her know by tomorrow so the shift can be arranged.
Listening
- Neha has only completed half her project work with the deadline approaching.
- Neha asked her teacher whether she could submit the project two days later.
- The teacher required a short written reason.
- Neha wrote that she has to attend her sister's wedding, so she needs more time.
Reading — Comprehension
- Arjun requests permission to submit his project report two days late.
- Arjun promises to complete his work as soon as he returns.
- He uses आदरणीय as a formal salutation and सादर as a formal closing.
Chapter Review — भाग B
- (a) सकता/सकती हूँ (b) ज़रूरी (c) ज़रूरत (d) करना पड़ता है
- (a) क्या मैं यह पूछ सकता/सकती हूँ? (b) कृपया आप मुझे बताइए।
Looking Ahead
अब आप क्या कर सकते हैं — What you can do now
You can describe study and workplace tasks and deadlines; ask for institutional permission with expanded सकना; distinguish ability, permission, need, and obligation; use polite request frames and infinitive complements; and maintain consistent formal register in an institutional message.