Vowels in Hindi phrasebook
The key distinction is the difference between short and long vowels. In this phrase book, long vowels are noted with a macron (ā), whereas short vowels are listed without one. You will often come across non-standard romanizations, noted in parentheses below when applicable.
| Devanagari
|
Transliteration
|
Equivalent/Comments
|
|---|
| अ |
a |
as in about
|
| आ |
ā |
as in father
|
| इ |
i |
as in sit
|
| ई |
ī (ee) |
as in elite
|
| उ |
u |
as in put
|
| ऊ |
? (oo) |
as in flute
|
| ऋ |
? |
as in Scottish heard, trip. Rarely used in modern Hindi.
|
| ए |
e |
long e. It is not a diphthong; the tone does not fall.
|
| ऐ |
ai |
as in Mail, sometimes a longer ए. As in bright (IPA ?j).
|
| ओ |
o |
not a diphthong; tone does not fall.
|
| औ |
au |
as in town.
|
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Hindi phrasebook
