-

Punjabi-English Dictionary

Kanwal Bashir

Abbas Kazmi

Punjabi-English Dictionary
Kanwal Bashir
Abbas Kazmi

2012

Punjabi-English Dictionary
Copyright 2012 by AECOM.
All rights reserved.

No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including
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Dunwoody Press
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U.S.A.

ISBN: 978-1-931546-89-8
Library of Congress Control Number: 2011941568
Printed and bound in the United States of America

For
Trach Nguyen

Table of Contents
Acknowledgments ......................................................................................................................................................i
Preface ...................................................................................................................................................................... ii
Structure and Use .................................................................................................................................................... ii
General Arrangement ............................................................................................................................................ iii
Symbols .......................................................................................................................................................... iii
Abbreviations ..................................................................................................................................................iv
Romanization of Punjabi Letters ............................................................................................................................ v
Punjabi Pronunciation ............................................................................................................................................vi
Vowels .............................................................................................................................................................vi
Tone ............................................................................................................................................................... vii
Consonants .................................................................................................................................................... vii
Dental ........................................................................................................................................................... viii
Retroflex ....................................................................................................................................................... viii
Palatal ..............................................................................................................................................................ix
Velar ................................................................................................................................................................ix
References ................................................................................................................................................................. x
The Dictionary
................................................................................................................................................................................... 1

................................................................................................................................................................................. 12
............................................................................................................................................................................... 82
............................................................................................................................................................................. 133
............................................................................................................................................................................. 172
............................................................................................................................................................................. 201
............................................................................................................................................................................. 207
.............................................................................................................................................................................. 208
.............................................................................................................................................................................. 232
.............................................................................................................................................................................. 255
.............................................................................................................................................................................. 269

............................................................................................................................................................................... 288
............................................................................................................................................................................... 317
............................................................................................................................................................................... 324
............................................................................................................................................................................... 327
............................................................................................................................................................................... 341
............................................................................................................................................................................... 341

............................................................................................................................................................................... 348
............................................................................................................................................................................. 348
............................................................................................................................................................................. 387
............................................................................................................................................................................. 401

 ............................................................................................................................................................................. 407
............................................................................................................................................................................... 409
............................................................................................................................................................................... 413

.............................................................................................................................................................................. 414
.............................................................................................................................................................................. 421
............................................................................................................................................................................. 426
.............................................................................................................................................................................. 433

.............................................................................................................................................................................. 443
.............................................................................................................................................................................. 485

.............................................................................................................................................................................. 501
.............................................................................................................................................................................. 518
.............................................................................................................................................................................. 574

............................................................................................................................................................................... 593
............................................................................................................................................................................... 624

............................................................................................................................................................................. 636

............................................................................................................................................................................ 641

Charts
Pronoun and Adjective Charts ...................................................................................................................... 645
Verb Charts ................................................................................................................................................... 647
Compound Verb Constructions .................................................................................................................... 662
Punjabi Numbers .......................................................................................................................................... 664

Acknowledgments
This work would not have been possible without the generous and continuous support of all our
colleagues at the Language Research Center (LRC), AECOM.
We are deeply indebted to Thomas Creamer, Director of LRC, for his unwavering encouragement and
constant leadership. We highly appreciate his unparalleled lexicographic skills and the calm and
patience with which he taught us the research skills needed for this dictionary.
We are thankful to Dr. David Zorc for helping us understand the linguistic aspects of language at many
points during the compilation of this work.
Paul Hackett, Mark Jeon, and Joseph Okunade were a huge help in solving the multiple technical issues
confronted at different stages of this project. Aung Kyaw Oo was overly tolerant with our questions and
the formatting of the database. Aung and Joseph also formatted the dictionary for printing.
We sincerely appreciate the continuous help and guidance of Karen Fisher-Nguyen with her supreme
linguistic skills and excellent grasp of Punjabi grammar.
We are also very thankful to Professor Saeed Farani and Dr. Naghman Bashir for helping us obtain the
additional books we needed.
Finally, we would like to express our deepest gratitude to our families and friends who supported us
throughout this project.
Many thanks to all of you.
We alone are accountable for all the errors in this dictionary and the final product is our sole
responsibility.
Kanwal Bashir
Abbas Kazmi
Hyattsville, Maryland
February, 2012

Preface
Resources

The present work is the first edition of the continuing series of the Punjabi-English Dictionary. The
purpose of this dictionary is to assist beginning and intermediate students of Pakistani Punjabi. One of
the most difficult aspects of learning a language is learning pronunciation. This is especially true for
Punjabi because pronunciation of a word is not always obvious from its written representation. For this
reason, a system of pronunciation was developed and implemented in this dictionary.

The two main sources of written data are the daily Punjabi newspapers Khabran and Bhulekha
(January 2009 December 2009) published in Lahore, Pakistan, and the entries from these sources
reflect Lahori pronunciation. Another source is audio data of unrehearsed Punjabi conversations by
native speakers from different areas of Punjab, Pakistan, all collected by Professor Mumtaz Ahmad.
Entries from this source reflect colloquial or regional pronunciations.
Entry selection was based on frequency in the Punjabi newspaper corpus and the audio colloquial
Punjabi, with a focus on Punjabi words contained in both. Examples are mostly from the same authentic
material mentioned above. Four important dictionaries by Punjabi scholars and lexicographers were

consulted to verify the spelling of entries and pronunciation. These dictionaries are:
Comprehensive Punjabi Dictionary by Iqbal Salahuddin,
Bokhari,

Punjabi Urdu Dictionary by Tanvir

Punjabi Urdu Dictionary by Sardar Mohammad Khan, and

Classical Dictionary by Jamil Paul. For some entries in Pothohari and Saraiki we consulted
Pohohari Urdu Dictionary by Mohammad Sharif Shad and
Saadullah Khan Khetran.

Punjabi

Saraiki Dictionary by Mohammad

Structure and Use

In each entry, the headword is provided in Nafees Nastaleeq script along with romanization, part of
speech, definition, and one or more examples in Punjabi script with English translation.
For certain entries, additional information is provided. If a headword can be written with short vowel
diacritics (e.g., )it is provided in the Naskh script in order to display these diacritics. If the
pronunciation of a headword (e.g., ) differs from the romanization, that pronunciation is provided.
Some entries/senses (e.g., )have a grammatical function which does not translate easily into English.
In these instances, an explanation of usage is provided in italics in the definition field. An entry that is
readily used in English (e.g., )is romanized and provided in italics in the definition field. An entry
(e.g., ) may contain a cross-reference to another entry for an alternate spelling or related form. Style,
domain, or dialect information is provided where appropriate. Some headwords (e.g.,
entries. In cases of multiple sub-entries (e.g.,

, ) .

, )

contain sub-

phrases are given first, followed by verbs (e.g.,

A noun entry is given in the singular form followed by any regular or irregular plural forms. Examples
may show various forms of the noun.

ii

An adjective2 entry is given in the masculine singular form. Examples may show various forms of the
adjective.
A verb entry is given in the infinitive form followed by its past participle forms and any causative forms.
Examples may show various forms of the verb.
At the end of the dictionary there are pronoun, adjective, and verb charts. More information on the usage
of various items in the charts can be found in their individual entries in the dictionary.
General Arrangement
Headword
Romanization
Pronunciation

Part of speech

Grammatical
forms

Sub-entry
headword

kandh {knd} n1 f.s. [plural: kandhaaN {kndaaN}] a

wall

Example

Instead of a signboard he has hung an old tire on the wall.

He said that the repair work on the outer walls of the mosque is progressing.

unaa

v.i. [past:

This bird is made of plastic. It cannot fly.

{knaaN} pron. m.f.pl. [oblique case of

qatl karnaa {katal karnaa} !

Symbols
a

Sense number

Sub-entry sense number

Shows diacritics in headword

{ }

Pronunciation when different from romanization

[ ]

Additional grammatical forms or cross-reference

( )

Additional information

Punjabi example

Sub-entry headword

iii

Translation

causative: ]

kihnaaN

Sense number
Gender/number

A wall of the girls college collapsed with the explosion.

Symbols & Abbreviations

Definition

Cross-reference

also spelled

conjunct v. to murder

Sub-entry sense
number

Abbreviations
Abbreviations

Labels

1st p
2nd p
3rd p
abbr.
adj.1
adj.2
adv.
aux.
colloq.
comp. post.

complement v.
compound v.
conj.
conjunct v.
derog.
euph.
f.
figur.
gram.
inform.
interj.
iron.
m.
math.
med.
n1
n2
num. (card.)
num. (frac.)
num. (ord.)
obl.
part.
pl.
poss.
post.
pref.
pron.
s.
suff.
causative1
causative 2
v.i.
v. mod.
v.t.

first person
second person
third person
abbreviation
adjective that does not change form
adjective that agrees in number, gender, and case
adverb
auxiliary verb
colloquial
compound postposition consists of two postpositions or a simple postposition + a noun,
adjective, or adverb
complement verb is used with the root of the main verb to add a nuanced sense
compound verb consists of two or more verbs combining to express a single action or event
conjunction
conjunct verb is a combination of noun+ verb or adjective + verb
derogatory
euphemism
feminine
figurative
grammar
informal
interjection
ironic
masculine
mathematics
medical
noun that does not change form in oblique case
noun that changes form in oblique case
cardinal number
fraction
ordinal number
oblique
participle
plural
possessive
postposition
prefix
pronoun
singular
suffix
causative verb with one intermediary agent
double causative verb with two intermediary agents
intransitive verb
modal verb expresses a variety of attitudes including capability, desire, need, or possibility
transitive verb

iv

Romanization of Punjabi Letters

1
2

aa
aa
b
p
t

s
j
c
h
KH
d

z
r

z
zh
s
sh

0F

1F

s
z
t
z

G
f
q
k
g
l
m
n
N
3
v, o
h
h
y, e
e
2F

The letter also implies short vowel sounds in words originally from Arabic. Its effect on pronunciation is determined by the vowels that co-occur.
The letter represents nasalization in final position.

The letters and ( both pronounced anuun) are used in Pothohari and Saraiki respectively to represent the retroflex nasal. It may also be represented by a
with two vertical dots instead of one or by a with a circle over it instead of a single dot. The former can be seen in adult literacy readers published by the
Punjabi Adabi Board, while the latter is used in Daily Lokai Lahore, a Punjabi newspaper.

Punjabi Pronunciation
Vowels
Punjabi
sound

Similar English
sound

Written
representation

aa

father

initial

medial &final

final

cup

Punjabi example Pronunciation Translation

aape

oneself

saadaa

simple

haftaa

week

das
aj

ten
today

etabaar

trust

mera

my

de

give

ais
pair
iNje

this
foot
the same way

(zer)

din

day

(zer+ )

iid

Eid

pii

pain

sii

was

are

bol
aurat
saukhaa
un
sun
duur
caakuu

speak
woman
easy
wool
listen
far
knife

(zabar)

fate

ai

hen

pin

ii

keen

role

au

orange

book

initial

medial

final
(zabar + )

initial

(zabar + )

(pesh)

uu

noon

(pesh + )

vi

4
The diacritical marks , ,
(pronounced zabar, zer, and pesh respectively) imply short vowel sounds.
They are frequently omitted in books, newspapers, and other publications intended for adult native
readers, but are taught to students at the elementary levels and are usually included in their textbooks. In
this dictionary these diacritics are provided in the Naskh script to assist the user. The ( pronounced
hamza) is used to mark the syllable boundary between two vowels, and also appears as a silent letter in
words of Arabic origin. These uses are not reflected in the romanization. The (pronounced tashdiid) is
used to indicate a stressed consonant and is reflected in the romanization by doubling the consonant. The
(pronounced tanviin) indicates a final n sound in adverbs originally from Arabic. This symbol is
represented in the romanization with because the quotation mark is the symbol
3F

bank

medial

final

jaaNdaa

goes

garaaN

village

Tone 5
4F

There are two tones or vocal pitches in Punjabi which are represented in this dictionary. The low tone is
a low-rising pitch and is frequently accompanied by a tightening of the throat. In this dictionary this tone
is represented with ` in pronunciation as in: praa brother, kaa horse.
The high tone is a high-falling pitch and vowels with this tone may be pronounced a little shorter than
the same vowels without the tone. In this dictionary this tone is represented with in pronunciation as
in: bar or br outside, lanaa or lnaa to bring down.
Consonants
Labial
p

speed

ph
b

pen
bus

m
f
v6

room
fan
van

5F

initial

medial & final

paanii
praa

water
brother

phul
baaa
lbnaa

flower
big
to search for

mez
farak
velaa

table
difference
time

The tiny circle used with a diacritic is a place holder for showing correct placement of a diacritic and can be replaced by any Punjabi letter.
According to Bhatia (1993) there is a close correlation between the h and voiced aspirates (bh, dh, h, jh, gh) of Hindi and Punjabi tones. Shackle (2003)
also discusses the relation between the historical h and voiced aspirates, syllable stress, and tone.
6
Some speakers may substitute the sound w for v.
4
5

vii

Dental
Most of these consonants are pronounced with the tongue flat against the upper teeth. For the sounds s
and z the tongue does not touch the teeth. The sound r is a slight trill touching the upper teeth.
t

(none)

th
d

path
this

n
s

noon
sat

r
l

zebra

hero
lean

initial

medial & final

tiir
tnaa

arrow
to wash

totaa
thaaN
davaaii
vdd

parrot
place
medicine
more

nak
sabuut
sabak
saaf

nose
proof
lesson
clean

zaraa
zanaanii
zaruurat
zaahir
raat
laal

a little
woman
need
apparent
night
red

Retroflex
These consonants are pronounced with the tip of the tongue rolled back touching the roof of the mouth.

stop

tomato
doctor

(none)

6F

(none)

medial & final

(Pothohari)

(Saraiki)

amaaar
inaa
hiik
aakiyaa
vnaa

tomato
to fall down
all right
mailman
to cut down

jaaaa

to go

jaaga

to wake up

daunaa

to run

7
In Lahori speech the dental-retroflex nasal contrast is neutralized in favor of the dental pronunciation and this is reflected in this dictionary. For more on
the neutralization of sounds in Lahori speech, see Shackle (2003).

viii

Palatal:
c

itchy

ch
j

chair
jug

sh
zh
y

ship
measure
yellow

can
cgaa
chaaN
joaa
kj
shir
zhaalaa
yaad

moon
dispute
shade
pair
some
city
hail
memory

kitaab
kr
kissaa
khaanaa
garaaN
lNgnaa
KHush
Gariib
haal
himmat

book
home
story
food
village
to pass by
happy
poor
condition
courage

Velar
k

skip

kh 8
g9

kite
good

KH
G
h

(none)
(none)
hut

7F

8F

Colloquially the sound kh can be used to pronounce words written with the letter . This pronunciation variation is not included in this dictionary.
Colloquially the sound g can be used to pronounce words written with the letter . This pronunciation variation is not included in this dictionary.

ix

References
Akhtar, R. N. 1997. "Affix '-s(uu)' Constructions in Punjabi," in Spencer, A. ed., Essex Graduate
Student Papers in Language and Linguistics. Vol. 1. University of Essex.
Badakhshani, Mirza Maqbool Baig, 1973. Punjabi Grammar. Punjabi Research Center,
Lahore
Bhatia, T. K. 1993. Punjabi: A Cognitive-Descriptive Grammar. London: Routledge.
Bokhari, Tanvir, 2008. Punjabi Urdu Dictionary. Urdu Science Board, Lahore.
Butt, M. 2007. "The Role of Pronominal Suffixes in Punjabi," in J. Grimshaw, J. Maling, C. Manning,
J. Simpson, and A. Zaenen, eds., Architecture, Rules and References: A Festschrift for Joan
Bresnan. Stanford, CA: CSLI Publications.
Cummings, T. F. & T. G. Bailey, 1912. Panjabi Manual and Grammar: A Guide To Colloquial
Panjabi. Calcutta: Baptist Mission Press.
Grierson, G.A. 1916. "Western Hindi and Panjabi," Linguistic Survey of India 9:1. Superintendent of
Government Printing, India.
--------------- 1919. "Sindhi and Lahnda," Linguistic Survey of India 8:1. Superintendent of Government
Printing, India.
Khan, Sardar Mohammad, 2009. Punjabi Urdu Dictionary. Punjabi Literary Board,
Lahore.
Khetran, Mohd. Saadullah Khan, 2007. Saraiki Dictionary. Bahauddin Zakriya University,
Multan.
Paul, Jamil Ahmad, 1993.
Lahore.

Punjabi Classical Dictionary. Punjabi Science Board

Salahuddin, Iqbal, 2002. Comprehensive Punjabi Dictionary. Aziz Publishers, Lahore.

Shackle, C. 1972. Punjabi. Teach Yourself Books. London: English University Press.
--------------- 1976. The Siraiki Language of Central Pakistan: A Reference Grammar. London: School
of African and Oriental Studies.
--------------- 2003. "Panjabi," in Cardona, George & Dhanesh Jain, eds., The Indo-Aryan Languages.
London: Routledge.
Shad, Mohammad Sharif, 2008. Pothohari Urdu Dictionary. Zauraiz Publications,
Multan.
The Vanguard Punjabi English Dictionary. 1983, Lahore.

The Dictionary

alif mad n.1 the first letter of the Punjabi alphabet (only appears at the beginning of a word)
aabaad a adj.1 settled, established, populous, heavily populated

A lot of his fans are settled here.

s suff.

abad (forms proper name of town or city)

Tomorrow, Pak-India ministerial-level talks will be held in Islamabad.

aabaadii n.1 f.s. [plural:

aabaadiyaaN] a population, people

Women are half of the countrys population.

Seventy percent of Pakistans people live in rural areas.

He said that at this time, sixty percent of the rural population is engaged in farming and livestock breeding.

Miss Atiqur Rahman said that the country cannot prosper if half of the population stays at home.

settlement, community, village

His house is in the new settlement outside the city.

aap a reflexive pron. m.f.s. pl. oneself, one's own self (used as intensifier)

I myself study and I tutor my brothers kids, too.

In spite of the risk, the prime minister himself decided to go there.

They themselves will pick you up from home.

Did you buy this house yourself?

Dont worry; he himself will go with the children.

rd

s 3 p pron. m.f.

he, she (to express reverence for the prophets and sacred personages)

) (

He (peace be upon him) was believed to be the most truthful and trustworthy in the city.

aap biitii n.1 f.s. memoir, story of ones own experiences, biography

Having read the memoirs of newly-converted Muslim women, a British girl embraced Islam.

The Bollywood actress Rekha has decided to write her own biography.

aap hattyaa {aap hateaa} n.1 f.s. suicide

The suicide rate is increasing in the world.

He did not have any other option except suicide because of the burden of the loans.

Every year 1.2 million individuals in the world commit suicide.

Last year, more than 1,500 farmers had committed suicide in Haryana.

aap hudraa bannaa conjunct v. idiom to act like a boss oneself

Dont act like a boss yourself. Go and ask a senior person first.

aapaa n.1 f.s. [same as 3] form of address and reference for older sister

My older sister helps my mother a lot with all the chores.

aapaaN a 1st p pron. m.f.s. [same as ] I

I have tricked the government.
s m. f. pl we

We will go together.
d n.1 f.s. form of address

and reference for older sister

My older sister has been living in Karachi for the last twenty years.

aapo aapii reflexive pron. m.f.s. pl. by oneself, on one's own

The knots keep coming undone by themselves.

aapuN reflexive pron. m.f.s. pl. oneself, one's own self (used as intensifier)

He was surprised to hear that I had written that story myself.

If you dont believe me, then go and ask him yourself.

The chief justice of the countrys Supreme Court is himself fighting a battle for justice.

aapii reflexive pron. m.f.s. pl. a by oneself, on one's own

Dont worry about us; we will get there by ourselves.

oneself (used as intensifier)

He himself had told me about his wedding.

aape reflexive pron. m.f.s. pl. oneself, one's own self (used as intensifier)

President Musharraf should himself resign and leave.

Pakistan is itself a victim of terrorism.

aaaa n.1 m.s. wheat flour

The wheat flour crisis will soon end.

The police foiled the attempt to smuggle wheat flour.

aaKHir a n.1 m.s. end

The complete report on environmental science will be issued at the end of the year.

There will be no sign of rolling blackouts [lit. electricity load shedding] by the end of next year.
s adj.1 final, last

The constitutional package is a document. Its not the final word.

d adv.

finally, after all, eventually

Finally, he convinced me to get the insurance policy.

After all, what did she say that made you so upset?

aaKHir kaar adv. eventually

Eventually it is the relatives who are helpful.

aaKHrii adj.1 [same as ] last, final

Now the political party Jamaat is using its last tactic.

We will continue our efforts until the last minute.

He said that the movement was in the final stages.

aaraa n.1 f.pl. [irregular pl. of ]opinions

This will be the third and final round of talks with the Peoples Party.

aazaad adj.1 a free, independent

France is ready to aid in the return of Afghan refugees and the rebuilding of a free and nonaligned Afghanistan.
s figur. unrestrained, uncontrolled

Independence does not mean that a person should become completely unrestrained.

aazaadii n.1 f.s. [plural:

aazaadiyaaN same as ]

independence, liberty, freedom

The struggle for independence will continue in every situation.

For the Taliban and their supporters, this is a war for independence.

The government will protect human rights and civil liberties.

s

freedom, absence of restraints

The freedom of the media cannot be defended without the restoration of the judiciary.

Innumerable leaders of the freedom movement remained imprisoned here.

The Peoples Party government believes in freedom of the press.

aas n.1 f.s. [plural: aasaaN] hope, expectation, wish

There is still a little hope alive that times will change.

He always treated us beyond our hope and expectation.


The coalition government will live up to the peoples expectations.

aas tonaa conjunct v. to disappoint, to let down

He had to live abroad in order to fulfill his childrens wishes.

I will keep my word and will not disappoint you.

aas honaa conjunct v. to be hoped, to be wished, to have hope,

It is hoped that the decision to postpone the elections will be reversed.

aasaan {asaan} adj.1 easy, simple

Japan will provide a loan of 479 million dollars to Pakistan on easy terms.

She said that acting cannot be called an easy job.

President Obama said that capturing Osama alive is not a simple matter.

aaste post. [same as

]for, for the sake of, in order to

Quality education is of fundamental importance for the progress of any country.

aaGaaz n.1 m.s. start, beginning, commencement

China and Taiwan have signed historic treaties at the start of regular bilateral direct flights.

Farmers will get some relief with the commencement of the Green Tractor Scheme.

aaGaaz karnaa conjunct v. to start, to begin, to commence

President Bush will begin his six-day tour on the 13th of next month.

aaGaaz honaa conjunct v. to start, to begin, to commence

The meeting started with a recitation of the Holy Quran.

causative:
]v.t. a to say, to tell, to relate, to call
aakhnaa [past:

It is still premature to say which party is involved in this incident.

He said that there was no shortage of wheat in the country.