Hindi

American  

[hin-dee] / ˈhɪn di /

noun

1. the most widely spoken of the modern Indic vernaculars, especially its best-known variety, Western Hindi.

2. a literary language derived from Hindustani, used by Hindus.

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Hindi British  

/ ˈhɪndɪ /

noun

1. a language or group of dialects of N central India. It belongs to the Indic branch of the Indo-European family and is closely related to Urdu See also Hindustani

2. a formal literary dialect of this language, the official language of India, usually written in Nagari script

3. a person whose native language is Hindi

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Etymology

Origin of Hindi

First recorded in 1790–1800; from Hindi, Urdu, equivalent to Persian Hind, Hindu (compare Sanskrit Sindhu “river,” specifically the Indus river, with the extended sense “region of the Indus; Sind”) + -ī a suffix indicating relationship or origin; replacing Hinduee, from Persian Hinduī; Sind

Compare meaning

How does hindi compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Urdu vs. Hindi
• Hindi vs. Hindu
• Sanskrit vs. Hindi

Example Sentences

She speaks Hindi and Spanish fluently, with working knowledge of French and Arabic.

From The Wall Street Journal

Overnight, Singh became Bollywood's most relateable voice, recording across many languages - Hindi, Bengali, Tamil and Telugu - and sometimes singing multiple songs in a single film.

From BBC

He eventually became fluent in Hindi, a rare achievement in Delhi's foreign press corps and one which endeared him to many Indians for whom he was always "Tully sahib".

From BBC

Called 120 Bahadur – Hindi for brave hearts – the film tells the story of Indian soldiers who fought valiantly to defend the Rezang La pass in the freezing Himalayan mountains of Ladakh.

From BBC

It also played renditions of other popular Hindi melodies.

From BBC