Verbs: Habitual Action — Hindi Grammar

The habitual aspect describes actions that happen regularly, routines, general truths, or characteristics of the subject. It corresponds to the English Simple Present tense (e.g., "I go," "she works," "they eat").

This form is distinct from the continuous form ("I am going"); it focuses on the fact that an action occurs generally, not necessarily right at this moment.

Forming the Habitual Participle

To create the habitual form, you must modify the main verb. Take the infinitive of the verb (e.g., (jānājana) - to go), remove the ending - (-nā-na) to get the stem, and add a suffix that matches the gender and number of the subject.

Masculine Singular: Add - (-tā-ta)
Masculine Plural: Add - (-te)
Feminine (Singular & Plural): Add - (-tī-ti)

Sentence Structure

A complete sentence in the present habitual tense consists of the subject, the habitual participle (formed above), and an auxiliary verb. The auxiliary verb is a conjugated form of (honāhona) to be, such as (hū̃hun), (hai), (ha͠ihain), or (ho).

The participle indicates what happens and the gender of the doer. The auxiliary indicates when it happens (present tense) and the person (I, you, he/she).

मैं हिंदी बोलता हूँ।
ma͠i hindī boltā hū̃.main hindi bolta hun.
I speak Hindi. (Masculine speaker)
वह यहाँ काम करती है।
vah yahā̃ kām kartī hai.wah yahan kam karti hai.
She works here.

Masculine Agreement

If the subject is masculine singular (he, it, singular male names), the verb ends in - (-tā-ta). If the subject is masculine plural (they, we, boys) or the formal 'you' (āpap), the verb ends in - (-te).

लड़का खेलता है।
laṛkā kheltā hai.larka khelta hai.
The boy plays.
वे क्रिकेट खेलते हैं।
ve krikeṭ khelte ha͠i.we krikeṭ khelte hain.
They play cricket.
आप क्या करते हैं?
āp kyā karte ha͠i?ap kya karte hain?
What do you do? (Formal)

Feminine Agreement

For feminine subjects, the participle ending is always - (-tī-ti), regardless of number. The distinction between singular and plural is shown only by the auxiliary verb ( (hai) vs (ha͠ihain)).

लड़की किताब पढ़ती है।
laṛkī kitāb paṛhtī hai.larki kitab parhti hai.
The girl reads a book.
लड़कियाँ किताब पढ़ती हैं।
laṛkiyā̃ kitāb paṛhtī ha͠i.larkiyan kitab parhti hain.
The girls read a book.

Negative Sentences

To express that someone does not do something habitually, place the negative marker (nahī̃nahin) immediately before the verb participle.

In negative habitual sentences, it is very common to drop the auxiliary verb ( (hai), (hū̃hun), etc.) entirely. Both including it and dropping it are correct, but dropping it is frequent in speech.

मैं चाय नहीं पीता।
ma͠i cāy nahī̃ pītā.main chay nahin pita.
I do not drink tea.
वह स्कूल नहीं जाती।
vah skūl nahī̃ jātī.wah skul nahin jati.
She does not go to school.

Universal Truths

Because this form expresses generalities, it is used for facts that are always true, regardless of time.

सूरज पूरब में उगता है।
sūraj pūrab mẽ ugtā hai.suraj purab mẽ ugta hai.
The sun rises in the east.
पक्षी आकाश में उड़ते हैं।
pakṣī ākāś mẽ uṛte ha͠i.pakshi akash mẽ urte hain.
Birds fly in the sky.

In the course

Sentences from Lingora’s Hindi course

128 of the course's 500 sentences use this, the first in lesson 19. A few of them, with the words “Verbs: Habitual Action” is about in bold:

मैं उनसे प्यार करता हूँ और वो मुझसे प्यार करते हैं।
ma͠i unse pyār kartā hū̃ aur vo mujhse pyār karte ha͠i.main unse pyar karta hun aur wo mujhse pyar karte hain.
I love them and they love me.
Lesson 32
मैं अब घर जाना चाहती हूँ।
ma͠i ab ghar jānā cāhtī hū̃.main ab ghar jana chahti hun.
I want to go home now.
Lesson 71
हाँ। चलिए चाइनीज़ खाना खाते हैं।
hā̃. calie cāinīz khānā khāte ha͠i.han. chalie chainiz khana khate hain.
Yes. Let's eat Chinese food.
Lesson 127

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