Verbs: Present Tense

01

The Auxiliary Verb: होना (honā)

Before forming sentences, you must know the conjugation of होना (honāhona) in the present tense. This verb acts as the "helper" at the end of the sentence to indicate who is performing the action.

• मैं (ma͠imain) → हूँ (hū̃hun)
• तू (tūtu) → है (hai)
• यह / वह (yah/vahyah/wah) → है (hai)
• हम (ham) → हैं (haĩ)
• तुम (tum) → हो (ho)
• आप (āpap) → हैं (haĩ)
• ये / वे (ye/veye/we) → हैं (haĩ)

Note that हैं (haĩ) is nasalized (indicated by the dot on top), distinguishing it from the singular है (hai).

02

Habitual Present (General Actions)

Use this form for facts, habits, and daily routines. To form it, remove the -ना (-nā-na) from the verb infinitive (e.g., बोलना (bolnābolna) becomes बोल (bol)) and add the habitual suffix followed by the auxiliary verb.

The suffix changes based on the gender and number of the subject:

• Masculine Singular: add -ता (-tā-ta)
• Masculine Plural: add -ते (-te)
• Feminine (Singular & Plural): add -ती (-tī-ti)

• 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.

• वे भारत में रहते हैं।

  ve bhārat mẽ rahte haĩ.we bharat mẽ rahte haĩ.

  They live in India.

If the subject is आप (āpap), the verb is always conjugated as plural, even if addressing one person.

• आप क्या करते हैं?

  āp kyā karte haĩ?ap kya karte haĩ?

  What do you do?

03

Present Progressive (Ongoing Actions)

Use this form for actions occurring at the exact moment of speaking. Instead of the habitual suffix, you use the progressive marker रहा (rahāraha).

The structure is: Verb Stem + रहा (rahāraha) / रहे (rahe) / रही (rahīrahi) + Auxiliary Verb.

• Masculine Singular: रहा (rahāraha)
• Masculine Plural: रहे (rahe)
• Feminine Singular: रही (rahīrahi)
• Feminine Plural: रही (rahīrahi) + plural auxiliary (हैं (haĩ))

• मैं पानी पी रहा हूँ।

  ma͠i pānī pī rahā hū̃.main pani pi raha hun.

  I am drinking water. (masculine)

• लड़की सो रही है।

  laṛkī so rahī hai.larki so rahi hai.

  The girl is sleeping.

• हम बाज़ार जा रहे हैं।

  ham bāzār jā rahe haĩ.ham bazar ja rahe haĩ.

  We are going to the market.

Note that for feminine subjects, the progressive marker रही (rahīrahi) does not change between singular and plural. The distinction is made only by the auxiliary verb (है (hai) vs हैं (haĩ)).

• मेरी बहनें खेल रही हैं।

  merī bahanẽ khel rahī haĩ.meri bahanẽ khel rahi haĩ.

  My sisters are playing.

04

Negation in the Present Tense

To make a sentence negative, place the word नहीं (nahī̃nahin) immediately before the verb.

In the Habitual Present, it is common to drop the auxiliary verb (है (hai), हैं (haĩ), etc.) entirely when the sentence is negative.

• मैं चाय नहीं पीता।

  ma͠i cāy nahī̃ pītā.main chay nahin pita.

  I do not drink tea.

• वह मांस नहीं खाता।

  vah mā̃s nahī̃ khātā.wah mans nahin khata.

  He does not eat meat.

In the Present Progressive, the auxiliary verb is usually retained.

• वह अभी नहीं आ रहा है।

  vah abhī nahī̃ ā rahā hai.wah abhi nahin a raha hai.

  He is not coming right now.

05

Summary of Endings

Here is a quick comparison using the verb जाना (jānājana) for a masculine subject:

• Habitual: जाता है (jātā haijata hai) — goes
• Progressive: जा रहा है (jā rahā haija raha hai) — is going

And for a feminine subject:

• Habitual: जाती है (jātī haijati hai) — goes
• Progressive: जा रही है (jā rahī haija rahi hai) — is going