7 1.4 Nasal Sounds in Hindi

Nasal Sounds Video

Instructor Video: Nasal Sounds

Bindu/Anusvaar (ं)

In Hindi script, nasalization is marked by a superscript “bindu/anusvaar” (ं). “Bindu/anusvaar” represents the nasal sounds for all the consonant categories (velar, palatal, retroflex, dental, and labial). To identify the correct category of the nasal sound marked by a “bindu/anusvaar,” one has to look at the next letter. The “bindu/anusvaar” belongs to the category of the next consonant letter.

Table 8 (below). List of nasal sounds with examples in Hindi words.

Chandrabindu (ँ)

Chandrabindu (ँ) is used to indicate the vowel nasalization.

For example: अँधा, हूँ, बाँध |

Sometimes, when a vowel markings in a word does not allow the space because of the superscript then instead of chandrabindu (ँ), bindu (ं) is used.

For example: मैं, सिंचाई, में

In typing, it is very common to see the use of bindu (ं) instead of chandrabindu (ँ) in modern Hindi script.

Test yourself

Reading/Writing Task

Worksheet 6 (below). Reading and Writing: Please read these words and try to write them in Roman script and then check your answer using video (below).

Instructor Video: Feedback on Worksheet 6

धन्यवाद !