Feminine nouns ending in long -ī form one of Hindi's most productive and recognizable declensions. The singular stays unchanged, while the direct plural ends in -iyā̃ and the oblique plural in -iyoṃ: लड़की laṛkī → लड़कियाँ laṛkiyā̃ → लड़कियों laṛkiyoṃ. Review gender clues from endings for the high-frequency masculine exceptions.
The noun's gender remains feminine in every cell. Adjectives and eligible participles therefore keep feminine agreement even when the noun becomes plural or oblique. English speakers must learn both layers: the noun's case-number ending and the agreement around it.
The core paradigm
The noun लड़की laṛkī shows all the important forms:
| Form | Hindi | Ending |
|---|---|---|
| direct singular | लड़की laṛkī | -ī |
| direct plural | लड़कियाँ laṛkiyā̃ | -iyā̃ |
| oblique singular | लड़की laṛkī | -ī, unchanged |
| oblique plural | लड़कियों laṛkiyoṃ | -iyoṃ |
| vocative singular | लड़की laṛkī | unchanged |
| vocative plural | लड़कियो laṛkiyo | -iyo, no nasalization |
The y in the plural endings provides a smooth transition between the stem and the new vowel. It is audible in laṛ-ki-yā̃ and laṛ-ki-yoṃ. Do not simply add -eṃ to make laṛkīeṃ.
नई लड़की आज हमारी कक्षा में आई।
naī laṛkī āj hamārī kakṣā meṃ āī.
A new girl joined our class today.
नई लड़कियाँ आज हमारी कक्षा में आईं।
naī laṛkiyā̃ āj hamārī kakṣā meṃ āīṃ.
New girls joined our class today.
The adjective नई stays feminine in both sentences. Number appears on लड़कियाँ, the plural auxiliary हैं when present, and the plural participle आईं.
Direct plural versus oblique plural
Direct plural लड़कियाँ can stand as a subject or another direct noun phrase. Before a postposition, plural लड़कियाँ must become लड़कियों.
लड़कियाँ पुस्तकालय में बैठी हैं।
laṛkiyā̃ pustakālay meṃ baiṭhī haiṃ.
The girls are sitting in the library.
मैंने लड़कियों से बाद में बात की।
maĩne laṛkiyoṃ se bād meṃ bāt kī.
I spoke with the girls later.
This is the layered case system in its clearest form. The noun marks feminine plural oblique with -iyoṃ, while the following postposition supplies the relation. English adds a preposition to unchanged girls; Hindi changes the noun and then adds the postposition.
The singular does not display that contrast:
लड़की बाहर इंतज़ार कर रही है।
laṛkī bāhar intazār kar rahī hai.
The girl is waiting outside.
लड़की को अंदर बुलाइए।
laṛkī ko andar bulāie.
Please call the girl inside.
Direct and oblique singular are both लड़की. The postposition shows the oblique environment even when the noun itself is unchanged.
Other productive -ī nouns
The same pattern applies to कुर्सी kursī “chair,” नदी nadī “river,” चाबी cābī “key,” रोटी roṭī “flatbread,” and many established loans in -ī.
| Singular | Direct plural | Oblique plural |
|---|---|---|
| कुर्सी kursī | कुर्सियाँ kursiyā̃ | कुर्सियों kursiyoṃ |
| नदी nadī | नदियाँ nadiyā̃ | नदियों nadiyoṃ |
| चाबी cābī | चाबियाँ cābiyā̃ | चाबियों cābiyoṃ |
| रोटी roṭī | रोटियाँ roṭiyā̃ | रोटियों roṭiyoṃ |
चारों चाबियाँ पुरानी कुर्सियों पर पड़ी हैं।
cāroṃ cābiyā̃ purānī kursiyoṃ par paṛī haiṃ.
All four keys are lying on the old chairs.
Short-i Sanskritic feminine nouns such as शक्ति śakti “power” form plurals शक्तियाँ śaktiyā̃ and शक्तियों śaktiyoṃ by the same productive pattern. Their pronunciation does not acquire long ī in the singular; they join the class morphologically at the plural boundary.
Agreement remains feminine
Declinable feminine adjectives use -ī in singular, plural, direct, and oblique contexts. Unlike masculine -ā/-e, they do not acquire a special oblique adjective ending.
छोटी नदी के पास दो पुरानी बस्तियाँ हैं।
choṭī nadī ke pās do purānī bastiyā̃ haiṃ.
There are two old settlements near the small river.
छोटी नदी is singular oblique before the compound postpositional phrase; छोटी and नदी remain visibly unchanged. The following case marker, not a new feminine singular ending, identifies the environment.
Masculine nouns in -ī are the major exception to an ending-based guess. आदमी ādmī, पानी pānī, हाथी hāthī, मोती motī are masculine and do not form direct plurals in -iyā̃. Their agreement is masculine: ठंडा पानी, दो बड़े हाथी.
Vocatives and register
Vocative singular is identical to the stem, while vocative plural drops nasalization: लड़कियो!, बहनो! for the corresponding consonant class, सहेलियो! for सहेली. Bare group vocatives can sound school-like, rhetorical, or overly direct. In respectful settings, names, titles, or जी are often more natural.
सहेलियो, जल्दी आओ!
saheliyo, jaldī āo!
Friends, come quickly! (familiar plural address)
A natural exchange
ये चाबियाँ किसकी हैं? — पुरानी चाबियों के साथ रख दो।
ye cābiyā̃ kiskī haiṃ? — purānī cābiyoṃ ke sāth rakh do.
Whose keys are these? — Put them with the old keys.
The exchange moves from direct plural चाबियाँ to oblique plural चाबियों. Feminine पुरानी stays unchanged, while the noun ending carries the visible case-number contrast.
Common Mistakes
1. Leaving a count noun singular after a plural numeral
❌ बाहर दो लड़की खड़ी हैं।
Incorrect: the direct plural of लड़की is लड़कियाँ.
✅ बाहर दो लड़कियाँ खड़ी हैं।
bāhar do laṛkiyā̃ khaṛī haiṃ.
Two girls are standing outside.
2. Using the direct plural before a postposition
❌ लड़कियाँ से बात कीजिए।
Incorrect: plural लड़की must be oblique लड़कियों before से.
✅ लड़कियों से बात कीजिए।
laṛkiyoṃ se bāt kījie.
Please speak with the girls.
3. Treating आदमी as feminine because of -ī
❌ दो आदमियाँ बाहर बैठी हैं।
Incorrect: आदमी is masculine class II, not a feminine -ī noun.
✅ दो आदमी बाहर बैठे हैं।
do ādmī bāhar baiṭhe haiṃ.
Two men are sitting outside.
4. Adding an English plural ending to an established noun
❌ कमरे में चार कुर्सीस हैं।
Incorrect in standard Hindi: कुर्सी takes the Hindi plural कुर्सियाँ.
✅ कमरे में चार कुर्सियाँ हैं।
kamre meṃ cār kursiyā̃ haiṃ.
There are four chairs in the room.
Key Takeaways
- Feminine -ī nouns have direct plural -iyā̃ and oblique plural -iyoṃ.
- Direct and oblique singular are identical, but a following postposition still creates oblique case.
- Feminine adjective forms normally remain -ī across number and case.
- Vocative plural ends in nonnasal -iyo.
- Common masculine -ī nouns such as पानी and आदमी belong to a different class.
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Start learning Hindi →Related Topics
- Reliable gender clues from endingsA1 — Use productive Hindi noun endings to predict gender and declension while learning the high-frequency exceptions that endings cannot solve.
- Feminine consonant-final nounsA2 — Decline feminine consonant-final nouns with direct plural -eṃ and oblique plural -oṃ while maintaining feminine agreement.
- Feminine nouns in -iyā and -āA2 — Distinguish the two feminine vowel-final declensions: lexical -iyā nouns such as चिड़िया and -ā nouns such as भाषा and समस्या.
- Direct singular and plural formsA2 — Recognize Hindi's default noun forms and build direct plurals across the major masculine and feminine declension classes.
- Oblique plural formationA2 — Build the plural noun forms required before postpositions across the major Hindi declension classes.
- Feminine -ī across number and caseA1 — Use adjective -ई with feminine nouns in both singular and plural, direct and oblique contexts.