The compound postposition की तरफ़ kī taraf means “toward,” “in the direction of,” or “facing the side of.” It is extremely common in conversation for movement, gaze, and orientation: घर की तरफ़ ghar kī taraf “toward home,” मेरी तरफ़ merī taraf “toward me/on my side.”
Because तरफ़ is feminine, the linker is fixed की, regardless of the complement's gender or number. The complement precedes the construction and appears in its oblique or possessive-like form.
Everyday movement in a direction
With a motion verb, की तरफ़ gives a heading without claiming that the moving participant arrives.
हम बाज़ार की तरफ़ पैदल जा रहे हैं।
ham bāzār kī taraf paidal jā rahe haiṃ.
We're walking toward the market.
बस शहर की तरफ़ मुड़ गई।
bas śahar kī taraf muṛ gaī.
The bus turned toward the city.
धुआँ हमारे घर की तरफ़ आ रहा है।
dhuā̃ hamāre ghar kī taraf ā rahā hai.
The smoke is coming toward our house.
The endpoint remains open. हम बाज़ार पहुँचे asserts arrival at the market; हम बाज़ार की तरफ़ गए says only that we went in its direction. In a route description this difference can matter: the market may merely be a landmark.
Orientation without movement
An object or person may face a direction while remaining still. Windows, doors, seats, and faces often occur in this pattern.
बालकनी बगीचे की तरफ़ खुलती है।
bālkanī bagīce kī taraf khultī hai.
The balcony faces the garden.
कुर्सी को खिड़की की तरफ़ कर दो।
kursī ko khiṛkī kī taraf kar do.
Turn the chair toward the window. (informal)
वह मेरी तरफ़ पीठ करके बैठा था।
vah merī taraf pīṭh karke baiṭhā thā.
He was sitting with his back toward me.
English often chooses faces even when the Hindi predicate is literally “opens toward.” The direction phrase remains compositional; the verb specifies whether the subject turns, opens, looks, or simply stands oriented.
Oblique complements
Changing nouns take their oblique form before की तरफ़.
| Direct form | Direction phrase |
|---|---|
| लड़का laṛkā | लड़के की तरफ़ laṛke kī taraf |
| बच्चे bacce | बच्चों की तरफ़ baccoṃ kī taraf |
| सड़क saṛak | सड़क की तरफ़ saṛak kī taraf |
| दुकानें dukāneṃ | दुकानों की तरफ़ dukānoṃ kī taraf |
कुत्ता खेलते हुए बच्चों की तरफ़ दौड़ा।
kuttā khelte hue baccoṃ kī taraf dauṛā.
The dog ran toward the children who were playing.
Here बच्चे becomes oblique plural बच्चों. The linker stays की; it agrees with relational noun तरफ़, not with the children.
Pronoun forms
Pronouns use feminine possessive-like forms: मेरी तरफ़, हमारी तरफ़, तुम्हारी तरफ़, आपकी तरफ़, इसकी/उसकी तरफ़, इनकी/उनकी तरफ़.
सबकी नज़रें अचानक उसकी तरफ़ मुड़ गईं।
sabkī nazreṃ acānak uskī taraf muṛ gaīṃ.
Everyone's eyes suddenly turned toward her.
गेंद आपकी तरफ़ आ रही है—सावधान!
gend āpkī taraf ā rahī hai—sāvdhān!
The ball is coming toward you—watch out! (respectful)
उसकी can refer to him, her, or it; the -की ending reflects feminine तरफ़, not the referent's gender. Bare citation forms such as मैं की तरफ़ are not standard.
की तरफ़ versus की ओर
The two constructions overlap. की तरफ़ is very frequent in spontaneous everyday speech, especially with concrete routes, gaze, and orientation. की ओर occurs in all registers but is particularly common in formal directions and abstract developments: सुधार की ओर “toward improvement.”
आवाज़ रसोई की तरफ़ से आ रही है।
āvāz rasoī kī taraf se ā rahī hai.
The sound is coming from the direction of the kitchen.
The added से shows why the relational noun matters. रसोई की तरफ़ is a direction toward the kitchen; रसोई की तरफ़ से establishes that side as a source. Compare the register tendencies on the की ओर page.
Alignment, side, and affiliation
Because तरफ़ also means “side,” it can identify which side someone supports or occupies. Context distinguishes physical side from social alignment.
इस बहस में मैं आपकी तरफ़ हूँ।
is bahas meṃ maĩ āpkī taraf hū̃.
I'm on your side in this debate.
This is an idiomatic extension, not physical motion. It remains transparent: supporting someone is conceptualized as standing on their side.
की तरफ़ से has further grammaticalized meanings: “from,” “on behalf of,” or “as someone's contribution.”
मेरी तरफ़ से सबको मिठाई खिलाइए।
merī taraf se sabko miṭhāī khilāie.
Please give everyone sweets on my behalf. (respectful request)
कंपनी की तरफ़ से अभी कोई जवाब नहीं आया है।
kampanī kī taraf se abhī koī javāb nahīṃ āyā hai.
No response has come from the company yet.
These source/representation readings must be learned with से. Without से, कंपनी की तरफ़ means toward or on the company's side, not “from the company.”
Productive direction versus lexical complements
Any plausible landmark can productively define a direction: नदी की तरफ़ चलना, आवाज़ की तरफ़ देखना. But English verbs containing at do not automatically require की तरफ़. मुझे देखो is the ordinary “look at me”; मेरी तरफ़ देखो specifically means “look in my direction.” Likewise, उस पर हँसना means “laugh at him,” not उसकी तरफ़ हँसना. The verb's lexical complement must be learned separately from the optional direction phrase.
कैमरे की तरफ़ देखिए, फिर मुस्कुराइए।
kaimre kī taraf dekhie, phir muskurāie.
Look toward the camera, then smile. (respectful)
A natural exchange
मेट्रो किस तरफ़ है? — उस लाल इमारत की तरफ़ चलते जाइए।
meṭro kis taraf hai? — us lāl imārat kī taraf calte jāie.
Which way is the metro? — Keep walking toward that red building.
Bare किस तरफ़ asks “which way?” because no explicit possessor is needed.
Common Mistakes
1. Using के instead of fixed feminine की
❌ हम नदी के तरफ़ जा रहे हैं।
Incorrect: तरफ़ is feminine, so use की.
✅ हम नदी की तरफ़ जा रहे हैं।
ham nadī kī taraf jā rahe haiṃ.
We are going toward the river.
2. Leaving a masculine -आ noun direct
❌ गेंद उस लड़का की तरफ़ गई।
Incorrect: लड़का becomes oblique लड़के.
✅ गेंद उस लड़के की तरफ़ गई।
gend us laṛke kī taraf gaī.
The ball went toward that boy.
3. Using a citation-form pronoun
❌ वह मैं की तरफ़ देख रहा है।
Incorrect: use the feminine possessive-like form मेरी.
✅ वह मेरी तरफ़ देख रहा है।
vah merī taraf dekh rahā hai.
He is looking toward me.
4. Using direction to mean completed arrival
❌ वे दिल्ली की तरफ़ पहुँच गए।
Incorrect for arrival in Delhi: की तरफ़ only supplies direction.
✅ वे दिल्ली पहुँच गए।
ve dillī pahũc gae.
They reached Delhi.
Key Takeaways
- की तरफ़ marks direction or orientation and does not entail arrival.
- The complement is oblique; pronouns use मेरी, आपकी, उसकी, and related feminine forms.
- की तरफ़ is especially common in conversation; की ओर is frequent in formal and abstract contexts.
- Adding से creates source, representative, and “on someone's behalf” readings.
Related Topics
- की ओर directionB1 — Use की ओर for physical and abstract movement toward a reference point, with possessive-form pronouns and contrasts with की तरफ़ and direct objects.
- के सामने opposite and in frontB1 — Use के सामने for positions in front of or opposite a landmark, presence before a person, and abstract confrontation, while distinguishing आगे and सामना करना.
- के पीछे behind and motiveB1 — Use के पीछे for physical position, following and pursuit, and the underlying motive or force behind an event, with correct oblique complements.
- तक for endpoints and limitsA2 — Use तक for spatial destinations, deadlines, ranges, measurable limits, and the lexicalized expression यहाँ तक कि.
- The oblique in compound postpositional phrasesA2 — Build oblique noun phrases before compound Hindi postpositions such as के साथ, के लिए, के पास, and के बारे में.