चलना is an intransitive verb whose meanings radiate from motion: walk, move, run or function, remain in operation, be current, and suffice. English splits these meanings among several verbs, so mastering चलना means learning its normal subjects and collocations, not simply memorizing “walk.”
Principal forms
The stem is चल-. It forms its habitual, progressive, and perfective regularly and does not take ने in the perfective.
| Category | Forms |
|---|---|
| infinitive | चलना |
| habitual | चलता / चलती / चलते |
| progressive | चल रहा / चल रही / चल रहे |
| perfective | चला / चली / चले / चलीं |
| conjunctive | चलकर |
| simultaneous participle | चलते हुए |
| prospective | चलने वाला / चलने वाली / चलने वाले |
दादा रोज़ शाम को आधा घंटा चलते हैं।
dādā roz śām ko ādhā ghaṇṭā calte haiṃ.
Grandfather walks for half an hour every evening. (honorific)
हम नदी के किनारे धीरे-धीरे चल रहे थे।
ham nadī ke kināre dhīre-dhīre cal rahe the.
We were walking slowly along the riverbank.
For a destination, everyday Hindi often prefers पैदल जाना “go on foot” when the endpoint matters, and चलना when the manner or ongoing movement matters. Thus English “I walked to the market” may naturally be मैं बाज़ार पैदल गया.
Moving, operating, and being current
Vehicles and mechanisms can be the subject of चलना without walking. The shared meaning is that they move or function according to their normal course.
बिजली जाने पर भी यह घड़ी चलती रहती है।
bijlī jāne par bhī yah ghaṛī caltī rahtī hai.
This clock keeps running even when the power goes out.
सुबह से लिफ़्ट नहीं चल रही है।
subah se lifṭ nahīṃ cal rahī hai.
The elevator hasn't been working since morning.
Policies, customs, films, and currencies can also “run” or be in circulation: नियम चलना, फ़िल्म चलना, सिक्का चलना. These extensions are neutral; they are not marked literary metaphors.
इस दफ़्तर में पुराना नियम अब भी चलता है।
is daftar meṃ purānā niyam ab bhī caltā hai.
The old rule is still followed in this office.
Agreement and the perfective
As an intransitive verb, चलना has an unmarked subject that controls agreement. Perfective चला/चली/चले/चलीं takes no ergative ने.
आख़िरी बस हमारे पहुँचने से पहले चली गई।
āxirī bas hamāre pahũcne se pahle calī gaī.
The last bus left before we arrived.
Here feminine बस controls both चली and गई. Compound चल जाना often means leave, go away, or cease to be present, with जाना adding a completed departure. It is not the ordinary transitive “drive a vehicle,” which is चलाना.
Future and subjunctive
| Person | Subjunctive | Future masculine | Future feminine |
|---|---|---|---|
| मैं | चलूँ | चलूँगा | चलूँगी |
| तुम | चलो | चलोगे | चलोगी |
| यह / वह | चले | चलेगा | चलेगी |
| हम / आप / ये / वे | चलें | चलेंगे | चलेंगी |
अगर बारिश रुक जाए, तो हम पैदल चलेंगे।
agar bāriś ruk jāe, to ham paidal caleṅge.
If the rain stops, we'll walk.
आइए, अब अगले मुद्दे पर चलें।
āie, ab agle mudde par caleṃ.
Let's move on to the next issue.
The last sentence is an inclusive first-person plural subjunctive, a polite proposal rather than a command directed only at “you.”
चलो and other imperatives
The imperatives are intimate चल, familiar चलो, and respectful चलिए. चलो is exceptionally frequent as a discourse word: it can mean “come on,” “let's go,” “all right then,” or introduce an accepted next step. Its precise English translation depends on context.
चलो, पहले चाय पीते हैं और फिर फ़ैसला करेंगे।
calo, pahle cāy pīte haiṃ aur phir faislā kareṅge.
All right, let's have tea first and then decide.
ज़रा संभलकर चलिए; फ़र्श गीला है।
zarā sambhalkar calie; farś gīlā hai.
Please walk carefully; the floor is wet.
Non-finite forms include चलते हुए, चलकर, चलने, and चला हुआ. चलता हुआ पंखा is “a running fan,” while चलता-फिरता describes something or someone mobile and active.
चल पड़ना: setting off
चल पड़ना presents movement as beginning, often promptly or in response to a trigger. चल stays as the bare lexical stem and पड़ना carries agreement and aspect.
बारिश हल्की होते ही यात्री फिर चल पड़े।
bāriś halkī hote hī yātrī phir cal paṛe.
As soon as the rain eased, the travelers set off again.
The construction need not imply accidental motion; with चल it often foregrounds onset and departure. This is more specific than simple चले, which can merely report that people left.
चलाना, चलवाना, and lexical valency
Transitive चलाना means cause to move, drive, operate, or run something: गाड़ी चलाना, मशीन चलाना, दुकान चलाना. Indirect चलवाना means have something operated or have someone drive it. These meanings are conventional lexical extensions, not merely predictable morphology.
इस मशीन को केवल प्रशिक्षित कर्मचारी चलाते हैं।
is maśīn ko keval praśikṣit karmacārī calāte haiṃ.
Only trained employees operate this machine.
The broader family is explained under intransitive–transitive–causative sets. चलना itself cannot take a direct object meaning “operate.”
Idioms and complement frames
काम चलना means that something suffices or that affairs continue, often only adequately: इतने पैसों में काम चल जाएगा “This much money will do.” पता चलना means find out or become known, with the knower often marked by को.
मुझे सुबह पता चला कि बैठक रद्द हो गई है।
mujhe subah patā calā ki baiṭhak radd ho gaī hai.
I found out in the morning that the meeting had been canceled.
Here मुझे is an experiencer, not an agent walking. The fixed frame must be learned as a unit.
Common Mistakes
❌ मैंने रोज़ पार्क में चलता हूँ।
Incorrect — habitual intransitive चलना has an unmarked subject, not मैंने.
✅ मैं रोज़ पार्क में चलता हूँ।
maĩ roz pārk meṃ caltā hū̃.
I walk in the park every day. (male speaker)
❌ सीमा कार चलती है।
Incorrect for ‘Seema drives a car’ — operating a vehicle requires चलाना.
✅ सीमा कार चलाती है।
sīmā kār calātī hai.
Seema drives a car.
❌ दोनों बसें समय पर चला।
Incorrect — feminine plural बसें requires चलीं.
✅ दोनों बसें समय पर चलीं।
donoṃ baseṃ samay par calīṃ.
Both buses left on time.
❌ कृपया आप मेरे साथ चलो।
Incorrect — honorific आप requires respectful चलिए, not familiar चलो.
✅ कृपया आप मेरे साथ चलिए।
kripyā āp mere sāth calie.
Please come with me. (respectful)
Key Takeaways
चलना is an intransitive verb of motion, operation, circulation, and sufficiency. Its subject controls agreement and takes no perfective ने. Frequent चलो has both motion and discourse uses; चल पड़ना marks setting off; and transitive चलाना introduces an operator or driver.
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