A direct imperative addresses तू, तुम, or आप. To direct, permit, or prescribe an action for someone else, Hindi commonly uses the simple subjunctive as a jussive: वह अंदर आए “let them come in / they should come in,” सभी लोग बैठें “everyone should sit.” The form marks person-number-honorificity but not gender.
The same endings express wishes, possibilities, and dependent nonfacts; see the present subjunctive personal endings for the full morphological system. This page isolates their directive, or jussive, use.
The compact jussive paradigm
| Intended actor | Form of करना | Typical force |
|---|---|---|
| मैं | करूँ | shall I do it? |
| वह / singular third person | करे | let them do it / they should do it |
| हम | करें | let us do it |
| वे / plural or honorific third person | करें | let them do it / they should do it |
रवि पहले अपनी बात पूरी करे।
ravi pahle apnī bāt pūrī kare.
Let Ravi finish what he is saying first.
नीरा अंदर आए और यहाँ बैठे।
nīrā andar āe aur yahā̃ baiṭhe.
Have Neera come in and sit here.
सभी उम्मीदवार बाहर प्रतीक्षा करें।
sabhī ummīdvār bāhar pratīkṣā kareṃ.
All candidates should wait outside. (formal instruction)
Singular Ravi and Neera both take करे/आए/बैठे; gender does not change the simple subjunctive. Plural उम्मीदवार selects करें. In an official notice, this jussive can function like an impersonal instruction.
Inclusive first-person jussives
The same plural form creates “let's” proposals.
अब अगला सवाल लें।
ab aglā savāl leṃ.
Let's take the next question now.
पहले सबकी राय सुनें, फिर फ़ैसला करें।
pahle sabkī rāy suneṃ, phir faislā kareṃ.
Let's hear everyone's opinion first, then make a decision.
The understood subject is हम. These are proposals that include the speaker, not commands to an absent third person. Intonation can make them collaborative or authoritative, particularly when a chairperson says them to a group.
Negative jussives with न
Third-person jussives normally use न, not direct-address मत.
कोई इस कमरे में न आए।
koī is kamre meṃ na āe.
No one is to enter this room.
बच्चे सड़क के पास न खेलें।
bacce saṛak ke pās na kheleṃ.
The children should not play near the road.
ध्यान रहे कि कोई फ़ाइल छूट न जाए।
dhyān rahe ki koī fāil chūṭ na jāe.
Make sure that no file gets left out.
न sits inside the jussive or purpose-like clause. To prohibit the listener directly, use मत खेलो/मत खेलिए. To pass the prohibition onward, say बच्चों से कहो कि सड़क के पास न खेलें.
Affirmative, negative, and question contrasts
मोहन भी हमारे साथ चले।
mohan bhī hamāre sāth cale.
Let Mohan come with us too.
मोहन हमारे साथ न चले।
mohan hamāre sāth na cale.
Mohan should not come with us.
क्या मोहन भी हमारे साथ चले?
kyā mohan bhī hamāre sāth cale?
Should Mohan come with us too?
The question asks for a decision or recommendation, not a prediction. Future क्या मोहन चलेगा? would normally ask whether he will go.
Everyday alternatives with देना
In conversation, -ने दो/दीजिए is common for “let someone act.” It explicitly asks the addressee not to block the third person's action.
उसे अपनी बात कहने दो।
use apnī bāt kahne do.
Let them say what they have to say. (familiar addressee)
बच्चों को थोड़ी देर और खेलने दीजिए।
baccoṃ ko thoṛī der aur khelne dījie.
Please let the children play a little longer. (respectful)
Jussive वह कहे can sound prescriptive or formal; उसे कहने दो foregrounds permission. The two overlap but are not mechanically interchangeable.
Formal passive jussives
Administrative and procedural Hindi often combines a passive participle with subjunctive जाए/जाएँ.
यह प्रस्ताव अगली बैठक में रखा जाए।
yah prastāv aglī baiṭhak meṃ rakhā jāe.
Let this proposal be presented at the next meeting. (formal)
सभी अर्ज़ियाँ आज ही जाँची जाएँ।
sabhī arziyā̃ āj hī jā̃cī jāẽ.
All applications should be checked today. (formal)
Masculine singular प्रस्ताव controls रखा जाए. Feminine plural अर्ज़ियाँ controls जाँची, while plural subjunctive जाएँ supplies the passive-jussive layer. The checker is unexpressed; the grammatical patient controls agreement.
Reported and relayed commands
रीना से कहिए कि वह मुझे शाम तक फ़ोन करे।
rīnā se kahie ki vah mujhe śām tak fon kare.
Please tell Reena to call me by evening. (respectful addressee)
The direct addressee is encoded in कहिए; Reena's desired action appears as third-person करे. English uses tell + object + infinitive, while Hindi builds a finite कि-clause.
An oblique semantic actor
उसे आज ही अस्पताल ले जाया जाए।
use āj hī aspatāl le jāyā jāe.
They should be taken to the hospital today. (formal)
The person being moved is marked उसे and does not control agreement. The impersonal/passive predicate uses default masculine singular ले जाया जाए. Hindi follows the passive construction, not English “they” as a subject.
Common Mistakes
Using a second-person command for a third person
❌ मैंने कहा कि रवि पहले बोलो।
Incorrect — inside this report Ravi is the third-person actor, so use बोले.
✅ मैंने कहा कि रवि पहले बोले।
maĩne kahā ki ravi pahle bole.
I said that Ravi should speak first.
Adding gender to a simple jussive
❌ नीरा पहले बोलई।
Incorrect — third-person बोले does not mark feminine gender.
✅ नीरा पहले बोले।
nīrā pahle bole.
Let Neera speak first.
Using मत for an absent third person
❌ कोई अंदर मत आएगा।
Incorrect — मत does not combine with a third-person future to make a jussive prohibition.
✅ कोई अंदर न आए।
koī andar na āe.
No one should come inside.
Losing plural agreement
❌ सभी छात्र समय पर पहुँचेगा।
Incorrect — singular future पहुँचेगा cannot express a plural jussive.
✅ सभी छात्र समय पर पहुँचें।
sabhī chātr samay par pahũceṃ.
All students should arrive on time. (formal instruction)
Leaving the passive participle in default masculine singular
❌ अर्ज़ियाँ आज जाँचा जाएँ।
Incorrect — feminine plural अर्ज़ियाँ requires जाँची; plural जाएँ supplies the outer passive-jussive agreement.
✅ अर्ज़ियाँ आज जाँची जाएँ।
arziyā̃ āj jā̃cī jāẽ.
The applications should be checked today. (formal)
Key Takeaways
- Third-person करे/करें and inclusive करें use the simple subjunctive as a jussive.
- Simple jussives mark person-number-honorificity but not gender.
- Use न + subjunctive for third-person prohibitions; reserve मत for direct negative commands.
- Formal passive jussives make the patient, not an implied actor, the agreement controller.
Related Topics
- Subjunctive overviewA2 — Recognize and use the Hindi subjunctive for desired, possible, contingent, and nonasserted situations without confusing it with the future.
- Present subjunctive personal endingsA2 — Form the Hindi simple subjunctive with -ूँ, -े, -ो, and -ें endings, including the major vowel-final stem patterns.
- Subjunctive in wishes and blessingsB1 — Use Hindi subjunctive and optative patterns for hopes, blessings, well-wishes, and negative wishes across levels of respect.
- Permission with imperative formsB1 — Interpret Hindi imperatives as permission or encouragement when context means go ahead rather than do this.
- Reported commands and requestsA2 — Report instructions and requests with a subjunctive कि clause or an oblique infinitive while keeping the addressee, politeness, negation, and desired outcome clear.