ठग ने पैसा लिया।

ने is the ergative marker in Hindi. It is commonly used with the subject of a transitive verb in the perfective past.

So in ठग ने पैसा लिया, ठग ने means the swindler as the doer of the completed action.

A very useful pattern to remember is:

[subject] + ने + [object] + [perfective verb]

For example:

• राम ने खाना खाया। — Ram ate food.
• सीमा ने किताब पढ़ी। — Seema read a book.

So here, ने does not mean by exactly, but it often feels a bit like marking the agent of a completed action.

लिया is the perfective form of लेना (to take). It shows that the action was completed: took.

So:

• लेना — to take
• लिया — took / has taken, depending on context

Other forms would change the meaning:

• लेता है — takes / is in the habit of taking
• लिया था — had taken
• ले रहा है — is taking

In this sentence, लिया is the simple completed action, so it matches took very well.

Because in this kind of sentence, the verb often agrees with the direct object, not the subject.

Here is the important grammar point:

When:

1. the verb is transitive,
2. the action is perfective,
3. and the subject takes ने,

then the verb usually agrees with the direct object, as long as that object is not marked with को.

In ठग ने पैसा लिया:

• ठग has ने
• पैसा is the direct object
• पैसा is masculine singular
• so the verb is लिया (masculine singular)

Compare:

• ठग ने पैसा लिया। — masculine singular object
• ठग ने किताब ली। — feminine singular object
• ठग ने पैसे लिए। — masculine plural object

Because पैसा here is the direct object, and Hindi often leaves direct objects unmarked when they are inanimate and not especially marked for specificity.

So पैसा लिया is completely normal.

With many inanimate nouns, especially in simple sentences, को is often not used:

• मैंने पानी पिया। — I drank water.
• उसने दरवाज़ा खोला। — He/she opened the door.

Using को with an inanimate object is possible in some cases, but it is not the default here. In this sentence, no को is needed.

It can mean either, depending on context.

Hindi does not have articles like a and the, so पैसा could be understood as:

• money
• the money
• sometimes even some money

In context, this sentence could mean:

• The swindler took the money.
• The swindler took money.

If the meaning has already been provided to the learner as the money, that is a natural translation. But the Hindi sentence itself does not explicitly mark the.

ठग means a swindler, conman, fraudster, or cheat.

It refers to someone who deceives people in order to get money or some advantage.

Depending on context, English translations could include:

• swindler
• conman
• fraud
• cheat

It is a fairly strong word and clearly negative.

The dictionary form is लेना, which means to take.

Hindi verbs are usually listed in the -ना form:

• लेना — to take
• करना — to do
• खाना — to eat

From लेना, you get forms like:

• लेता है — takes
• लिया — took
• लेंगे — will take
• लो — take! (informal command)

So if you are learning vocabulary, the word to memorize is लेना.

The neutral word order here is:

ठग ने पैसा लिया।
subject + ने + object + verb

This is the most common and natural order.

Hindi word order is somewhat flexible, but the verb usually stays near the end. You may move other parts for emphasis, for example:

• पैसा ठग ने लिया। — It was the swindler who took the money / The money was taken by the swindler.
• ठग ने लिया पैसा। — possible in some contexts, but less neutral

For learners, it is best to stick with: subject + object + verb

A simple pronunciation guide is:

ṭhag ne paisā liyā

Roughly:

• ठग — ṭhag
  The ठ is a retroflex t sound with a puff of air. It is not the same as English th in think.
• ने — ne
• पैसा — pai-sā
• लिया — li-yā

A more natural flow is something like:

ṭhag ne pai-sā li-yā

A few key points:

• ठ is a hard retroflex consonant, not English th
• ै in पै sounds like ai in aisle
• या in लिया is pronounced clearly: li-yā

Because Hindi does not have definite and indefinite articles like English the and a/an.

So Hindi often just uses the noun by itself:

• लड़का — boy / the boy / a boy
• किताब — book / the book / a book
• पैसा — money / the money

Context tells you which one is meant.

That is why ठग ने पैसा लिया can naturally be translated with the even though no separate Hindi word appears for it.

Yes. In this kind of sentence, the perfective verb usually agrees with the direct object, so a feminine object would make the verb feminine too.

Compare:

• ठग ने पैसा लिया।
  पैसा is masculine singular, so लिया

• ठग ने रकम ली।
  रकम is feminine singular, so ली

• ठग ने किताब ली।
  किताब is feminine singular, so ली

This is a very important pattern in Hindi past/perfective transitive sentences with ने.

Yes, depending on context, लेना can mean more than just physically take.

It can mean:

• take
• receive
• accept

So ठग ने पैसा लिया could mean:

• the swindler took the money
• the swindler received the money
• the swindler accepted the money

The most natural translation depends on the situation. If someone handed over money in a scam, received or accepted might fit. If the focus is on taking possession, took works well.

Yes. A very common version would be:

उसने पैसा लिया। — He/She took the money.

Here:

• उसने = he/she
  • ने
• पैसा = money / the money
• लिया = took

Notice that Hindi does not mark he and she differently in this pronoun:

• उसने can mean he or she
• context tells you which one is meant

So this sentence is also useful for seeing how ने works with pronouns.