उसने क्या कहा?

what

Breakdown of उसने क्या कहा?

• वह: she
• कहना: to say

Questions & Answers about उसने क्या कहा?

What does उसने mean exactly?

उसने breaks down as:

• उस = that person / he / she in an oblique form
• ने = a marker used with many completed transitive actions in Hindi

So उसने means he/she as the doer of the action in this sentence.

A native English speaker often expects a separate word for he or she, but Hindi uses forms that change depending on grammar. Here, वह becomes उस before ने.

Why is ने used here?

ने is the ergative marker. In standard Hindi, it is commonly used when:

• the verb is transitive (it has an object, even if that object is a question word like क्या)
• the action is completed / perfective

Since कहा is the perfective form of कहना (to say), Hindi uses ने with the subject:

• उसने कहा = he/she said

This is one of the most important grammar patterns in Hindi, and it often feels unfamiliar to English speakers because English does not mark subjects this way.

Does उसने mean he or she?