What are Tatsam and Tadbhav words? - CTET Hindi Grammar Part 1
When we think about Hindi as a language, Sanskrit is considered to be its root language. That is, Hindi is said to have originated from Sanskrit.
There are many words which do have their Sanskritised roots still, especially in the form of the formal written Hindi.
Based on its origin, Hindi words can be divided into 5 kinds, viz:
1. Tatsam - These are original Sanskrit words which are used as it is in Hindi. Generally it has been seen that the Tatsam words are used more in the written form. However, it must be remembered that all Tatsam words may not have Tadbhav forms.
2. Tadbhav - These words originate from Sanskrit (Tatsam) words but are easier to speak or have been modified by replacing the harder sounders with softer or more regional sounds.
3. Deshaj - These are words which have their origin in regional Hindi and have not been taken from Sanskrit. Thus, these are words which are not Tatsam or Tadbhav but not the influence of foreign languages either.
4. Videshi - Hindi has been influenced to a large extent by Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Turkish, Portuguese and English. Many words of foreign origin are now an accepted part of the Hindi dictionary. Such words are known as 'Videshi' words.
5. Sankar - These words can also be understood as 'mixed-words' which means that it consists of two or more parts and each of the part belongs to different languages.
This blog will dive deep into Tatsam and Tadbhav words.
‘Tat’ means ‘that’ and ‘sam’ mean ‘similar to’. Thus those words which are similar to the Sanskrit words are known as Tatsam words.
Tadbhav words are those derived from Tatsam words. In many cases, the Tatsam words sound very formal and the easier to say Tadbhav words are used.
To put it simply, both Tatsam and Tadbhav words are derived from Sanskrit. However, the Tatsam words are the same as the Sanskrit words while Tadbhav words are the more simplified versions of the Tatsam words.
Some Tips to differentiate Tatsam from Tadbhav words
1. The use of the letters त्र and तृ
पितृ = पिता , पुत्र = पूत , पत्र , पात्र, नृत्य
2. The use of the letter ‘ksha’ (क्ष ) - In the Tadbhav form, the easier sounds of chh, kha and s are used
(पक्षी = पंछी , रक्षा = राखी, शिक्षा = सीख, भीक्षा = भीख, लक्ष्मण = लखन )
3. The use of the letter ‘shra’ (श्र) - In the Tadbhav form, the easier sounds of 's' is used
(श्रावण = सावन , श्रेष्ठि = सेठ , श्रृंगार = सिंगार )
4. The use of the letter ‘sha’ (ष )
(पौष = पाऊस , मिष्ठान = मिठाई , मूषल = मुसल )
5. The letter ‘sha’ (श ) in a Tatsam word is often spelt as ‘s’ (स )in its Tadbhav form
(शाक = साग , शुष्क = सूखा , शुण्ड = सूंड )
6. The letter ‘va’(व ) in a Tatsam word is often spelt as ‘ba’(ब ) in its Tadbhav form
वानर = बन्दर , वज्रांग = बजरंग , वट = बरगत , वृद्ध = बूढ़ा )
Here is how the questions are asked in the CTET exams:
‘कटहरा’ शब्द का तत्सम रूप क्या हैं ?
1 . कटहल
2 कारवा
3. कष्टागृह
4. कुटीर
निम्नलिखित में से कौन सा शब्द तत्सम है?
1 . पास
2 फूल
3. रीठा
4. पश्चात
निम्नलिखित में से कौन-सा शब्द तत्सम नहीं है?
1 . व्याग्र
2 यत्र
3. तेंदुआ
4. सत
Answers are 3, 4 and 3.
Here is a link to exploring these words in detail, on your own.
Sun Sep 25, 2022
Launch your Graphy