Saying no: ਨਹੀਂ nahīṁ and ਨਾ nā
ਨਹੀਂ nahīṁ is the general 'not' — put it right before the verb (or before the copula ਹੈ). ਨਾ nā is the 'don't' of commands and soft prohibitions. For polite negatives you'll also hear ਨੀ nī in imperatives.
| Punjabi | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ਮੈਂ ਨਹੀਂ ਜਾਂਦਾ | maiṁ nahīṁ jāndā | I don't go (m.) |
| ਉਹ ਨਹੀਂ ਆਈ | uh nahīṁ āī | she didn't come |
| ਇਹ ਠੀਕ ਨਹੀਂ ਹੈ | ih ṭhīk nahīṁ hai | this is not right/fine |
| ਨਾ ਜਾਓ | nā jāo | don't go (informal) |
| ਮੈਨੂੰ ਨਾ ਸਮਝ ਆਇਆ | maiṁnūṁ nā samajh āiā | I didn't understand (softer negation) |
In casual speech nahīṁ hai can get compressed, but nahīṁ hai is always correct and safe — write and say the full form.
Yes/no questions
Two everyday ways to ask a yes/no question:
- Rising intonation — say the statement with a rising end: tusīṁ jānde ho? 'you go?' = 'are you going?'
- ਕੀ kī at the front — flags it as a question: kī tusīṁ jānde ho? 'are you going?'
| Punjabi | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ਤੁਸੀਂ ਠੀਕ ਹੋ? | tusīṁ ṭhīk ho? | Are you fine? (intonation) |
| ਕੀ ਤੁਸੀਂ ਠੀਕ ਹੋ? | kī tusīṁ ṭhīk ho? | Are you fine? (with kī) |
| ਹਾਂ | hāṁ | yes |
| ਨਹੀਂ | nahīṁ | no |
| ਜੀ ਹਾਂ / ਜੀ ਨਹੀਂ | jī hāṁ / jī nahīṁ | yes / no — polite |
The question words
| Punjabi | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ਕੌਣ | kauṇ | who |
| ਕੀ | kī | what |
| ਕਿਥੇ | kitthe | where |
| ਕਦੋਂ | kadoṁ | when |
| ਕਿਉਂ | kioṁ | why |
| ਕਿਵੇਂ | kiveṁ | how |
| ਕਿੰਨਾ | kinnā | how much / how many |
| ਕਿਹੜਾ | kihaṛā | which |
kī does double duty: 'what' and the yes/no marker. Position and intonation disambiguate — kī at the start with a full verb is the question flag; kī mid-sentence means 'what'.
Natural word order — no reshuffling
In English, wh-words jump to the front: 'Where are you going?' In Punjabi the question word just sits where the answer would be — the verb still goes last:
| Punjabi | Transliteration | Meaning — notice the order |
|---|---|---|
| ਤੁਸੀਂ ਕਿਥੇ ਜਾਂਦੇ ਹੋ? | tusīṁ kitthe jānde ho? | you — where — go — are? → Where are you going? |
| ਉਹ ਕੀ ਖਾਂਦਾ ਹੈ? | uh kī khāndā hai? | he — what — eats — is? → What is he eating? |
| ਤੁਸੀਂ ਕਦੋਂ ਆਏ? | tusīṁ kadoṁ āe? | you — when — came? → When did you arrive? |
| ਉਹ ਕਿਉਂ ਰੋ ਰਿਹਾ ਹੈ? | uh kioṁ ro rihā hai? | he — why — crying — is? → Why is he crying? |
| ਇਹ ਕਿੰਨੇ ਦਾ ਹੈ? | ih kinne dā hai? | this — how much — of — is? → How much is this? |
Everyday question set
| Punjabi | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ਤੁਹਾਡਾ ਨਾਮ ਕੀ ਹੈ? | tuhāḍā nām kī hai? | What is your name? (polite) |
| ਤੁਸੀਂ ਕਿਥੋਂ ਹੋ? | tusīṁ kitthoṁ ho? | Where are you from? |
| ਉਹ ਕੌਣ ਹੈ? | uh kauṇ hai? | Who is that? |
| ਇਹ ਕੀ ਹੈ? | ih kī hai? | What is this? |
| ਬਾਥਰੂਮ ਕਿਥੇ ਹੈ? | bāthrūm kitthe hai? | Where is the bathroom? |
| ਕਿੰਨੇ ਵਜੇ ਹਨ? | kinne vaje han? | What time is it? |
| ਤੁਸੀਂ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਬੋਲਦੇ ਹੋ? | tusīṁ pañjābī bolde ho? | Do you speak Punjabi? |
Mini practice
Q1. The general Punjabi 'not' is:
- nā
- nahīṁ
- jī
- kī
Answer: nahīṁ
Q2. To ask a yes/no question you can:
- Move the verb to the front
- Use rising intonation or start with ਕੀ
- Add a question suffix to every word
- You can't — Punjabi has no yes/no questions
Answer: Use rising intonation or start with ਕੀ
Q3. 'ਤੁਸੀਂ ਕਿਥੇ ਜਾਂਦੇ ਹੋ?' means:
- Where are you going?
- When are you going?
- How are you going?
- Why are you going?
Answer: Where are you going?
Q4. ਕਿਵੇਂ (kiveṁ) means:
- who
- when
- how
- how much
Answer: how
Q5. In a Punjabi wh-question, the question word goes:
- Always at the very start
- At the very end
- Where the answer would sit in the sentence — verb still last
- After the verb
Answer: Where the answer would sit in the sentence — verb still last
