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Writing a novel with a cross-cultural theme?
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places the characters in your fiction find themselves in. We provide links to help you find the right
words to express your ideas.
Choose the scenario that is closest to your predicament :
Compiled by Shanti Bhaskaran
This glossary of 'Inglish'(Indian English) slang lists words and phrases that are commonly used by Indian speakers of English. The list is a compilation of common words and is by no means an exhaustive one.
Click on a letter from the alphabet to go to words beginning with that letter. Click on an underlined word in an explanation and jump to that word listed elsewhere in the glossary.
A| B| C| D| E|
F| G| H| I| J| K| L| M| N| O| P| Q| R| S| T| U| V| W| X| Y| Z
A
-
Ambassador ---- a model of car common on Indian roads
- Amma ---- 1. mother 2. used as a form of polite address to a woman
- Angrez ---- British who colonized India for two centuries
- Anna ---- 1.older brother 2. a coin used prior to India's independence in 1947
- Auto----autorickshaw, a three-wheeler, a common form of transport in Indian cities (see also, fatfati )
- Ayurveda ---- an ancient Indian system of herbal medicine
B
-
Baapu----1.father 2.Mahatma Gandhi, father of the Indian nation
- Babu----a person in a position of authority in the Indian bureaucracy(see also, dastak)
- Bada----big
- bandh----a general strike called by a political party (see also, hartal)
- Baksheesh----a dole or a handout
- Beta----son
- Beti----daughter
- Behn----1.sister 2. used as a form of polite address to a woman
- Bhai---- brother
- Bharat----India
- Bibi---- wife
- Bike----motorcycle
- Bollywood----the film industry in Bombay city which churns out popular films in the Hindi language
- Brahmin----person of a high caste in India (heard of the Boston Brahmins?)
C
-
Carnatic----form of Indian classical music
- Caste----hereditary social class. Brahmin and Dalit are at two ends of the caste spectrum
- Chai----tea made by boiling tea leaves with milk and sugar
- Cheeni----1.Chinese 2. in South India, "Cheeni" refers to sugar
- Chor----1.thief (usage common in North India) 2. cooked rice (usage common in Kerala, a southern state in India)
- Chota----small
- Chulha----kitchen stove usually burning coal or wood, used in Indian villages
- Chutti----vacation
- Chamcha---- a sycophant. A politician's popularity can be gauged by the number of chamchas in his camp
- Convent----a school offering education in the English medium
- Cricket----a sport that is an obsession on the Indian subcontinent
- Curry----1. a spicy dish that signifies Indian cuisine to foreigners 2. to Indians,one of the many spices used in cooking
- Dastak----signature. Indians are resigned to waiting in long lines outside government offices for some babu's dastak
- Dalit----Indian born in a lower caste
- Deewana----obsessed with desire
- Desi----a person or thing of Indian origin
- Dharma----duty or religion (usage common among Hindus)
- Drumstick----long green vegetable ( has nothing to do with chicken )
E
- Elaichi----cinnamon, a spice used to flavor tea and sweets
- Ethnic----a tradition that becomes fashionable (To pierce one's nose is "ethnic"!)
F
- Family way---- euphemism for being pregnant
- Fatfati---- three-wheeler used as a common form of transport in North India (see also, auto)
- Fakir----a wandering minstrel or preacher
- Feni----liquor made of cashew, popular in Goa ( a seaside resort)
- Foren---- foreign place, person or thing (A "foren-returned" Indian is usually held in some awe by Indian society)
G
- Ganga - the river Ganges (revered by Hindus)
- Ganja----1.opium 2.baldness (usage peculiar to Hindi speakers)
- Grease----bribe given to a babu (see also, rishwat)
H
- Haan----yes
- Half-pant----used to indicate the garment that Americans call "shorts"
- Hartal----a general strike or bandh declared suddenly
- Hooch----liquor, illegally brewed
- Hungama---- commotion, similar in usage to "brouhaha"
I
- Iftikar---- party given by Muslims to celebrate the end of a month of fasting (known as "Ramzan")
J
- Jaldee ---- to perform an activity quickly. (The phrase "Jaldee Karo" is the equivalent of "Hurry up"!)
- Junglee---- wild, savage
- Jawan---- 1.soldier in the indian army 2. youth
K
- Kabaddi----a rough and tumble sport popular among children
- Kalyanam ----wedding (usage common in South India)
- Kameez----shirt
- Kanjoos----miser
- Karma----actions in a previous birth that affects one's destiny, a Hindu belief
- Keep----euphemism for mistress
- Khana---- a meal
- Kurta----loose shirt made of cotton which men wear with baggy pants called "pyjamas"
- Kisan----farmer
- Kismet----fate
L
- Langar---- free meal that is shared by the entire community (a practice among the Sikhs)
- Leg-pulling----banter (what Americans call "kidding")
- Loo----hot dry winds that blow across the plains of North India in summer
- Lorry----truck
M
- Maha----adjective, signifying great or extraordinary (Coke is advertised in India as the "maha cola"!)
- Masala----1.blend of spices 2.exaggeration 3. films that follow a standard story line
- Mama----1.uncle 2. polite form of address to older men
- Mehman----guest
- Mehndi----henna, a red substance used to dye hair and to decorate women's hands and feet at weddings
- Memsahib----similar in usage to "Madam" or "ma'am"
- Motor----automobile
N
- Nahin---- no
- Namaste---- greeting said with palms pressed together (similar in usage to "hello")
- Naya---- new
- Neta----leader
O
- Om----mystic word used in chants by Hindus
- OC----anything that is free
P
- Paan----betel-leaf coated with various delicacies and chewed with great relish after a meal
- Paani----water
- Paadri----parish priest
- Parsi----a follower of Zoroastrianism, a religion that believes in fire-worship
- Patao----tactics adopted to please a girl
- Punga---- to fight with a person stronger than you
- Pita---- father
- Pagdee----1. turban worn in some parts of India 2. the rent payable in advance
- Pooja----hindu rituals of worship
- Purdah----1. veil, usually black, worn from head to toe by Muslim women 2.curtains
- Pyaar ----love
Q
- Quom----nation (usage common among Muslims)
- Qila----old fort
R
- Raja----king
- Roja----Muslim ritual of fasting 2. roses (usage common in South India)
- Rickshaw----pedicab
- Rishwat---- synonym of grease
- Roti----bread made of wheat
S
- Sari----a five-and-a-half-feet-long cloth worn by Indian women
- Saab----polite form of address to a man
- Salwar----draw-string pants (usually worn along with a kameez)
- Samaadhi----grave of a political leader or a saint
- Sandal----1. footwear 2. fragrant wood used in Hindu worship
- Sardar----Sikh men who wear turbans
- Sati-Savitri----devoted wife
- Scooter----motorcycle
- Shaadi----wedding (usage common in North India)
- Shikari----hunter
- Shikara----houseboat for tourists in the state of Kashmir
T
- Tandoori----method of grilling chicken over a coal fire
- Tantric----Indian wizard
- Thana----police station
- Tonga----horse-drawn carriage
U
- Umma----1. matriarch of a Muslim family 2. to kiss (usage common in parts of South India)
V
- Vanji----long wooden boat, used in the southern state of Kerala
- Vindaloo----a spicy Indian meat dish
- Veena----a string instrument like the lute
W
- Wazir----minister in the government of a Pakistani province
X
- There are no words beginning with X in Inglish. Go back to top
Y
- Yaar----A term of endearment among friends, as commonly used as "mon" among West Indians
- Yatra----journey, usually a pilgrimage
- Yatri----1.tourist 2. passenger
- Yuppies----newly rich middle-class urban Indians
Z
- Zabardastee----to coerce or use force
- Zameen----land
- Zamindar----landlord
- Zenana----portion of a Muslim household reserved for women
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