Urdu Transliteration: Demonstratives for “This One” and “That One”
In these Urdu examples, yeh points to the item described as “this,” while woh points to the item described as “that.” Transliteration also shows two useful patterns: yeh wala and woh wala are short masculine item labels, while longer examples turn the demonstrative into a complete question, request, or statement.
Start with these expressions
| English | Transliteration | Native script |
|---|---|---|
| This one, masculine | yeh wala | یہ والا |
| That one, masculine | woh wala | وہ والا |
| This phone | yeh fon | یہ فون |
| What is this? | yeh kya hai | یہ کیا ہے |
| That is my book. | woh meri kitab hai | وہ میری کتاب ہے |
| Yes. Give this one. | haan, yeh wala do | ہاں، یہ والا دو |
| Put this one here. | yeh wali yahan rakho | یہ والی یہاں رکھو |
| Okay. Give that one. | achha, woh wala do | اچھا، وہ والا دو |
Read the short labels differently from complete sentences
Start by separating two jobs that English can blur together. A short form such as “this one” or “that one” labels an item; it is not, by itself, a complete request. The yeh wala and woh wala examples are useful when identifying or selecting an item, but you need a longer expression when asking, giving an instruction, or making a statement.
The item-label element also has a feminine counterpart in the material. The dictionary passage describes wālā as an element added to nouns and explicitly records a feminine -ī form [1]. That supports noticing the contrast between the masculine item label and the feminine form shown in the example with “this one.” It does not, however, justify treating every Urdu demonstrative as automatically gender-marked.
Use the larger examples by looking for the action or information around the demonstrative. A question asks what the indicated thing is; a request asks someone to give or place it; a statement adds information about a phone or book. Keep “take this much” separate from item selection: it expresses an indicated quantity, not the same item-label pattern.
[1] Source: dsal.uchicago.edu.
Try it
You are choosing between two items at a shop. The item you want is the more distant one, and you want to ask the shopkeeper to give it to you. Which phrase fits?
Choose your answer before reading on.
Check your answer:
Use expression 8 in the table above.
Choose this phrase because its meaning combines the more distant demonstrative with a direct request to give the selected item. It is therefore more suitable than an isolated “that one” label.
Practise by first deciding whether you are naming an item or making a complete request. Then choose yeh or woh from the contrast shown and say the longer request aloud from memory before checking the example.
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