Bengali Gender

Welcome to the fifth Bengali lesson about gender. This time we will view a list of people, feminine and masculine, followed by grammar rules, finally a list of expressions in Bengali to help you practice your daily phrases. To hear the pronunciation, just click on the sound icon.

man পুরুষ [puruṣa]

woman মহিলা [mahilā]

husband স্বামী [sbāmī]

wife স্ত্রী [strī]

boy বালক [bālaka]

girl বালিকা [bālikā]

father বাবা [bābā]

mother মা [mā]

Gender Grammar Rules

In general, gender is used to distinguish between male and female, sometimes referred to as masculine and feminine. For example: my son and daughter are students the noun [son] is masculine, while [daughter] is feminine. The following examples use gender in different ways and places to demonstrate their behavior.

Grammar + Rules - Bengali + Pronunciation
my son is a student [masculine + noun] আমার ছেলে ছাত্র [āmāra chēlē chātra]
her daughter is a student [feminine + noun] তার মেয়ে ছাত্রী [tāra mēẏē chātrī]
he has a tall brother [adjective + masculine] তার একটি দীর্ঘাঙ্গ ভাই আছে [tāra ēkaṭi dīrghāṅga bhā'i āchē]
she has a tall sister [adjective + feminine] তার একটি দীর্ঘাঙ্গী বোন আছে [tāra ēkaṭi dīrghāṅgī bōna āchē]
his brothers are young [plural masculine + adjective] তার ভাইরা অল্পবয়স্ক [tāra bhā'irā alpabaẏaska]
his sisters are young [plural feminine + adjective] তার বোনেরা অল্পবয়স্কা [tāra bōnērā alpabaẏaskā]

The list below will probably provide more clarification. These are family members (males and females). I think it would be wise to memorize them as part of your important vocabulary list.

son পুত্র [putra]

daughter কন্যা [kan'yā]

brother ভাই [bhā'i]

sister বোন [bōna]

grandfather দাদু [dādu]

grandmother ঠাকুমা [ṭhākumā]

child শিশু [śiśu]

children শিশুরা [śiśurā]

Expressions in Bengali

Now it's time to practice expressions used in daily conversations. If you're a beginner in learning Bengali, then the phrases below are something you would want to know.

English - Bengali - Pronunciation
What do you mean? আপনি কি বলতে চান? [āpani ki balatē cāna?]
I don't understand আমি বুঝলাম না! [āmi bujhalāma nā!]
I don't know আমি জানি না! [āmi jāni nā!]
What is that called in Bengali? বাংলায় ওটা(কে) কি বলা হয়? [bānlāẏa ōṭā (kē) ki balā haẏa?]
What is this? এটা কি? [ēṭā ki?]
What does that word mean in English? ইংরেজীতে এই শব্দটার মানে কি? [inrējītē ē'i śabdaṭāra mānē ki?]
Sorry (if you made a mistake) দু:খিত [du: khita]

I hope you enjoyed this lesson about the gender in Bengali. Please check out our main menu here for more lessons: homepage. To see the full menu, you can also click on the "Menu" icon on the left side.