Time and days in Urdu
Now, later, tomorrow, what time it opens and one moment please. Play the ten Urdu words against the clock, with a note on how locals really use each one after every answer. All ten are written out below.
All 10 Urdu phrases in this lesson
- ابھیab-HEE
- Now
- بعد میںBAAD mein
- Later
- آجAAJ
- Today
- کلKAL
- Tomorrow
- آج راتaaj raat
- Tonight
- کب؟kab
- When?
- یہ کتنے بجے کھلتا ہے؟yay KIT-nay ba-JAY KHUL-taa hai
- What time does it open?
- ایک لمحہ، براہ کرمayk LAM-ha ba-RAA ka-ram
- One moment, please
- منٹMI-nat
- Minutes
- گھنٹےGHAN-tay
- Hours
"Abhi" means right now, this very moment. "Ab" alone means now in a more general sense. When a Pakistani shopkeeper says "abhi aata hoon" (I'm coming right now), allow for some flexibility in interpretation.
"Baad mein" literally means "in the after." It is used for anything from minutes to hours later. "Thodi der baad" means "a little while later," useful for setting loose time expectations.
A short, sharp word. "Aaj" is one of the first time words to master. "Aaj kya hai?" means "what is today?" and is useful for checking the day of the week.
Importantly, "kal" means both tomorrow AND yesterday in Urdu. Context usually clarifies which is meant, but if in doubt, ask "agla kal" (the coming kal) for tomorrow or "pichla kal" (the past kal) for yesterday.
The same form follows a number.
The plural form used after a number greater than one.