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Devanagari consonants are organised into groups based on where in the mouth the sound is produced. This lesson covers the first three groups (15 consonants): the velars (कवर्ग), palatals (चवर्ग), and retroflexes (टवर्ग).
These sounds are produced at the back of the mouth, where the tongue touches the soft palate (velum).
| Character | Romanisation | IPA | Aspirated? | Example Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| क | ka | /kə/ | No | कमल (kamal) | lotus |
| ख | kha | /kʰə/ | Yes | खरगोश (khargosh) | rabbit |
| ग | ga | /ɡə/ | No | गाय (gaay) | cow |
| घ | gha | /ɡʱə/ | Yes | घर (ghar) | house |
| ङ | ṅa | /ŋə/ | Nasal | रंग (rang) | colour |
Tip: Each group of five consonants follows the same pattern: unaspirated voiceless → aspirated voiceless → unaspirated voiced → aspirated voiced → nasal. This pattern repeats for all five groups and is the key to the entire consonant system.
Aspiration is a puff of air that follows the consonant. Hold your hand in front of your mouth and try these:
| Pair | Without Aspiration | With Aspiration | Test |
|---|---|---|---|
| क / ख | क (ka) — like "skill" | ख (kha) — like "kill" | Feel a puff of air with ख |
| ग / घ | ग (ga) — like "go" | घ (gha) — like "ghost" | Feel a puff of air with घ |
Important: In Hindi, the distinction between aspirated and unaspirated consonants is meaningful. कल (kal, "tomorrow") and खल (khal, "villain") are completely different words.
These sounds are produced with the tongue touching the hard palate (the roof of the mouth behind the teeth ridge).
| Character | Romanisation | IPA | Aspirated? | Example Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| च | cha | /t͡ʃə/ | No | चम्मच (chammach) | spoon |
| छ | chha | /t͡ʃʰə/ | Yes | छाता (chhaataa) | umbrella |
| ज | ja | /d͡ʒə/ | No | जल (jal) | water |
| झ | jha | /d͡ʒʱə/ | Yes | झंडा (jhandaa) | flag |
| ञ | ña | /ɲə/ | Nasal | — | (rare on its own) |
Tip: The palatal nasal ञ (ña) rarely appears independently in modern Hindi. You will most often see it in conjunct characters like ज्ञ (gya/jña).
Retroflex sounds are distinctive to South Asian languages. The tongue curls back to touch the roof of the mouth behind the teeth ridge.
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