100 Most Common Punjabi Words (With Gurmukhi, Pronunciation and Examples)

About a hundred words carry most of everyday Punjabi conversation: the yes-and-no words (haan, nahi, ji), the pronouns (main, tusi, oh), the forms of "to be" (hai, han, si), a dozen verbs (karna, jaana, aauna, khaana), the question words (ki, kaun, kithe, kadon) and the everyday adjectives (changa, vadda, bahut). Here are the 100 most useful, in eight groups, each with Gurmukhi, pronunciation and a short example. If you grew up hearing Punjabi, you'll recognise most of them instantly — this list turns that passive recognition into words you can use.

1. Yes, No and the Glue Words

Word	Gurmukhi	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example
haan	ਹਾਂ	haan	yes	Haan ji — yes (respectful)
nahi	ਨਹੀਂ	na-HEEN	no, not	Nahi ji — no
ji	ਜੀ	jee	respect particle; also "yes?"	Mummy ji, haan ji
te	ਤੇ	tay	and; on	Chah te biscuit — tea and biscuits
ate	ਅਤੇ	a-TAY	and (formal)	Main ate tusi — you and I
par	ਪਰ	pur	but	Changa hai, par mehnga — good, but expensive
jaan	ਜਾਂ	jaan	or	Chah jaan coffee? — tea or coffee?
kyonki	ਕਿਉਂਕਿ	kyon-ki	because	…kyonki meenh pai riha hai — because it's raining
je	ਜੇ	jay	if	Je time hove — if there's time
taan	ਤਾਂ	taan	then, so	Je bhukh hai taan khaa lo — if you're hungry, eat
phir	ਫਿਰ	fir	then; again	Phir milaange — see you again
vi	ਵੀ	vee	also, too	Main vi aavaanga — I'll come too
bas	ਬੱਸ	buss	enough; that's all	Bas ji — that's enough
hor	ਹੋਰ	hor	more; other	Hor roti? — more roti?
bilkul	ਬਿਲਕੁਲ	bil-KUL	absolutely	Bilkul theek — absolutely right

2. Pronouns

Word	Gurmukhi	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example
main	ਮੈਂ	main	I	Main theek haan — I'm fine
asi	ਅਸੀਂ	a-SEEN	we	Asi jaa rahe haan — we're going
tu	ਤੂੰ	toon	you (close, informal)	Tu kithe hai? — where are you?
tusi	ਤੁਸੀਂ	tu-SEEN	you (respectful / plural)	Tusi kiven ho? — how are you?
eh	ਇਹ	eh	this; he/she (near)	Eh mera bhra hai — this is my brother
oh	ਉਹ	oh	that; he/she/they (far)	Oh kaun hai? — who is that?
mera	ਮੇਰਾ	MAY-raa	my	Mera naam — my name
tuhada	ਤੁਹਾਡਾ	tu-HAA-daa	your (respectful)	Tuhada ghar — your house
sada	ਸਾਡਾ	SAA-daa	our	Sada pind — our village
apna	ਆਪਣਾ	AAP-naa	one's own	Apna khayal rakho — look after yourself

The full set, with object forms like mainu and tuhanu, is in our guide to Punjabi pronouns.

3. "To Be" and the Top Verbs

Word	Gurmukhi	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example
hai	ਹੈ	hai	is	Eh changa hai — this is good
han	ਹਨ	hun	are (they / respectful)	Oh ghar han — they're home
haan (verb)	ਹਾਂ	haan	am; are (we)	Main ethe haan — I'm here
si	ਸੀ	see	was	Oh ethe si — he was here
hona	ਹੋਣਾ	HO-naa	to be, to happen	Ki hoya? — what happened?
karna	ਕਰਨਾ	KUR-naa	to do	Ki karde ho? — what are you doing?
jaana	ਜਾਣਾ	JAA-naa	to go	Main jaa riha haan — I'm going
aauna	ਆਉਣਾ	AA-u-naa	to come	Andar aao — come in
khaana	ਖਾਣਾ	KHAA-naa	to eat; food	Roti khaa lo — eat
peena	ਪੀਣਾ	PEE-naa	to drink	Chah peeo — drink tea
bolna	ਬੋਲਣਾ	BOL-naa	to speak	Punjabi bolo — speak Punjabi
kehna	ਕਹਿਣਾ	KEH-naa	to say	Ki kiha? — what did you say?
dekhna	ਦੇਖਣਾ	DEKH-naa	to see, to watch	Dekho! — look!
sunna	ਸੁਣਨਾ	SUN-naa	to hear, to listen	Suno ji — listen
dena	ਦੇਣਾ	DAY-naa	to give	Paani deo — give me water
laina	ਲੈਣਾ	LAI-naa	to take	Eh lai lo — take this
rehna	ਰਹਿਣਾ	REH-naa	to live, to stay	Kithe rehnde ho? — where do you live?
chaahuna	ਚਾਹੁਣਾ	CHAA-hu-naa	to want	Main jaana chaahunda haan — I want to go
jaanana	ਜਾਣਨਾ	JAAN-naa	to know	Main jaanda haan — I know
sakna	ਸਕਣਾ	SUK-naa	can, to be able	Main kar sakda haan — I can do it

Fifty verbs with their conjugations are in essential Punjabi verbs.

4. Question Words

Word	Gurmukhi	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example
ki	ਕੀ	kee	what	Eh ki hai? — what is this?
kaun	ਕੌਣ	kaun	who	Oh kaun hai? — who is that?
kithe	ਕਿੱਥੇ	KIT-thay	where	Ghar kithe hai? — where is the house?
kadon	ਕਦੋਂ	ka-DON	when	Kadon aaoge? — when will you come?
kyon	ਕਿਉਂ	kyon	why	Kyon nahi? — why not?
kiven	ਕਿਵੇਂ	ki-VEN	how	Kiven ho? — how are you?
kinna	ਕਿੰਨਾ	KIN-naa	how much, how many	Kinne da hai? — how much is it?
kehda	ਕਿਹੜਾ	KEH-daa	which	Kehda rang? — which colour?

All of them, with word order and 25 ready questions: Punjabi question words.

5. Time and Place

Word	Gurmukhi	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example
ajj	ਅੱਜ	ujj	today	Ajj thand hai — it's cold today
kall	ਕੱਲ੍ਹ	kull	tomorrow and yesterday (context decides)	Kall milaange — see you tomorrow
hun	ਹੁਣ	hun	now	Hun chaliye — let's go now
baad vich	ਬਾਅਦ ਵਿੱਚ	baad vich	later	Baad vich phone karna — call later
pehlaan	ਪਹਿਲਾਂ	peh-LAAN	before, first	Pehlaan khaa lo — eat first
hamesha	ਹਮੇਸ਼ਾ	ha-MAY-shaa	always	Hamesha khush raho — always be happy
kade	ਕਦੇ	ka-DAY	ever, sometimes; (with nahi) never	Kade nahi — never
ethe	ਇੱਥੇ	IT-thay	here	Ethe aao — come here
othe	ਉੱਥੇ	UT-thay	there	Othe baitho — sit there
andar	ਅੰਦਰ	UN-dur	inside	Andar aao ji — come in
baahar	ਬਾਹਰ	BAA-hur	outside	Baahar meenh hai — it's raining outside
kol	ਕੋਲ	kol	near; with (have)	Mere kol paise han — I have money

6. Quantity and Degree

Word	Gurmukhi	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example
bahut	ਬਹੁਤ	ba-HUT	very; a lot	Bahut changa — very good
thoda	ਥੋੜ੍ਹਾ	THO-daa	a little	Thoda hor — a little more
sab	ਸਭ	sub	all, everyone	Sab theek hai — all is well
kujh	ਕੁਝ	kujh	some, something	Kujh khaa lo — eat something
koi	ਕੋਈ	KO-ee	someone; any; (with nahi) nobody / no	Koi gall nahi — no problem
har	ਹਰ	hur	every	Har roz — every day
ik	ਇੱਕ	ikk	one; a	Ik chah — one tea
do	ਦੋ	do	two	Do mint — two minutes

Counting beyond two: the Punjabi numbers 1–100.

7. Everyday Adjectives

Word	Gurmukhi	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example
changa	ਚੰਗਾ	CHUN-gaa	good	Changa ji — okay then
maada	ਮਾੜਾ	MAA-daa	bad	Maadi gall — a bad thing
vadda	ਵੱਡਾ	VUD-daa	big; elder	Vadda bhra — elder brother
chhota	ਛੋਟਾ	CHHO-taa	small; younger	Chhoti bhain — younger sister
sohna	ਸੋਹਣਾ	SOH-naa	beautiful, nice	Bahut sohna — very beautiful
nava	ਨਵਾਂ	na-VAAN	new	Nava ghar — new house
purana	ਪੁਰਾਣਾ	pu-RAA-naa	old (things)	Purani gaddi — old car
garam	ਗਰਮ	GUR-um	hot, warm	Garam chah — hot tea
thanda	ਠੰਢਾ	THUN-daa	cold	Thanda paani — cold water
theek	ਠੀਕ	theek	fine, right, okay	Theek hai — okay
vadhiya	ਵਧੀਆ	va-DHEE-aa	great, excellent	Vadhiya! — great!
aukha	ਔਖਾ	AU-khaa	difficult	Aukha nahi — not difficult

Forty pairs of opposites are in Punjabi adjectives and opposites.

8. Words You'll Hear All Day

Word	Gurmukhi	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example
ghar	ਘਰ	ghur	home, house	Ghar chaliye — let's go home
kamm	ਕੰਮ	kumm	work; task	Kamm te jaana — to go to work
paani	ਪਾਣੀ	PAA-nee	water	Paani peeo — drink water
roti	ਰੋਟੀ	RO-tee	roti; a meal	Roti khaadi? — have you eaten?
chah	ਚਾਹ	chaah	tea	Chah banao — make tea
paise	ਪੈਸੇ	PAI-say	money	Paise nahi han — there's no money
gall	ਗੱਲ	gull	a thing said; matter; talk	Ki gall hai? — what's the matter?
din	ਦਿਨ	din	day	Changa din — good day
raat	ਰਾਤ	raat	night	Shubh raat — good night
vela / time	ਵੇਲਾ / ਟਾਈਮ	VAY-laa	time	Time ki hoya? — what time is it?
naam	ਨਾਮ	naam	name	Tuhada naam? — your name?
banda	ਬੰਦਾ	BUN-daa	person, man	Changa banda — a good man
kudi	ਕੁੜੀ	KU-dee	girl	Kudi sohni hai — the girl is pretty
munda	ਮੁੰਡਾ	MUN-daa	boy	Munda siyaana hai — the boy is sensible
Rabb	ਰੱਬ	rubb	God	Rabb rakha — God protect you

How to Learn These 100 Words

• Ten a day for ten days. Say each one out loud with its example — the example is the memory hook, not the translation.
• Start with group 1 and 3. Haan ji, nahi ji, theek hai, chalo, ki gall hai get you through a surprising amount of family life.
• Listen for them. Put on any Punjabi conversation, vlog or song and count how many of the 100 you catch; the number climbs daily.
• Learn the script alongside. Reading ਹਾਂ and ਨਹੀਂ in Gurmukhi takes an afternoon with our step-by-step reading guide, and stops you depending on romanised spelling.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the most common words in Punjabi?

The highest-frequency words are haan (yes), nahi (no), ji (respect particle), hai / han (is / are), main (I), tusi (you), oh (he/she/that), ki (what), karna (do), jaana (go), changa (good) and bahut (very).

How many Punjabi words do you need for a conversation?

Around 100 words cover basic family conversation and roughly 500 cover most everyday situations. Because Punjabi borrows English freely, learners usually reach simple conversations within two to three months of daily practice.

What does "ji" mean in Punjabi?

Ji is a particle of respect added to names and answers — haan ji, Mummy ji. On its own it means "yes?" or "pardon?". It is the single most important politeness word in the language.

What is the most important Punjabi verb?

Karna (ਕਰਨਾ, to do): it also turns nouns into verbs — kamm karna (to work), phone karna (to call), pyaar karna (to love), madad karna (to help).

Turn These 100 Words Into Sentences

Lists are the start; hearing and saying the words is how they stick. Alfaazo teaches everyday Punjabi with native audio, the Gurmukhi script and bite-sized lessons you can finish in five minutes a day. Free on iOS and Android.