Hindi matras: vowel signs & barakhadi

Every Hindi vowel has two forms. The independent form — अ आ इ ई उ ऊ and so on — is used when the vowel stands on its own, usually at the start of a word: आम (aam, mango), ऊपर (oopar, up). The dependent form, called a मात्रा (maatra), is used when the vowel follows a consonant. Instead of writing a full letter, you attach a small stroke or hook to the consonant: क + ी becomes की (kee).

Devanagari is an abugida: each consonant already carries a built-in short “a” sound. क on its own is read ka, not just k. A matra replaces that inherent “a” with a different vowel. That is why the first vowel, अ, has no matra at all — it is already there. If you have not met the letters yet, start with the Hindi vowels and Hindi consonants pages, then come back here.

Practising every consonant with every matra in order — क का कि की कु कू के कै को कौ कं कः — is called the बारहखड़ी (baarahkhadi, popularly “barakhadi”), from बारह (baarah, twelve). It is how Indian children learn to read, and it is still the fastest route for adult learners.

Two extra signs complete the picture. The chandrabindu ँ (moon and dot) nasalises a vowel, as in माँ (maan, mother). And the ardhachandra ॉ writes the open “o” of English loanwords: कॉफ़ी (coffee), डॉक्टर (doctor), कॉलेज (college). Neither is part of the classic twelve, but you will see both every day.

Where each matra goes

• Right of the consonant: ा ी ो ौ ः — का की को कौ कः.
• Left of the consonant: only ि — कि.
• Above the headline: े ै ं ँ — के कै कं काँ.
• Below the letter: ु ू ृ — कु कू कृ.

The short-i quirk: written first, said second

The short-i matra ि is the one that trips everyone up. It is drawn to the left of the consonant, but pronounced after it. कि is ki, never ik. So दिन reads din (day) and किताब reads kitaab (book).

With a consonant cluster, ि moves to the left of the whole cluster even though the vowel follows the last consonant: प्रिय (priy, dear), स्थिति (sthiti, situation), क्रिकेट (cricket). When you type, though, you always enter the consonant(s) first and the ि last — the font reorders it for you. See how to type in Hindi for keyboard layouts.

Once the pattern clicks, you can run it on any consonant from the Hindi alphabet: न ना नि नी नु नू ने नै नो नौ, स सा सि सी सु सू से सै सो सौ. Reciting a row aloud each day for a week builds the reflex faster than any other drill.

Matras with र: the special shapes

Most consonants take every matra in the standard position. र (ra) is the big exception. With ु and ू, the sign does not hang below the letter — it attaches to the middle of its right side, producing the distinctive shapes रु (ru) and रू (roo). Compare रुपया (rupaya, rupee) with रूप (roop, form). Learn them as separate pictures: रु has a small hook, रू a longer curl.

A similar fusion happens with ह + ृ = हृ, where the sign tucks into the letter’s curve, as in हृदय (hriday, heart). र also has two half-forms in clusters — the hook above in धर्म (dharm) and the slash below in प्रेम (prem) — covered in the Devanagari script guide.

Anusvara (ं) vs chandrabindu (ँ)

Both signs sit above the letter and both involve the nose, but they do different jobs.

• Anusvara ं (a plain dot) usually stands for a nasal consonant — n, m, ng — matching the consonant that follows. हिंदी is hindee (also spelled हिन्दी), अंक is ank, खंभा is khambha.
• Chandrabindu ँ (moon and dot) marks a nasalised vowel — air goes through the nose while the vowel sounds, with no separate “n”. हाँ (haan, yes), चाँद (chaand, moon), गाँव (gaanv, village).

The meaning can hinge on it: हंस (hans) is a swan, while हँस (hans, nasal vowel) is “laugh”. One practical rule: when a matra already rises above the headline (ि ी े ै ो ौ), there is no room for the moon, so chandrabindu is written as a plain dot. That is why में (mein), नहीं (nahin), हैं (hain) and मैं (main) use a dot yet are pronounced with a nasal vowel, not a full “n”.

Common mistakes with matras

• Mixing short and long vowels. ि/ी and ु/ू change meaning: दिन (din, day) vs दीन (deen, poor, humble); सुना (suna, heard) vs सूना (soona, deserted).
• Reading ि after the consonant. Your eye meets ि first, but the sound comes second: मिलना is milna.
• Confusing े and ै. One stroke vs two: मेल (mel, harmony) vs मैल (mail, dirt); है (hai, is) needs two.
• Pronouncing every inherent “a”. Hindi drops the final short “a”, and often a middle one: कमल is kamal, not kamala; समझना is samajhna. This is called schwa deletion — see Hindi grammar basics.
• Using the independent vowel after a consonant. कआ is wrong; write का. Independent vowels appear only at the start of a word or after another vowel: आइए (aaiye), नई (naee).
• Hanging ु/ू under र. It is always रु/रू, attached at the side.