Adjectives (صفت)

Adjectives — called sifat (صفت) in Urdu — describe or qualify nouns by giving information about their size, color, shape, quantity, or quality.
Like nouns and verbs, Urdu adjectives agree in gender, number, and case with the nouns they modify. This agreement is key to natural and grammatical Urdu.

Forms and Agreement

Most Urdu adjectives change their endings to match the noun they describe.
The adjective agrees with the gender (masculine/feminine) and number (singular/plural) of the noun.

The most common adjective endings are ـا (ā) for masculine singular, ـی (ī) for feminine singular, and ـے (e) for masculine plural or oblique forms.

Examples:

Masculine singular:
اچھا لڑکا — achchā laṛkā — good boy
بڑا کمرہ — baṛā kamrā — big room

Feminine singular:
اچھی لڑکی — achchī laṛkī — good girl
بڑی کرسی — baṛī kursī — big chair

Masculine plural:
اچھے لڑکے — achche laṛke — good boys
بڑے کمرے — baṛe kamre — big rooms

Feminine plural:
اچھی لڑکیاں — achchī laṛkiyān — good girls
بڑی کرسیاں — baṛī kursiyān — big chairs

When the adjective does not end in ـا (ā) (for example, خوش "happy" or صاف "clean"), it does not change form for gender or number. These are called indeclinable adjectives.

Examples
خوش لڑکا — happy boy
خوش لڑکی — happy girl
صاف کمرہ — clean room
صاف کرسیاں — clean chairs

Position in the Sentence

Adjectives usually come before the noun they modify, as in:
خوبصورت کتاب — beautiful book
چھوٹا بچہ — small child

But they can also appear after the noun when used predicatively with a verb such as ہے (is) or ہیں (are):
یہ کتاب خوبصورت ہے۔ — This book is beautiful.
وہ لڑکے خوش ہیں۔ — Those boys are happy.

Types of Adjectives

1. Qualitative Adjectives (صفتِ خاصہ)
   Describe the quality or nature of a noun.
   Examples:
   اچھا (good), برا (bad), لمبا (tall), نیا (new), سستا (cheap).
   Example sentences:
   یہ سستا بازار ہے۔ — This is a cheap market.
   نیا فون بہت اچھا ہے۔ — The new phone is very good.

2. Quantitative Adjectives (صفتِ مقداری)
   Indicate quantity or number.
   Examples:
   بہت (many), کچھ (some), تھوڑا (a little), دو (two), دس (ten).
   Example:
   میرے پاس تین کتابیں ہیں۔ — I have three books.

3. Demonstrative Adjectives (صفتِ اشارہ)
   Used to point out nouns.
   Examples:
   یہ (this), وہ (that).
   Example:
   یہ کمرہ صاف ہے۔ — This room is clean.
   وہ دروازہ بند ہے۔ — That door is closed.

4. Possessive Adjectives (صفتِ ملکی)
   Show possession or relationship.
   Examples:
   میرا (my), تمہارا (your), اس کا (his/her).
   Example:
   میری کتاب کہاں ہے؟ — Where is my book?

5. Interrogative Adjectives (صفتِ استفہامی)
   Used in questions.
   Examples:
   کون سا (which), کیا (what), کتنے (how many).
   Example:
   تم نے کون سا رنگ پسند کیا؟ — Which color did you choose?

6. Comparative and Superlative Adjectives
   Urdu often uses زیادہ (more) and سب سے (most) before adjectives to show comparison.
   Examples:
   بڑا (big) → زیادہ بڑا (bigger) → سب سے بڑا (biggest).
   خوبصورت (beautiful) → زیادہ خوبصورت (more beautiful) → سب سے خوبصورت (most beautiful).
   Example:
   لاہور کراچی سے بڑا ہے۔ — Lahore is bigger than Karachi.
   یہ سب سے خوبصورت شہر ہے۔ — This is the most beautiful city.

Compound and Descriptive Pairs

Urdu often pairs adjectives for emphasis or poetic effect:
لمبا چوڑا — tall and broad
کالا بھجنگ — pitch black
میٹھا بول — sweet speech
Examples:
وہ لمبا چوڑا آدمی ہے۔ — He is a tall, broad man.
اس کے میٹھے بول سب کو پسند ہیں۔ — Everyone likes his sweet words.

Idiomatic and Cultural Usage

Urdu often pairs adjectives for emphasis or poetic effect:

• نیک (pious), شریف (decent), and چالاک (clever) are used to describe character.

• خوبصورت (beautiful) and حسین (graceful) are not gender-exclusive; both can describe men or women.

• بڑا sometimes means "great" rather than "large": بڑا آدمی (great/influential person).

Summary Table

Gender / Number	Ending	Example	Translation
Masculine singular	ـا (ā)	اچھا لڑکا	good boy
Feminine singular	ـی (ī)	اچھی لڑکی	good girl
Masculine plural	ـے (e)	اچھے لڑکے	good boys
Feminine plural	ـی (ī)	اچھی لڑکیاں	good girls
Indeclinable	—	خوش آدمی / خوش عورت	happy man / happy woman

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Adjectives in Urdu bring richness and flexibility. Because they agree with the noun they describe, mastering their endings helps you instantly sound natural and accurate.