Planning to travel to India? If there’s one pro trip we can give you, then that would be that learning the basic terminologies and expressions related to سمت (simt) or directions in Urdu can help you reach your destinations faster. Fortunately, the locals are always eager to help foreigners, so you can be sure you’ll get the assistance you need. If you want to cut through the language barriers and express yourself better, using the words we will cover in this post will help. If you are ready for that and more, then keep reading below!
Direction-Related Stereotypes
There are a lot of stereotypes and jokes if we talk about Pakistan. For example, Lahore is famous for misguiding travelers. Even though there isn’t much truth, people still love to joke about the Lahoris misguiding you when you go to the country.
That’s why a critical piece of information given to the people who want to travel to Lahore is that they shouldn’t ask Lahori people about where to go and instead either be mentally prepared or use Google. That is for humourous purposes only, don’t be shy to ask around for directions.
Cardinal Points
To give reference to a certain point, you have to use four main cardinal points in Urdu. Let’s learn about them:
- East : مشرق – mashrik
- West : مغرب – maghrib
- North : شمال – shumaal
- South : جنوبی – junoob
Prepositions
Of course, prepositions in Urdu can help you create a more meaningful sentence. To ensure that you can give and receive directions properly, add these words during your interaction.
| English | Urdu | Romanization |
| About | کے بارے میں | key baaray mein |
| After | کے بعد | key baad |
| Before | اس سے پہلے | is sey pehlay |
| Behind | پیچھے | peechay |
| Between | کے درمیان | key darmyaan |
| Down | نیچے | neechay |
| Far | دور | dur |
| From | سے | sey |
| In | میں | mein |
| Inside | اندر | andar |
| Near | قریب | qareeb |
| On | پر | par |
| Outside | باہر | baahir |
| To | کو | ko |
| Towards | کی طرف | ki taraf |
| Under | کے تحت | key tahat |
| Until | تک | tak |
| Up | اوپر | uper |
Prepositional Phrases In Urdu
While words are useful, utilizing phrases can help you achieve a more advanced level of interaction with the locals. In line with that, we urge you to master the prepositional phrases we have below.
| English | Urdu | Romanization |
| Across from | سے اس پار | sey is paar |
| Across the street | سڑک کے پار | sarak key paar |
| Around the corner | گلی کے نکڑ | gali key nukar |
| Behind you | آپ کے پیچھے | ap key peechay |
| Far away | بہت دور | bohat dur |
| Go back | واپس جاو | wapis jao |
| Go straight | سیدھے جاو | seedhay jao |
| In front of | کے سامنے | key samay |
| On the left | بائیں طرف | bayn taraf |
| On the right | حق پر | haq par |
| On top of | اس کے اوپر | is key uper |
| Over there | وہاں پر | wahan par |
| Straight ahead | بالکل سیدھا | bilkul seedha |
| To drive | گاڑی چلانے کے لئے | gaari chalanay key liye |
| To the left | بائیں | bayn |
| To the right | دائیں طرف | dayn taraf |
| To turn | تبدیل کرنے کے لئے | tabdeel karnay key liye |
| To walk | چلنا | chalna |
| Turn around | مڑنا | murna |
| Turn left | بائیں مڑو | bayn muro |
| Turn right | دائیں مڑیں | dayn murain |
Asking For Directions In Urdu
| English | Urdu | Romanization |
| Can you tell me how to go to the closest hospital? | کیا آپ مجھے بتا سکتے ہیں کہ قریب ترین ہسپتال کیسے جانا ہے؟ | kya ap mujhe bata saktay hain key qareeb tareen haspataal kesy jana hai? |
| Can you tell me how to travel from here to the train station? | کیا آپ مجھے بتا سکتے ہیں کہ یہاں سے ٹرین اسٹیشن تک کیسے سفر کرنا ہے؟ | kya ap mujhe bata saktay hain key yahan sey train station kesay safar karna hai? |
| Do we have Punjab in our sights? | کیا ہم پنجاب کو دیکھ سکتے ہیں؟ | kya ham Punjab ko dekh aktay hain? |
| Do you know where the mall is located? | کیا آپ جانتے ہیں کہ مال کہاں واقع ہے؟ | kya ap jantay hain mall kahan waqya hai? |
| Does a sports store nearby exist? | کیا آس پاس کوئی اسپورٹس اسٹور موجود ہے؟ | kya aas paas koi sports store mojood hai? |
| How do I travel to the bar? | میں بار کیسے جاؤں؟ | mein bar kesay jaon? |
| Is there a pet store in this area? | کیا اس علاقے میں پالتو جانوروں کی دکان ہے؟ | kya is ilaqay mein paltu janwaro ki dukaan hai? |
| Where is the carnival? | کارنیول کہاں ہے؟ | Carnival kahan hai? |
| What is the fastest route from here to the airport? | یہاں سے ہوائی اڈے کا تیز ترین راستہ کون سا ہے؟ | Yahan sey hawai adday ka tez tareen raasta konsa hai? |
| What is the quickest route from here to the pharmacy? | یہاں سے فارمیسی تک کا تیز ترین راستہ کیا ہے؟ | Yahan sey Pharmacy tak ka tez tareen raasta kya hai? |
| Where is the closest post office? | قریب ترین پوسٹ آفس کہاں ہے؟ | qareeb tareen post office kahan hai? |
| What’s the fastest route from here to the theme park? | یہاں سے تھیم پارک تک تیز ترین راستہ کیا ہے؟ | Yahan sey theme park tak tez tareen rasta kya hai? |
| Where can I find the library? | مجھے لائبریری کہاں مل سکتی ہے؟ | mujhe library kahan mil sakti hai? |
| Where is the bus stop located? | بس اسٹاپ کہاں واقع ہے؟ | buss staap kahan waqya hai? |
| Where is the closest parking lot? | قریب ترین پارکنگ کہاں ہے؟ | qareeb tareen parking kahan hai? |
Transportation-Related Vocab
You should also know some important words for transportation because while you are asking for directions, you would want to know about how you can go there and transportation information. If you want to dive deeper into this topic, read our in-depth blog here.
| English | Urdu | Romanization |
| Bicycle | سائیکل | saikal |
| Bus | بس | bas |
| Cab | ٹیکسی | taxi |
| Car | گاڑی | gaari |
| Crowded | ہجوم | hujoom |
| Fast | تیز | taiz |
| Ferry | فیری | ferry |
| Motorbike | موٹر سائیکل | mottosaikal |
| Passenger | مسافر | musafir |
| Pedestrian | پیدل چلنے والا | paidal chalnay wala |
| Plane | ہوائی جہاز | hwai jahaz |
| Rush Hour | رش کے وقت | rush key waqt |
| Scooter | سکوٹر | scooter |
| Ship | جہاز | jahaz |
| Slowly | آہستہ آہستہ | ahista ahista |
| Subway | سب وے | sabway |
| Taxi | ٹیکسی | taxi |
| Train | ٹرین | train |
| Tram | ٹرام | trem |
| Underground | زمین کے اندر | zameen key andar |
| Wait | انتظار کرو | intizaar karo |
| Without Speed | رفتار کے بغیر | raftar key baghair |
Learn Urdu With Ling!
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