💡 Good news for English speakers: Punjabi grammar follows a Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) order — different to English but very consistent once you learn the pattern.
Sentence Structure
In English we say: I eat roti. In Punjabi the order is: Subject → Object → Verb
| English | Gurmukhi | Romanised | Structure |
|---|
| I eat roti | ਮੈਂ ਰੋਟੀ ਖਾਂਦਾ ਹਾਂ | Main roti khaanda haan | I roti eat |
| She drinks water | ਉਹ ਪਾਣੀ ਪੀਂਦੀ ਹੈ | Oh paani peendi hai | She water drinks |
| We speak Punjabi | ਅਸੀਂ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਬੋਲਦੇ ਹਾਂ | Aseen Punjabi bolde haan | We Punjabi speak |
Gender in Punjabi
Every noun in Punjabi is either masculine or feminine. This affects adjectives and verb endings.
| Masculine | Feminine | Rule |
|---|
| ਮੁੰਡਾ (munda) — boy | ਕੁੜੀ (kuri) — girl | People follow natural gender |
| ਕੁੱਤਾ (kutta) — dog | ਕਿਤਾਬ (kitaab) — book | Objects are assigned gender |
| ਵੱਡਾ (vadda) — big (m) | ਵੱਡੀ (vaddi) — big (f) | Adjectives change ending |
Present Tense Verb Conjugation
The verb ਖਾਣਾ (khaana) — to eat:
| Pronoun | Gurmukhi | Romanised |
|---|
| I | ਮੈਂ ਖਾਂਦਾ/ਖਾਂਦੀ ਹਾਂ | Main khaanda/khaandi haan |
| You (informal) | ਤੂੰ ਖਾਂਦਾ/ਖਾਂਦੀ ਹੈਂ | Toon khaanda/khaandi hain |
| He/She | ਉਹ ਖਾਂਦਾ/ਖਾਂਦੀ ਹੈ | Oh khaanda/khaandi hai |
| We | ਅਸੀਂ ਖਾਂਦੇ/ਖਾਂਦੀਆਂ ਹਾਂ | Aseen khaande/khaandiyaan haan |
| You (formal/plural) | ਤੁਸੀਂ ਖਾਂਦੇ ਹੋ | Tuseen khaande ho |
| They | ਉਹ ਖਾਂਦੇ ਹਨ | Oh khaande han |
Past Tense
| English | Gurmukhi | Romanised |
|---|
| I ate (m) | ਮੈਂ ਖਾਧਾ | Main khaadha |
| She went | ਉਹ ਗਈ | Oh gayi |
| We came | ਅਸੀਂ ਆਏ | Aseen aaye |
Useful Particles
| Particle | Gurmukhi | Use |
|---|
| ਨੇ (ne) | ਨੇ | Ergative marker — used after subject in past transitive |
| ਨੂੰ (noo) | ਨੂੰ | To/for — indirect object marker |
| ਤੋਂ (ton) | ਤੋਂ | From — ablative marker |
| ਵਿੱਚ (vich) | ਵਿੱਚ | In/inside |
| ਦਾ/ਦੀ/ਦੇ (da/di/de) | ਦਾ/ਦੀ/ਦੇ | Possessive — of/\'s (changes with gender) |