BSEH SS Urdu flashcards
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32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.
- Markazi khayal
- The central idea of a prose lesson or nazm, stated in one sentence and supported by two textual details. Examiners award marks for a precise statement, not a plot summary.
- Safarnama
- A travelogue in Urdu prose recording a journey's places, people, and impressions. Questions ask for specific locations and the traveller's comparisons between cultures, so vague answers lose marks.
- Khaka
- A biographical sketch portraying a real person's traits through incidents. In exams, name two or three traits and attach one textual incident to each rather than listing adjectives alone.
- Mazmoon (prose essay)
- A formal Urdu essay that argues a position with reasons and examples. Textual questions ask for the writer's purpose and the arguments used, not merely the topic.
- Nazm
- An Urdu poem with one continuous theme and usually a title. Every stanza develops the same argument, unlike a ghazal where each couplet stands independently.
- Tashbeeh
- Simile in Urdu rhetoric: an explicit comparison using words such as jaise, manind, or ki tarah. Naming the device plus the two compared things earns full marks.
- Istiara
- Metaphor in Urdu rhetoric: a comparison with the comparing word omitted, so one thing is stated as another. It is stronger than tashbeeh and common in patriotic nazms.
- Husn-e-taleel
- A device assigning an imaginary, poetic cause to a real phenomenon, such as saying the moon dimmed out of shame. Answers should quote the effect and the invented cause.
- Tarraqi-pasand nazm
- Progressive poetry foregrounding labour, poverty, and social justice, linked to the Progressive Writers' Movement of 1936. Imagery of work and hunger signals this category.
- Sher and misra
- A sher is one couplet of a ghazal; each of its two lines is a misra. Both lines of a sher carry one complete thought, so explain them together.
- Matla
- The opening sher of a ghazal, in which both lines carry the radif and qafiya. Identifying the matla is a standard objective question on ghazal structure.
- Maqta and takhallus
- The maqta is the closing sher of a ghazal, containing the poet's takhallus or pen name, such as Mir or Ghalib. It often carries a personal or humble tone.
- Radif and qafiya
- Qafiya is the rhyming word before the refrain; radif is the refrain repeated verbatim after it in every sher. Both must match throughout a single ghazal.
- Beher
- The metre of a ghazal, fixed for all its couplets. Scanning a misra against the beher explains why a line sounds rhythmically regular or irregular.
- Hijr and wasl
- Hijr means separation from the beloved and wasl means union with her. Ghazal couplets typically develop one of these states, and naming it sharpens the explanation.
- Ism-e-khas
- A proper noun naming a specific person, place, or thing, such as Lahore or Ghalib. It is capitalised in English translation and takes no plural in ordinary usage.
- Ism-e-masdar
- A verbal noun in Urdu, naming an action rather than performing it, such as likhna (writing) or parhna (reading). It can function as a subject or object in a sentence.
- Jumlah ismiya
- A nominal sentence beginning with a noun, made of mubtada (subject) and khabar (predicate), with no finite verb required, as in 'Kitab mez par hai'.
- Jumlah failiya
- A verbal sentence built around a fail (verb), with an agent and object where needed. Urdu places the verb last, so the object precedes it.
- Tazkeer-o-tanees
- Grammatical masculinity and femininity of Urdu nouns. Gender is fixed by usage, not natural sex: kitab is feminine and qalam masculine, so adjectives must agree.
- Muhavra
- An Urdu idiom whose meaning cannot be derived from its words alone. Exam items require using it correctly inside a sentence, not merely glossing it.
- Maazi mutlaq
- The simple past tense in Urdu, formed from the verb stem with gender and number endings, as in 'us ne likha'. It maps to English simple past in translation.
- Précis length rule
- A précis should be about one-third of the original passage's length, written in the third person and past tense, with no quotation, comment, or examples retained.
- Khat-e-rasmi
- A formal Urdu letter using openings such as Janaab-e-Mohtaram and closings such as Aapka, with the sender's address and date placed at the top. Format carries separate marks.
- Darkhwast
- A formal Urdu application letter stating one clear request, usually with a subject line and a polite closing. It is marked for format, brevity, and courtesy.
- Tamheed, maqsad, natija
- The three-part Urdu essay structure: introduction, developed body, and conclusion. Each body paragraph should carry one point with a reason or example attached.
- Urdu word order
- Urdu is subject-object-verb, while English is subject-verb-object. Translation therefore reverses the final verb and object positions rather than following word for word.
- Postpositions in translation
- Urdu places ka, ki, ke, se, men, and par after the noun, whereas English prepositions come before it. The noun phrase order reverses when translating between the two.
- Articles in Urdu-to-English
- Urdu has no definite or indefinite article, so translators must supply a, an, and the from context. Missing or wrong articles are a leading cause of lost marks.
- Wali Dakani
- An early Deccani poet credited with shaping the mature Urdu ghazal form. He marks the Deccan period, which precedes the Delhi school in literary histories.
- Delhi and Lucknow schools
- The Delhi school, with Mir and Sauda, favours terseness and depth; the Lucknow school, with Aatish and Nasikh, favours ornament, wordplay, and elaborate imagery.
- Aligarh movement
- A nineteenth-century reform movement led by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, promoting modern education and plain, direct Urdu prose in place of ornate classical style.