Maharashtra HSC Hindi Applied (MSBSHSE) key terms

Prescribed prose section of the Hindi textbook, containing essays, stories and biographical sketches whose themes, characters and author details are tested in the exam.

Prescribed poetry section containing poems tested for central idea, poetic devices, poet's name and the meaning of difficult lines.

A prose passage not from the textbook, followed by questions on its main idea, implied meaning, vocabulary and inference, testing independent reading ability.

The central idea or dominant sentiment of a passage or poem, stated briefly in the candidate's own words rather than copied from the text.

An answer format naming the poem or prose piece, its author, the speaker and situation, then explaining the quoted lines in simple language.

The context or situation in which a quoted line occurs - who speaks, to whom, and what has happened just before - needed for full-mark explanation answers.

Character sketch: describing a figure from a prescribed story through qualities, actions, speech and the narrator's comments, supported by incidents from the text.

A character in a story or play; questions ask about motives, changes in behaviour, and relationships with other characters across the plot.

The plot or storyline of a prescribed story - beginning, conflict, turning point and resolution - often required in summary or event-ordering questions.

A concise summary of a passage or lesson in the candidate's own words, keeping the main points in logical order and omitting examples and repetition.

A poetic device such as उपमा, रूपक, अनुप्रास or यमक; candidates must identify the device in a given line and justify the choice.

Simile: comparison of two unlike things using words such as सा, जैसा, सम or तुल्य, where the common quality is stated explicitly.

Metaphor: an implied comparison in which one thing is described as another without words of likeness, so the two appear identified.

Alliteration: repetition of the same consonant sound, usually at the start of nearby words, producing a musical effect in the line.

Repetition of the same word in a line or stanza with a different meaning each time; the device depends on the change of sense, not the sound.

The aesthetic sentiment evoked in a reader, such as करुण, वीर, शृंगार or हास्य; naming the rasa and its कारण is a common poetry question.

Satire or irony: indirect criticism in which the stated meaning differs from the intended one, frequent in prescribed prose and editorial-style passages.

The intended or figurative meaning of a word or sentence, as opposed to its literal sense; needed when explaining idiomatic lines in poetry.

An idiom whose meaning cannot be worked out from its individual words; questions ask for its use in a sentence or its meaning in a passage.

A proverb or popular saying expressing folk wisdom; candidates are asked to complete it or use it appropriately in a sentence.

Using a new word, idiom or proverb correctly in an original sentence that makes the meaning clear from the context.

A synonym: a word having nearly the same meaning as another, e.g. alternatives for सूर्य or पानी; lists are tested directly and in vocabulary questions.

An antonym: a word opposite in meaning to a given word, such as अंधकार for प्रकाश; asked as direct pairs or within sentence completion.

A word carrying several distinct meanings depending on context, e.g. कर meaning hand, tax or ray; candidates must supply the correct sense.

Word classification into तत्सम, तद्भव, देशज and विदेशी origin; identification questions appear regularly in the grammar section.

Joining of two sounds at a word boundary, classified as स्वर, व्यंजन or विसर्ग संधि; questions ask to join or split words correctly.

Compound formation of two or more words, classified as तत्पुरुष, द्वंद्व, बहुव्रीहि, कर्मधारय or द्विगु; candidates name the type and split the compound.

A prefix attached before a root word that changes its meaning, such as अनु, प्र, वि or नि; questions ask for prefixed forms or their sense.

A suffix added after a root or stem to form a new word or grammatical form, e.g. ता, त्व, आई; identification and word-formation are tested.

Tense: the form of a verb showing past, present or future time, including the distinction between सामान्य, अपूर्ण and पूर्ण aspects.

Voice of a sentence - कर्तृवाच्य, कर्मवाच्य or भाववाच्य; exercises require converting a sentence from one voice to another without changing meaning.

The verb of a sentence, including whether it is सकर्मक or अकर्मक; agreement with the subject or object is often tested.

Punctuation marks such as पूर्ण विराम, अल्प विराम, प्रश्नवाचक and उद्धरण चिह्न; a passage must be punctuated correctly.

Correcting an erroneous sentence for agreement, word order, redundancy or wrong preposition, and rewriting it in its corrected form.

A formal letter to an official or institution, following the set layout of sender's address, date, receiver, subject, salutation, body and closing.

A personal letter to a relative or friend, written in an informal tone with a warm opening, personal news and a friendly closing.

The prescribed format or layout of a written piece - letter, notice, report or advertisement - whose correct structure earns marks independently of content.

A short notice displaying information about an event, meeting or loss; it must carry a heading, date, place, details and the writer's designation, in boxed form.

Report writing on an event that has occurred, answering what, where, when, who and why in past tense, usually with a heading and byline.

An essay on a given topic, organised into introduction, body paragraphs and conclusion, with coherent linking and a consistent point of view.

Administrative Hindi used in official letters and circulars, preferring standard terms over English loanwords, e.g. प्रतिवेदन for report.

Standardised technical terminology in Hindi for administrative and academic concepts, tested by matching a term with its accepted Hindi equivalent.