PSEB SS Punjabi Compulsory key terms

The branch of language study that describes how words are formed, inflected and combined into correct sentences; in Punjabi exams it covers parts of speech, gender, number, case and sentence structure.

The grammatical gender assigned to a noun or pronoun. Punjabi has masculine and feminine; adjectives and verbs often change form to agree with the gender of the noun they refer to.

The grammatical number of a word, either singular (one) or plural (more than one). Punjabi marks plural mainly on nouns and on the verb forms that agree with them.

The grammatical case relation a noun has to the rest of the sentence, such as doer, object, instrument or place. Punjabi shows case mainly through postpositions like ਨੇ, ਨੂੰ, ਤੋਂ and ਦਾ.

A verb, the word that expresses an action or state. In Punjabi it carries tense, aspect and person, and it agrees with the subject or object in gender and number.

Grammatical tense, the time reference of a verb. Punjabi distinguishes past, present and future, and combines these with aspectual forms such as habitual, continuous and perfect.

The joining of two words or word parts in which the final sound of the first and the initial sound of the second combine or change, producing a single written form.

A compound word formed by combining two or more words into one unit, where the meaning is understood as a whole rather than from the parts separately.

A fixed multi-word expression whose meaning is figurative and cannot be worked out from the individual words; using it correctly in a sentence is a common exam task.

A traditional proverb or saying that carries folk wisdom in a short fixed sentence. Unlike an idiom it usually stands alone as a complete utterance.

Punjabi spelling and word-joining conventions: which sounds are written with which letters, when a halant or addak is used, and how words are spaced in writing.

The script used to write Punjabi in India. It has thirty-five basic letters plus vowel signs, and is written from left to right with a continuous headline.

A paragraph: a group of sentences developing one main idea. In comprehension and writing tasks candidates must identify the central idea of a paragraph and its supporting details.

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

Answering questions on an unseen passage. A good answer addresses exactly what is asked, stays within the passage, and is written in complete sentences of appropriate length.

Translation of a text from one language into another while preserving meaning, tone and register. Exam passages usually translate between Punjabi and English or Hindi.

A summary or precis: a shortened restatement of a text that keeps its essential points and drops repetition and examples, usually about one third of the original length.

A letter. Formal letters follow a fixed layout with sender's address, date, salutation, body and closing; informal letters are written to relatives and friends in a personal tone.

A formal application, usually written to an official or institution to request something. It follows a set format and uses polite, impersonal language.

An essay: a structured piece of writing on a topic, with an introduction, several developed paragraphs and a conclusion, showing unity and coherence.

A factual account of an event, written for a newspaper or authority. It answers what, when, where, who and why, and usually has a headline and a byline.

A condensed written account of a longer text or event, keeping the order of the original but reducing detail; often tested alongside precis and note-making.

Poetry. In the prescribed textbook, poems are studied for theme, central image, tone and the poet's message, and often for stanza form and rhyme.

The aesthetic emotion or flavour that a literary work evokes in the reader, such as love, sorrow, heroism or wonder. Classical Punjabi criticism names nine principal rasas.

A figure of speech or ornamental device that makes literary language vivid, for example simile, metaphor, alliteration or hyperbole. Candidates identify and explain them in set texts.

Metre: the patterned arrangement of syllables and stresses in a poem. Recognising a poem's metre helps explain its rhythm and its oral, song-like quality.

A biography: a prose account of a person's life, written by someone else, covering birth, education, achievements and contribution.

An autobiography: a person's own account of their life, written in the first person. It is studied for narrative voice and the writer's reflection on events.

A one-act play: a short dramatic work with a single situation and few characters, often used in the syllabus to teach dialogue, conflict and stage direction.

Dialogue: the exchange of speech between characters in a play or story. It reveals character, advances the plot and carries the tone of the scene.

A short story: a brief prose narrative with plot, character, setting and a turning point, usually built around a single incident or theme.

A character in a story, play or poem. Candidates describe a character's traits, motives and development, supporting each point with evidence from the text.

A traditional Punjabi heroic ballad praising warriors and recounting battle, sung in a vigorous rhythm. Guru Gobind Singh's compositions include famous vaars.

Punjabi mystical poetry expressing love for the divine through the imagery of human love, associated with poets such as Baba Farid and Bulleh Shah.

A lyrical Punjabi poetic form of several stanzas with a recurring refrain, often mystical in theme and sung rather than recited.

The revealed compositions of the Sikh Gurus and other contributors collected in the Guru Granth Sahib, written largely in Punjabi and related dialects and central to Punjabi literary heritage.

Folk culture: the orally transmitted traditions of a community, including songs, tales, riddles, proverbs and customs, which shape much of Punjabi literature.

A long narrative Punjabi poem telling a romantic or heroic tale, such as the stories of Heer and Sohni, composed by classical poets and recited to audiences.

A lyric poem of couplets sharing a rhyme and refrain, each couplet often standing as a complete thought; a major form in Punjabi and Urdu poetry.