Sanskrit Grammar Basics
The essentials of Sanskrit grammar in one place: gender, number, the eight cases, verb conjugation, tenses, sandhi and compounds, with tables.
By Sanskritam Academy Editorial TeamPublished 5 min read
Sanskrit grammar (vyākaraṇa, व्याकरण) was described with great precision by Pāṇini in his Aṣṭādhyāyī some two and a half thousand years ago, and the language has followed that description ever since. For a learner this is good news: the rules are stable and exceptions are few. This article gives a map of the main ideas, so that the tables in your textbook make sense.
Words change their endings
In English, word order tells you who did what: 'Rāma sees the boy' and 'The boy sees Rāma' mean different things. In Sanskrit the ending of each word carries that information, so the order can change without changing the meaning.
| Sanskrit | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| रामः बालकं पश्यति। | rāmaḥ bālakaṃ paśyati | Rāma sees the boy. |
| बालकं रामः पश्यति। | bālakaṃ rāmaḥ paśyati | Rāma sees the boy. (same meaning) |
| बालकः रामं पश्यति। | bālakaḥ rāmaṃ paśyati | The boy sees Rāma. |
The ending -ः marks the doer and -म् marks the object. Learning grammar is largely a matter of learning these endings.
Gender and number
Every noun has one of three genders (liṅga): masculine, feminine or neuter. The gender is grammatical and must be learnt with the word: वृक्षः (tree) is masculine, लता (creeper) is feminine, पुष्पम् (flower) is neuter.
Sanskrit has three numbers (vacana), not two. Besides singular and plural there is a dual, used for exactly two of anything.
| Number | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Singular (ekavacana) | बालकः (bālakaḥ) | one boy |
| Dual (dvivacana) | बालकौ (bālakau) | two boys |
| Plural (bahuvacana) | बालकाः (bālakāḥ) | three or more boys |
The cases (vibhakti)
A noun takes a different ending according to its role in the sentence. There are seven cases, and the form used for calling someone (sambodhana) is usually listed as an eighth. Here is the full declension of बालक (bālaka, boy), the model for all masculine nouns ending in -a.
| Case | Role | Singular | Dual | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Prathamā | subject | बालकः | बालकौ | बालकाः |
| 2. Dvitīyā | object | बालकम् | बालकौ | बालकान् |
| 3. Tṛtīyā | by, with | बालकेन | बालकाभ्याम् | बालकैः |
| 4. Caturthī | to, for | बालकाय | बालकाभ्याम् | बालकेभ्यः |
| 5. Pañcamī | from | बालकात् | बालकाभ्याम् | बालकेभ्यः |
| 6. Ṣaṣṭhī | of | बालकस्य | बालकयोः | बालकानाम् |
| 7. Saptamī | in, on | बालके | बालकयोः | बालकेषु |
| Sambodhana | address | हे बालक | हे बालकौ | हे बालकाः |
Do not try to memorise all twenty-four forms in one sitting. Learn the singular column first, with one sentence for each case, then add the plural, then the dual.
Verbs: person, number and tense
A verb is built on a root (dhātu). The root पठ् (paṭh) means 'to read'. Endings are added to show who is acting and how many. Sanskrit grammar lists the persons starting with 'he/she', which it calls the first person (prathama puruṣa).
| Person | Singular | Dual | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|
| He, she, they (prathama) | पठति (paṭhati) | पठतः (paṭhataḥ) | पठन्ति (paṭhanti) |
| You (madhyama) | पठसि (paṭhasi) | पठथः (paṭhathaḥ) | पठथ (paṭhatha) |
| I, we (uttama) | पठामि (paṭhāmi) | पठावः (paṭhāvaḥ) | पठामः (paṭhāmaḥ) |
Tenses and moods are called lakāra. Five are enough for most school-level and beginner reading:
| Lakāra | Use | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| लट् (laṭ) | present | पठति (paṭhati) | he reads |
| लङ् (laṅ) | past | अपठत् (apaṭhat) | he read |
| लृट् (lṛṭ) | future | पठिष्यति (paṭhiṣyati) | he will read |
| लोट् (loṭ) | command, request | पठतु (paṭhatu) | let him read |
| विधिलिङ् (vidhiliṅ) | should, may | पठेत् (paṭhet) | he should read |
Sandhi: how sounds join
When two sounds meet, within a word or between words, they often merge or change. This is sandhi (सन्धि). It is the main reason a printed line of Sanskrit can look like one long word. There are three broad types.
| Type | Example | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Vowel sandhi (ā + ā = ā) | विद्या + आलयः | विद्यालयः (vidyālayaḥ, school) |
| Vowel sandhi (a + u = o) | सूर्य + उदयः | सूर्योदयः (sūryodayaḥ, sunrise) |
| Consonant sandhi | सत् + जनः | सज्जनः (sajjanaḥ, good person) |
| Visarga sandhi | नमः + ते | नमस्ते (namaste, salutation to you) |
Compounds and indeclinables
Sanskrit readily joins words into compounds (samāsa, समास), dropping the case endings of all but the last member. राज्ञः पुत्रः (rājñaḥ putraḥ, the king's son) becomes राजपुत्रः (rājaputraḥ). To understand a compound you split it back into its parts, a skill that comes with reading practice.
Some words never change their form. These indeclinables (avyaya) are small but very frequent:
- च (ca), and: रामः लक्ष्मणः च, Rāma and Lakṣmaṇa. Note that च follows the word it joins.
- अपि (api), also, even.
- न (na), not: सः न गच्छति, he does not go.
- एव (eva), only, indeed.
- अत्र (atra), here; तत्र (tatra), there; कुत्र (kutra), where.
A sensible order of study
- Present tense of a few common verbs.
- Masculine and neuter nouns in -a, then feminine nouns in -ā.
- Pronouns: अहम्, त्वम्, सः, सा, तत्.
- Past, future and imperative.
- Sandhi rules, starting with vowel sandhi.
- Compounds, participles and the passive.
If the script is still new to you, begin with How to Learn Sanskrit From Scratch. School students preparing for board examinations may find the CBSE Class 10 Sanskrit preparation guide useful. For systematic teaching of all the topics above with exercises and correction, see the Sanskrit Grammar course.