What does "think" mean in Bengali?
English "think" does many jobs with one word: "I think about it," "I think it will rain," "I thought of you," "think before you speak," "don't think so much." Bengali shares them among several words. The word of this lesson is ভাবা (bhaba), the verb of the mind at work: "to think, to ponder, to turn something over, to imagine, to worry." It is a simple verb (ক্রিয়া, kriya), made of one root with no helper, and it is the verb that stands behind the question কী ভাবছ? (ki bhabchho?), "What are you thinking?"
ভাবা is a process, not an opinion. আমি ভাবছি (ami bhabchhi) is "I am thinking," "I am turning it over." It can take an object of thought: তোমার কথা ভাবছি (tomar kotha bhabchhi), "I am thinking of you"; কী নিয়ে ভাবছ? (ki niye bhabchho?), "What are you thinking about?" It can quote a thought: সে ভাবল, "চাকরিটা ভালো" (she bhablo, "chakriṭa bhalo"), "He thought, 'The job is good.'" And it can mean "worry," as in ভেবো না (bhebo na), "don't worry." Section D sets out the three other verbs that English "think" also reaches for: চিন্তা করা (chinta kora), মনে করা (mone kora) and মনে হওয়া (mone howa). The last is how Bengali most often says "I think" when it means "in my opinion."
The verb comes from Sanskrit ভাব (bhāva), "state of being, feeling, notion," which survives in Bengali as a noun of its own: ভাব (bhab) is "feeling, mood, idea." From the same root come ভাবনা (bhabna), "a thought; a worry," and ভাবিত (bhabito), "worried." The dictionary form of the verb, ভাবা, is also its verbal noun, "thinking": ভাবা সহজ, করা কঠিন (bhaba shohoj, kora kothin), "thinking is easy, doing is hard."
The verb is regular, but its stem has two shapes. Most forms use ভাব- (ভাবি, ভাবছি, ভাবল, ভাবব), and a few change the vowel আ to এ and use ভেব-: ভেবে (bhebe) "having thought," ভেবেছি (bhebechhi) "I have thought," ভেবো না (bhebo na) "don't think." Learn the two shapes together and the rest is in Section D.
The word is written with two consonant letters, ভ and ব, each carrying the vowel sign া, and no conjuncts. The first letter ভ is a breathy b, said with a soft puff of breath after the b, as in ভাত (bhat) "rice." It must not be written or said as the plain ব. The first syllable carries the stress: BHAA-baa. In ভাবছি the letters ব and ছ meet without a conjunct, and the word is said BHAB-chhi.
The main work of this lesson is to use ভাবা in its three common frames, "think about" (নিয়ে, -র কথা), "think that" (যে) and "think it over" (ভেবে দেখা), and to keep it apart from মনে হয় "it seems to me."
- ভাবা (bhaba) = "to think, to ponder, to worry": the verb of thinking as a process - Two stem shapes: ভাব- (ভাবি, ভাবছি, ভাবল, ভাবব) and ভেব- (ভেবে, ভেবেছি, ভেবো না) - Think about: কী নিয়ে ভাবছ? · তোমার কথা ভাবছি - Think that: আমি ভাবছি যে সে আসবে না - Think over: ভেবে দেখা; "I can't work it out": ভেবে পাচ্ছি না - ভেবো না (bhebo na) = "don't think, don't worry"; ভাবো না (bhabo na) = "you do not think" - "I think" as an opinion is usually আমার মনে হয় (amar mone hoy), not আমি ভাবি - Related words: ভাবনা (bhabna) "thought, worry" · ভাব (bhab) "feeling, mood" · ভাবিত (bhabito) "worried"
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53.1a আমি I ভাবছি am-thinking
53.1b ami (AA-mi) I-NOM bhabchhi (BHAB-chhi) think-PRES.CONT.1SG
53.2a তুমি you কী what ভাবছ are-thinking
53.2b tumi (TU-mi) you-2 ki (KEE) what bhabchho (BHAB-chho) think-PRES.CONT.2
53.3a আমি I একটু a-little ভাবি think
53.3b ami (AA-mi) I-NOM ektu (EK-tu) a-little bhabi (BHAA-bi) think-PRES.1SG
53.4a ভেবো think না not
53.4b bhebo (BHE-bo) think-IMP.2 na (NAA) not
53.5a সে he/she সব all সময় time ভাবে thinks
53.5b she (SHE) he/she-3SG shob (SHOB) all shomoy (SHO-moy) time bhabe (BHAA-be) think-PRES.3
53.6a আমি I তোমার your কথা matter ভাবছি am-thinking
53.6b ami (AA-mi) I-NOM tomar (TO-mar) 2-GEN kotha (KO-thaa) matter bhabchhi (BHAB-chhi) think-PRES.CONT.1SG
53.7a সে he/she আমাকে me নিয়ে taking ভাবে thinks না not
53.7b she (SHE) he/she-3SG amake (AA-ma-ke) I-OBJ niye (NI-ye) take-CONJ.PTCP bhabe (BHAA-be) think-PRES.3 na (NAA) not
53.8a আমি I আগে first ভেবে having-thought দেখি see তারপর after-that বলব will-say
53.8b ami (AA-mi) I-NOM age (AA-ge) first bhebe (BHE-be) think-CONJ.PTCP dekhi (DE-khi) see-PRES.1SG tarpor (TAR-por) after-that bolbo (BOL-bo) say-FUT.1SG
53.9a আমি I ভাবছি am-thinking যে that সে he/she আসবে will-come না not
53.9b ami (AA-mi) I-NOM bhabchhi (BHAB-chhi) think-PRES.CONT.1SG je (JE) that-COMP she (SHE) he/she-3SG ashbe (ASH-be) come-FUT.3 na (NAA) not
53.10a আমি I এটা this আগে before ভাবিনি have-not-thought
53.10b ami (AA-mi) I-NOM eṭa (E-ṭaa) this age (AA-ge) before bhabini (BHAA-bi-ni) think-PERF.NEG.1SG
53.11a যখন when তুমি you এলে came তখন then আমি I তোমার your কথাই matter-just ভাবছিলাম was-thinking
53.11b jokhon (JO-khon) when-REL tumi (TU-mi) you-2 ele (E-le) come-PAST.2 tokhon (TO-khon) then ami (AA-mi) I-NOM tomar (TO-mar) 2-GEN kothai (KO-thaai) matter-EMPH bhabchhilam (BHAB-chhi-laam) think-PAST.CONT.1SG
53.12a ছোটবেলায় childhood-in আমি I ভাবতাম used-to-think বড় big হয়ে having-become ডাক্তার doctor হব will-be
53.12b chhoṭobelay (CHHO-ṭo-be-lay) childhood-LOC ami (AA-mi) I-NOM bhabtam (BHAB-taam) think-PAST.HAB.1SG boṛo (BO-ro) big hoye (HO-ye) become-CONJ.PTCP daktar (DAK-taar) doctor hobo (HO-bo) become-FUT.1SG
53.13a ভেবে having-thought পাচ্ছি am-getting না not কী what করব shall-do
53.13b bhebe (BHE-be) think-CONJ.PTCP pachchhi (PAACH-chhi) get-PRES.CONT.1SG na (NAA) not ki (KEE) what korbo (KOR-bo) do-FUT.1SG
53.14a তুমি you ভাবলে if-think বুঝবে will-understand এটা this সহজ easy নয় is-not
53.14b tumi (TU-mi) you-2 bhable (BHAB-le) think-COND bujhbe (BUJH-be) understand-FUT.2 eṭa (E-ṭaa) this shohoj (SHO-hoj) easy noy (NOY) be-NEG
53.15a আপনি you যা what ভাবছেন are-thinking ব্যাপারটা matter-the তা that নয় is-not
53.15b apni (AAP-ni) you-HON ja (JAA) what-REL bhabchhen (BHAB-chhen) think-PRES.CONT.2.HON byaparṭa (BYAA-par-ṭaa) matter-the ta (TAA) that noy (NOY) be-NEG
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53.1 আমি ভাবছি। Ami bhabchhi. "I am thinking."
53.2 তুমি কী ভাবছ? Tumi ki bhabchho? "What are you thinking?"
53.3 আমি একটু ভাবি। Ami ektu bhabi. "Let me think a little."
53.4 ভেবো না। Bhebo na. "Don't think about it; don't worry."
53.5 সে সব সময় ভাবে। She shob shomoy bhabe. "He (or she) is always thinking."
53.6 আমি তোমার কথা ভাবছি। Ami tomar kotha bhabchhi. "I am thinking of you."
53.7 সে আমাকে নিয়ে ভাবে না। She amake niye bhabe na. "He (or she) does not think about me."
53.8 আমি আগে ভেবে দেখি, তারপর বলব। Ami age bhebe dekhi, tarpor bolbo. "Let me think it over first; then I will say."
53.9 আমি ভাবছি যে সে আসবে না। Ami bhabchhi je she ashbe na. "I think (I am thinking) that he (or she) will not come."
53.10 আমি এটা আগে ভাবিনি। Ami eṭa age bhabini. "I did not think of this before."
53.11 যখন তুমি এলে, তখন আমি তোমার কথাই ভাবছিলাম। Jokhon tumi ele, tokhon ami tomar kothai bhabchhilam. "When you came, I was just thinking of you."
53.12 ছোটবেলায় আমি ভাবতাম, বড় হয়ে ডাক্তার হব। Chhoṭobelay ami bhabtam, boṛo hoye daktar hobo. "As a child I used to think, 'When I grow up I will be a doctor.'"
53.13 ভেবে পাচ্ছি না কী করব। Bhebe pachchhi na ki korbo. "I cannot work out what to do."
53.14 তুমি ভাবলে বুঝবে, এটা সহজ নয়। Tumi bhable bujhbe, eṭa shohoj noy. "If you think about it, you will see that this is not easy."
53.15 আপনি যা ভাবছেন, ব্যাপারটা তা নয়। Apni ja bhabchhen, byaparṭa ta noy. "It is not what you are thinking."
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53.1 আমি ভাবছি।
53.2 তুমি কী ভাবছ?
53.3 আমি একটু ভাবি।
53.4 ভেবো না।
53.5 সে সব সময় ভাবে।
53.6 আমি তোমার কথা ভাবছি।
53.7 সে আমাকে নিয়ে ভাবে না।
53.8 আমি আগে ভেবে দেখি, তারপর বলব।
53.9 আমি ভাবছি যে সে আসবে না।
53.10 আমি এটা আগে ভাবিনি।
53.11 যখন তুমি এলে, তখন আমি তোমার কথাই ভাবছিলাম।
53.12 ছোটবেলায় আমি ভাবতাম, বড় হয়ে ডাক্তার হব।
53.13 ভেবে পাচ্ছি না কী করব।
53.14 তুমি ভাবলে বুঝবে, এটা সহজ নয়।
53.15 আপনি যা ভাবছেন, ব্যাপারটা তা নয়।
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1. What kind of word it is. ভাবা is a verb with the stem ভাব (bhab). It is a simple verb, not a compound one: unlike চিন্তা করা "to think" (literally "to do thought"), it needs no helper. The form ভাবা is the dictionary form and also the verbal noun: ভাবা সহজ, করা কঠিন (bhaba shohoj, kora kothin), "thinking is easy, doing is hard." The subject that thinks is in the plain form, with no case ending: আমি ভাবছি, সে ভাবে.
2. The two stems and the forms. The stem is ভাব- in most forms and ভেব- in the forms that end in -ে or -েছ-. The forms used in this lesson, written out:
- The present: আমি ভাবি (ami bhabi), তুমি ভাবো (tumi bhabo), আপনি ভাবেন (apni bhaben), সে ভাবে (she bhabe), তুই ভাবিস (tui bhabish), তারা ভাবে (tara bhabe). - The present continuous: আমি ভাবছি (ami bhabchhi), তুমি ভাবছ (tumi bhabchho), আপনি ভাবছেন (apni bhabchhen), সে ভাবছে (she bhabchhe), তুই ভাবছিস (tui bhabchhish). - The simple past: আমি ভাবলাম (ami bhablam), তুমি ভাবলে (tumi bhable), আপনি ভাবলেন (apni bhablen), সে ভাবল (she bhablo), তুই ভাবলি (tui bhabli). - The past continuous: আমি ভাবছিলাম (ami bhabchhilam), তুমি ভাবছিলে (tumi bhabchhile), আপনি ভাবছিলেন (apni bhabchhilen), সে ভাবছিল (she bhabchhilo), তুই ভাবছিলি (tui bhabchhili). - The present perfect: আমি ভেবেছি (ami bhebechhi), তুমি ভেবেছ (tumi bhebechho), আপনি ভেবেছেন (apni bhebechhen), সে ভেবেছে (she bhebechhe), তুই ভেবেছিস (tui bhebechhish). - The past perfect: আমি ভেবেছিলাম (ami bhebechhilam), তুমি ভেবেছিলে (tumi bhebechhile), আপনি ভেবেছিলেন (apni bhebechhilen), সে ভেবেছিল (she bhebechhilo), তুই ভেবেছিলি (tui bhebechhili). - The past habitual: আমি ভাবতাম (ami bhabtam), তুমি ভাবতে (tumi bhabte), আপনি ভাবতেন (apni bhabten), সে ভাবত (she bhabto), তুই ভাবতিস (tui bhabtish). - The future: আমি ভাবব (ami bhabbo), তুমি ভাববে (tumi bhabbe), আপনি ভাববেন (apni bhabben), সে ভাববে (she bhabbe), তুই ভাববি (tui bhabbi). - The imperative: তুই ভাব (tui bhab), তুমি ভাবো (tumi bhabo), আপনি ভাবুন (apni bhabun). The command not to think: তুই ভাবিস না (tui bhabish na), তুমি ভেবো না (tumi bhebo na), আপনি ভাববেন না (apni bhabben na). - The other forms: ভেবে "having thought, after thinking" · ভাবতে "to think" · ভাবতে ভাবতে "while thinking" · ভাবলে "if one thinks, when one thinks" · ভাবা "thinking."
The negative puts না after the verb: ভাবি না, ভাবছি না, ভাবব না. The perfect is the exception: its negative adds -নি to the present form of the verb, ভাবি + নি = ভাবিনি (bhabini), "I have not thought; I did not think." In ভেবো না and ভাবো না the whole difference is the stem vowel: ভেবো না is the command "don't think, don't worry," while ভাবো না is the statement "you do not think."
3. What you think about. ভাবা has no preposition of its own; the object of thought is joined to it in one of three ways.
- With নিয়ে (niye), literally "taking": কী নিয়ে ভাবছ? (ki niye bhabchho?), "What are you thinking about?" ওকে নিয়ে ভাবছি (oke niye bhabchhi), "I am thinking about him (or her)." - With a possessive and কথা (kotha): তোমার কথা ভাবছি (tomar kotha bhabchhi), "I am thinking of you." This is the form for a person who is far away or dear. - With ব্যাপারে (byapare) "in the matter of" or বিষয়ে (bishoye) "on the subject of," for a question: এই ব্যাপারে আপনি কী ভাবছেন? (ei byapare apni ki bhabchhen?), "What do you think about this matter?"
4. Thinking that. After ভাবা a thought can be given as a clause introduced by যে (je) "that": আমি ভাবছি যে সে আসবে না (ami bhabchhi je she ashbe na). Or it can be quoted without যে, as if it were speech: সে ভাবল, "চাকরিটা ভালো" (she bhablo, "chakriṭa bhalo"). In everyday talk the thought is often a bare clause: ভাবলাম, একটু ঘুরে আসি (bhablam, ektu ghure ashi), "I thought, 'Let me go for a little walk.'" The present continuous ভাবছি is also the usual way to say "I am thinking of doing": ভাবছি, কাল যাব (bhabchhi, kal jabo), "I am thinking I will go tomorrow." It states a plan that is not yet settled.
5. Think it over. ভেবে (bhebe) is the conjunctive participle, and it joins ভাবা to a second verb.
- ভেবে দেখা (bhebe dekha): to think it over, to try the thought and see. ভেবে দেখব (bhebe dekhbo), "I will think it over." ভেবে দেখলাম (bhebe dekhlam), "I have thought it over, and I find that..." - ভেবে পাওয়া (bhebe pawa): to find an answer by thinking. It is nearly always negative: ভেবে পাচ্ছি না (bhebe pachchhi na), "I cannot work it out." - ভেবে করা (bhebe kora): to do something after thinking, as in the proverb of Section F. - ভাবতে ভাবতে (bhabte bhabte): while thinking, in the middle of thought. ভাবতে ভাবতে সে ঘুমিয়ে পড়ল, "Thinking and thinking, he fell asleep." - ভাবতে বসা (bhabte bosha): to sit down to think. ভাবতে অবাক লাগে (bhabte abak lage), "it is astonishing to think of."
6. Four verbs for "think." English "think" splits among these.
- ভাবা (bhaba): the act of thinking, imagining, turning over, worrying. কী ভাবছ? "What are you thinking?" - চিন্তা করা (chinta kora): to think, to give thought to; a little more formal and more serious. The noun চিন্তা (chinta) is both "thought" and "worry": চিন্তা করবেন না (chinta korben na), "please don't worry." - মনে হওয়া (mone howa): literally "to arise in the mind," the usual way to say "I think" as an opinion or impression. আমার মনে হয় সে আসবে (amar mone hoy she ashbe), "I think he will come" (literally, "to my mind, he will come"). The one who thinks is in the genitive (আমার), not the subject. - মনে করা (mone kora): to take something to be so, to consider; also "to mind." আমি তাকে ভালো মনে করি (ami take bhalo mone kori), "I consider him good." কিছু মনে করবেন না (kichhu mone korben na), "please don't mind." For "to remember," the verb is মনে পড়া (mone poṛa): তার নাম মনে পড়ছে না, "I cannot recall his name."
7. The words made from it.
- ভাবনা (bhabna): a thought; a worry. কোনো ভাবনা নেই (kono bhabna nei), "there is nothing to worry about." The pair ভাবনা-চিন্তা (bhabna-chinta) means "thought and worry, all the thinking." - ভাব (bhab): a feeling, a mood, an idea; the word the verb came from. - ভাবিত (bhabito): worried, concerned. আমি তার জন্য ভাবিত (ami tar jonyo bhabito), "I am concerned about him." - ভাবুক (bhabuk): a thoughtful, dreamy person, one who is given to thought. - ভাবানো (bhabano): to make someone think. কথাটা আমাকে ভাবায় (kothaṭa amake bhabay), "That remark makes me think."
1. "I think" as an opinion is not always আমি ভাবি. "I think it's a good idea" is আমার মনে হয়, এটা ভালো বুদ্ধি (amar mone hoy, eṭa bhalo buddhi). আমি ভাবি যে এটা ভালো is understood, but it says "I turn over the thought that it is good," and most speakers would reach for মনে হয়. 2. "I can't think of his name" is not ভাবা. English "think of" in the sense of "recall" is মনে পড়া. তার নাম ভাবতে পারছি না does not say that; it sounds like "I cannot think up his name." 3. Do not confuse ভেবো না and ভাবো না. ভেবো না is "don't worry," and ভাবো না is "you don't think." A single vowel changes a kind word into an accusation. 4. Keep the participle ভেবে. The form ভাবে is "he or she thinks," not "having thought." Likewise ভাবেছি is a wrong form of ভেবেছি. The vowel changes to এ before the endings -ে and -েছ-. 5. Join the thing you think about with নিয়ে or -র কথা. "I am thinking about the exam" is পরীক্ষা নিয়ে ভাবছি or পরীক্ষার কথা ভাবছি. A bare object with the ending -কে, as in "পরীক্ষাকে ভাবছি," does not sound natural in everyday speech, and the same holds for a person: ওকে নিয়ে ভাবছি, ওর কথা ভাবছি. 6. Use ভাবিনি, not "ভাবি না," for "I never thought." আমি কখনো ভাবিনি (ami kokhono bhabini), "I never thought," tells of something that did not come to mind. আমি কখনো ভাবি না means "I never think (it is not my habit)." 7. Spell the breathy ভ. The first letter is ভ (bh), not ব (b). ভাবা and বাবা (baba, "father") are not the same word.
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ভাবা is the verb of the quiet moment. A parent who sees a child staring out of a window asks কী ভাবছিস? (ki bhabchhish?), "What are you thinking about?" Friends say কী এত ভাবছ? (ki eto bhabchho?), "What are you thinking so hard about?" to someone who has gone silent in the middle of the adda, the long talk of friends. And the reassurance that goes with every difficulty is ভেবো না (bhebo na), "don't worry." The same word does both jobs: to think a great deal is, in Bengali, close to worrying.
ভেবে দেখব (bhebe dekhbo), "I will think it over," and ভাবছি (bhabchhi), "I am thinking," are the gentle answers to an invitation or an offer that one does not want to refuse at once. They keep the door open. A listener who hears ভাবছি, দেখি (bhabchhi, dekhi), "I'm thinking, let me see," understands that the answer is not yet a yes.
Bengali does not separate thought from care the way English does. ভাবনা is both "a thought" and "a worry," and চিন্তা (chinta) is the same. A mother's ভাবনা for her child is a word of love, and the expression তোমার জন্য চিন্তা হয় (tomar jonyo chinta hoy), "I worry about you," is said as warmly as English says "I am thinking of you."
In ordinary modern prose and in speech the word is ভাবছি, ভেবে, ভেবো. In the older literary style, the sadhu bhasha, the same verb is ভাবিতেছি, ভাবিয়া, ভাবিও. Section F is in that older style. In some eastern speech the present continuous is said ভাবতাছি (bhabtachhi), as করতাছি for করছি; the written form is ভাবছি everywhere.
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The citation is a Bengali proverb (প্রবাদ, probad), ভাবিয়া করিও কাজ, করিয়া ভাবিও না (bhabiya korio kaj, koriya bhabio na), "Think before you act, and do not think after you have acted." It is a saying of the people and we have not traced it to a named author or to a first printing. Its wording is the same in the Bengali Wiktionary's collection of proverbs and in a Bengali-language news article that uses it as a headline; both were opened for this lesson. Both give it in the older literary style, the sadhu bhasha, so the participles end in -িয়া and the commands in -িও, not in the everyday -ে and -ো. The proverb is chosen because ভাবা stands in both of its halves, and the two halves are made of the same two verbs in opposite order. The English is the Latinum Institute's own, kept close to the Bengali.
F.1a ভাবিয়া having-thought করিও do কাজ work
F.1b bhabiya (BHAA-bi-yaa) think-CONJ.PTCP korio (KO-ri-o) do-IMP.2 kaj (KAAJ) work
F.2a করিয়া having-done ভাবিও think না not
F.2b koriya (KO-ri-yaa) do-CONJ.PTCP bhabio (BHAA-bi-o) think-IMP.2 na (NAA) not
ভাবিয়া করিও কাজ, করিয়া ভাবিও না।
Bhabiya korio kaj, koriya bhabio na.
"Think, then do the deed; do the deed, then do not think."
— Bengali proverb (প্রবাদ), traditional, author unknown; recorded in the Bengali Wiktionary (bn.wiktionary.org) among Bengali proverbs; translation: Latinum Institute
ভাবিয়া করিও কাজ, করিয়া ভাবিও না।
- ভাবিয়া (bhabiya). The literary conjunctive participle of ভাবা, "having thought." The everyday form is ভেবে (bhebe), with the vowel changed. The participle joins "thinking" to the main verb করিও, so that the deed comes after the thought: "doing, having thought." - করিও (korio). The ordinary-level (তুমি) imperative, in the literary form used for a command that is to hold in the future, an instruction for life rather than for this moment. The everyday form is কোরো (koro, said with a closed o): ভেবে কোরো কাজ. - কাজ (kaj). "Work, a deed, a task": the thing done. It stands between the two verbs of the first half and has no ending. - করিয়া (koriya). The same participle, now of করা "to do": "having done." The everyday form is করে (kore). - ভাবিও না (bhabio na). The negative of the same imperative: "do not think." The everyday form is ভেবো না (bhebo na), the command of Section D, rule 2, and the one that means "do not worry." - The everyday form of the whole proverb is ভেবে কোরো কাজ, করে ভেবো না. This is our rendering of the old wording into the everyday style; it is not the traditional text.
The proverb has the shape of a chiasmus: "think—do // done—think." The first half puts ভাবা before করা, and the second half reverses them. The first half praises thought. The second does not forbid it, but it forbids the kind of thinking that comes after the deed: regret, second-guessing, worry. Because ভাবা means both "to think" and "to worry," the second ভাবিও carries both senses at once: do not turn the finished act over and over in your mind. The advice is to do your thinking at the right time. It is the same turn of mind as the English "look before you leap," but it adds a second half that the English saying does not state.
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A short story told in the past tense, as a storyteller would tell it. Every sentence has ভাবা in it, and the scene follows one man over a night while he makes up his mind.
53.16a চিঠিটা letter-the পড়ে having-read করিম Karim অনেকক্ষণ long-time ভাবল thought
53.16b chiṭhiṭa (CHI-ṭhi-ṭaa) letter-the poṛe (PO-re) read-CONJ.PTCP Korim (KO-rim) Karim onekkhon (O-nek-khon) long-time bhablo (BHAB-lo) think-PAST.3
53.17a সে he/she ভাবল thought চাকরিটা job-the ভালো good কিন্তু but শহরটা city-the অচেনা unfamiliar
53.17b she (SHE) he/she-3SG bhablo (BHAB-lo) think-PAST.3 chakriṭa (CHAK-ri-ṭaa) job-the bhalo (BHAA-lo) good kintu (KIN-tu) but shohorṭa (SHO-hor-ṭaa) city-the ochena (O-che-naa) unfamiliar
53.18a মা mother জিজ্ঞেস question করলেন did তুই you কী what ভাবছিস are-thinking
53.18b ma (MAA) mother jiggesh (JIG-gesh) question korlen (KOR-len) do-PAST.3.HON tui (TUI) you-FAM ki (KEE) what bhabchhish (BHAB-chhish) think-PRES.CONT.2.FAM
53.19a করিম Karim বলল said ভাবছি am-thinking যাব shall-go কি whether না not
53.19b Korim (KO-rim) Karim bollo (BOL-lo) say-PAST.3 bhabchhi (BHAB-chhi) think-PRES.CONT.1SG jabo (JAA-bo) go-FUT.1SG ki (KEE) whether na (NAA) not
53.20a মা mother বললেন said ভালো good করে doing ভেবে having-thought দেখ see
53.20b ma (MAA) mother bollen (BOL-len) say-PAST.3.HON bhalo (BHAA-lo) good kore (KO-re) do-CONJ.PTCP bhebe (BHE-be) think-CONJ.PTCP dekh (DEKH) see-IMP.2.FAM
53.21a রাতে night-at করিম Karim বিছানায় bed-on শুয়ে having-lain ভাবছিল was-thinking
53.21b rate (RAA-te) night-LOC Korim (KO-rim) Karim bichhanay (BI-chhaa-nay) bed-LOC shuye (SHU-ye) lie-CONJ.PTCP bhabchhilo (BHAB-chhi-lo) think-PAST.CONT.3
53.22a সে he/she বন্ধুদের friends-of কথা matter ভাবল thought
53.22b she (SHE) he/she-3SG bondhuder (BON-dhu-der) friend-GEN.PL kotha (KO-thaa) matter bhablo (BHAB-lo) think-PAST.3
53.23a তারপর after-that সে he/she নতুন new শহরের city-of কথা matter ভাবল thought
53.23b tarpor (TAR-por) after-that she (SHE) he/she-3SG notun (NO-tun) new shohorer (SHO-ho-rer) city-GEN kotha (KO-thaa) matter bhablo (BHAB-lo) think-PAST.3
53.24a ভাবতে thinking ভাবতে thinking সে he/she ঘুমিয়ে having-slept পড়ল fell
53.24b bhabte (BHAB-te) think-PROG.PTCP bhabte (BHAB-te) think-PROG.PTCP she (SHE) he/she-3SG ghumiye (GHU-mi-ye) sleep-CONJ.PTCP poṛlo (POR-lo) fall-PAST.3
53.25a সকালে morning-in উঠে having-got-up সে he/she আবার again ভাবতে to-think বসল sat
53.25b shokale (SHO-kaa-le) morning-LOC uṭhe (U-the) get-up-CONJ.PTCP she (SHE) he/she-3SG abar (AA-bar) again bhabte (BHAB-te) think-INF boshlo (BOSH-lo) sit-PAST.3
53.26a বন্ধু friend রিয়াদ Riyad ফোনে phone-on বলল said এত so-much কী what ভাবছিস are-thinking চলে having-gone আয় come
53.26b bondhu (BON-dhu) friend Riyad (RI-yaad) Riyad phone (PHO-ne) phone-LOC bollo (BOL-lo) say-PAST.3 eto (E-to) so-much ki (KEE) what bhabchhish (BHAB-chhish) think-PRES.CONT.2.FAM chole (CHO-le) go-CONJ.PTCP ay (AAY) come-IMP.2.FAM
53.27a করিম Karim হেসে having-laughed বলল said আমি I অনেক much ভেবেছি have-thought
53.27b Korim (KO-rim) Karim hese (HE-she) laugh-CONJ.PTCP bollo (BOL-lo) say-PAST.3 ami (AA-mi) I-NOM onek (O-nek) much bhebechhi (BHE-be-chhi) think-PRES.PERF.1SG
53.28a সে he/she বলল said ভেবে having-thought দেখলাম saw যাওয়াই going-just ভালো good
53.28b she (SHE) he/she-3SG bollo (BOL-lo) say-PAST.3 bhebe (BHE-be) think-CONJ.PTCP dekhlam (DEKH-laam) see-PAST.1SG jaoyai (JAA-o-yai) going-EMPH bhalo (BHAA-lo) good
53.29a মা mother বললেন said আমিও I-also তাই so ভাবছিলাম was-thinking
53.29b ma (MAA) mother bollen (BOL-len) say-PAST.3.HON amio (AA-mi-o) I-also tai (TAI) so bhabchhilam (BHAB-chhi-laam) think-PAST.CONT.1SG
53.30a করিম Karim বলল said এবার this-time ভাবা thinking নয় is-not কাজ work
53.30b Korim (KO-rim) Karim bollo (BOL-lo) say-PAST.3 ebar (E-bar) this-time bhaba (BHAA-baa) thinking-VN noy (NOY) be-NEG kaj (KAAJ) work
53.16 চিঠিটা পড়ে করিম অনেকক্ষণ ভাবল। Chiṭhiṭa poṛe Korim onekkhon bhablo. "After reading the letter, Karim thought for a long time."
53.17 সে ভাবল, "চাকরিটা ভালো, কিন্তু শহরটা অচেনা।" She bhablo, "Chakriṭa bhalo, kintu shohorṭa ochena." "He thought, 'The job is good, but the city is unfamiliar.'"
53.18 মা জিজ্ঞেস করলেন, "তুই কী ভাবছিস?" Ma jiggesh korlen, "Tui ki bhabchhish?" "His mother asked, 'What are you thinking about?'"
53.19 করিম বলল, "ভাবছি, যাব কি না।" Korim bollo, "Bhabchhi, jabo ki na." "Karim said, 'I'm thinking about whether to go or not.'"
53.20 মা বললেন, "ভালো করে ভেবে দেখ।" Ma bollen, "Bhalo kore bhebe dekh." "His mother said, 'Think it over carefully.'"
53.21 রাতে করিম বিছানায় শুয়ে ভাবছিল। Rate Korim bichhanay shuye bhabchhilo. "At night Karim lay in bed, thinking."
53.22 সে বন্ধুদের কথা ভাবল। She bondhuder kotha bhablo. "He thought of his friends."
53.23 তারপর সে নতুন শহরের কথা ভাবল। Tarpor she notun shohorer kotha bhablo. "Then he thought of the new city."
53.24 ভাবতে ভাবতে সে ঘুমিয়ে পড়ল। Bhabte bhabte she ghumiye poṛlo. "Thinking and thinking, he fell asleep."
53.25 সকালে উঠে সে আবার ভাবতে বসল। Shokale uṭhe she abar bhabte boshlo. "He got up in the morning and sat down to think again."
53.26 বন্ধু রিয়াদ ফোনে বলল, "এত কী ভাবছিস? চলে আয়।" Bondhu Riyad phone bollo, "Eto ki bhabchhish? Chole ay." "His friend Riyad said on the phone, 'What are you thinking about so much? Come over.'"
53.27 করিম হেসে বলল, "আমি অনেক ভেবেছি।" Korim hese bollo, "Ami onek bhebechhi." "Karim laughed and said, 'I have thought a great deal.'"
53.28 সে বলল, "ভেবে দেখলাম, যাওয়াই ভালো।" She bollo, "Bhebe dekhlam, jaoyai bhalo." "He said, 'I have thought it over, and going is best.'"
53.29 মা বললেন, "আমিও তাই ভাবছিলাম।" Ma bollen, "Amio tai bhabchhilam." "His mother said, 'I was thinking so too.'"
53.30 করিম বলল, "এবার ভাবা নয়, কাজ।" Korim bollo, "Ebar bhaba noy, kaj." "Karim said, 'Now it is not for thinking, but for work.'"
53.16 চিঠিটা পড়ে করিম অনেকক্ষণ ভাবল।
53.17 সে ভাবল, "চাকরিটা ভালো, কিন্তু শহরটা অচেনা।"
53.18 মা জিজ্ঞেস করলেন, "তুই কী ভাবছিস?"
53.19 করিম বলল, "ভাবছি, যাব কি না।"
53.20 মা বললেন, "ভালো করে ভেবে দেখ।"
53.21 রাতে করিম বিছানায় শুয়ে ভাবছিল।
53.22 সে বন্ধুদের কথা ভাবল।
53.23 তারপর সে নতুন শহরের কথা ভাবল।
53.24 ভাবতে ভাবতে সে ঘুমিয়ে পড়ল।
53.25 সকালে উঠে সে আবার ভাবতে বসল।
53.26 বন্ধু রিয়াদ ফোনে বলল, "এত কী ভাবছিস? চলে আয়।"
53.27 করিম হেসে বলল, "আমি অনেক ভেবেছি।"
53.28 সে বলল, "ভেবে দেখলাম, যাওয়াই ভালো।"
53.29 মা বললেন, "আমিও তাই ভাবছিলাম।"
53.30 করিম বলল, "এবার ভাবা নয়, কাজ।"
- The tenses of a story. The simple past gives the events and the thoughts as they come: ভাবল (53.16, 53.17, 53.22, 53.23), বলল, উঠল. The past continuous, ভাবছিল (53.21), paints the long stretch of the night in which he lay and went on thinking. - A thought in quotation marks. In 53.17 the thought is quoted like speech: সে ভাবল, "…". Bengali treats an inner thought as a sentence that was said to oneself. - Who says "you" how. The mother speaks to her son with তুই (tui): ভাবছিস, দেখ. The friend does the same: ভাবছিস, আয়. The narrator speaks of the mother in the honorific third person (জিজ্ঞেস করলেন, বললেন) and of Karim and Riyad in the plain (বলল). The same verb ভাবা is therefore ভাবছিস to a son or a friend, ভাবছ to an equal, ভাবছেন to a stranger or an elder. - Whether or not. ভাবছি, যাব কি না (53.19): the clause "shall I go, or not" follows the verb of thought without যে. It is the Bengali "whether." - Think it over. ভালো করে ভেবে দেখ (53.20) is "think it over well." ভালো করে "doing well" is the adverb "carefully," and ভেবে দেখ is the conjunctive participle with the imperative of দেখা "to see." The same pattern, in the past, closes the argument in 53.28: ভেবে দেখলাম. - The object of thought. In 53.22 and 53.23 the object of thought is joined with -র কথা: বন্ধুদের কথা ভাবল, নতুন শহরের কথা ভাবল. The second sentence begins with তারপর "after that," which in Lesson 52 was the word for the next event. Here it orders the thoughts. - ভাবতে ভাবতে and ভাবতে বসা. The doubled progressive participle (ভাবতে ভাবতে, 53.24) means "in the middle of thinking," and the action that follows breaks into it: ঘুমিয়ে পড়ল. The infinitive with বসা (ভাবতে বসল, 53.25) is "sat down to think," the start of a long piece of thinking. - The perfect and the continuous. ভেবেছি (53.27) is the present perfect: "I have thought" (and so I know). ভাবছিলাম (53.29) in the mother's mouth is the past continuous: "I was thinking" (and had reached the same view). The perfect states a result, the continuous a process. - The last line. ভাবা নয়, কাজ (53.30) uses the verbal noun: "thinking is not [it]; work is." It is the same turn of mind as the proverb of Section F, spoken at the point where thought ends and the deed begins.
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- IPA: /bʱaba/ (the vowels are approximate and vary a little from speaker to speaker) - ভ (bh) = /bʱ/, a breathy b: the lips close as for b, and the breath is released with a soft voiced puff. It is not the English b followed by an h: the puff comes with the sound. - া (the vowel sign for আ) = /a/, an open vowel like the a of father, but shorter. - ব (b) = /b/, a plain b. - Stress: BHAA-baa. In Bengali the stress falls on the first syllable of a word; ভাবছি is BHAB-chhi, ভাবনা is BHAB-naa, and ভেবে is BHE-be.
- ভ /bʱ/ in ভাত (bhat, "cooked rice") vs ব /b/ in বাত (bat, "rheumatism"): the first has a breathy release, the second does not. - ভ /bʱ/ in ভার (bhar, "weight, load") vs ব /b/ in বার (bar, "time, turn; day of the week"): the same pair, said before the same vowel. - আ in ভাবে (bhabe, "thinks") vs এ in ভেবে (bhebe, "having thought"): only the first vowel differs. Say /a/ with the mouth open, and /e/ with the lips drawn back, as in French été.
- The breathy sounds ভ ঘ ধ থ in ভাবা, ঘুমিয়ে, বন্ধু (the ধ), কথা: a b, g, d or t said with a clear breath after the consonant. - ছ (chh) in ভাবছি, বিছানায়, ছোটবেলায়: an aspirated ch, the ch of church with a clear puff of breath. After a vowel it is often said long. - The conjunct জ্ঞ in জিজ্ঞেস: the spelling looks like "jny," but it is said as a doubled g: JIG-gesh. - The conjunct ক্ষ in অনেকক্ষণ: said kkh, with the k held: O-nek-khon. - The retroflex sounds ট ঠ ড় in চিঠিটা, চাকরিটা, পড়ে, পড়ল: the tongue-tip is curled back against the roof of the mouth. They are written ṭ, ṭh, ṛ in the Roman spelling. The ড় is a quick flap of the tongue-tip, like a very light r. - The conjunct ন্ধ in বন্ধু and ক্ত in ডাক্তার: said n-dh and k-t, each one run into the next. - শ, ষ, স are all said /ʃ/, as sh in ship, in সে, সব, সময়, শহর, সকালে. - Vowel glides in যাওয়াই (JAA-o-yai), where the sign ও and the letters য় and ই run together.
In ভেবে দেখা (bhebe dekha) and ভেবে পাওয়া (bhebe pawa) the participle and the verb after it are said as a single phrase, with the stress on ভেবে and none on the second word. In ভাবতে ভাবতে the two halves are said at the same pace with a rising tone on the first, which tells the listener that something will break into the thinking. A sentence-final ভাবছি, as in ভাবছি, দেখি (bhabchhi, dekhi), is said lightly and drawn out: the speaker wishes to be understood as not yet decided.
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Course Index: [latinum.substack.com/p/index](https://latinum.substack.com/p/index)