Background
le and de are very commonly used conversationally
Let’s review de first
Radha deti hai, Radha degi, Radha ne diya
= Radha gives / Radha will give / Radha gave
You Try...
Amit gives =
Amit will give =
Present Tense: de -> for other
Let’s look at a very common nuanced use of de:
Radha deti hai = Radha gives
add likh (no conjugation)
Radha likh deti hai = Radha writes (for the benefit of others)
Note: you can imagine “de” as giving, for the benefit of others
You Try...
Amit gives =
Amit makes (for the benefit of others) =
Radha gives =
Radhs tells (for the benefit of others) =
Present Tense: le -> for oneself
le has the nuance of doing something for oneself:
Radha leti hai = Radha takes
add likh (no conjugation)
Radha likh le-ti hai = Radha writes (for her own benefit)
You Try...
I take =
I make (for my own benefit) =
Future Tense:
only conjugate the le or de verb
mai l-ungi = I will take
mai bana l-ungi = I will make (for my own benefit)
You Try...
I will take =
I will eat (for my own benefit) =
Past Tense (cover in next session)
We can apply this same idea for the past tense also:
Radha ne liya = Radha took
Radha ne likh liya = Radha wrote (for her own benefit)
You Try...
Amit took =
Amit ate a samosa for himself =
Final note on le and de
le and de compound verbs are also used to denote completion
Radha likh le-ti hai = Radha finally writes (for her own benefit)…
…and then she moves on to the next activity.
You Try...
Interpret: Amit lunch bana de-ta hai
Interpret: Radha sun l-egi
