वधू

See also: विधा and विधि

Sanskrit

Alternative scripts

Alternative scripts

• ৱধূ (Assamese script)
• ᬯᬥᬹ (Balinese script)
• বধূ (Bengali script)
• 𑰪𑰠𑰳 (Bhaiksuki script)
• 𑀯𑀥𑀽 (Brahmi script)
• ဝဓူ (Burmese script)
• વધૂ (Gujarati script)
• ਵਧੂ (Gurmukhi script)
• 𑌵𑌧𑍂 (Grantha script)
• ꦮꦣꦹ (Javanese script)
• 𑂫𑂡𑂴 (Kaithi script)
• ವಧೂ (Kannada script)
• វធូ (Khmer script)
• ວຘູ (Lao script)
• വധൂ (Malayalam script)
• ᠸᠠᢡᡠᡠ (Manchu script)
• 𑘪𑘠𑘴 (Modi script)
• ᠸᠠᢑᠾᠤᠤ (Mongolian script)
• 𑧊𑧀𑧕 (Nandinagari script)
• 𑐰𑐢𑐹 (Newa script)
• ଵଧୂ (Odia script)
• ꢮꢤꢹ (Saurashtra script)
• 𑆮𑆣𑆷 (Sharada script)
• 𑖪𑖠𑖳 (Siddham script)
• වධූ (Sinhalese script)
• 𑩾𑩮𑩒𑩛 (Soyombo script)
• 𑚦𑚜𑚱 (Takri script)
• வதூ⁴ (Tamil script)
• వధూ (Telugu script)
• วธู (Thai script)
• ཝ་དྷཱུ (Tibetan script)
• 𑒫𑒡𑒴 (Tirhuta script)
• 𑨭𑨜𑨃𑨊 (Zanabazar Square script)

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-Aryan *wadʰúHs, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *wadʰúHs, from Proto-Indo-European *wedʰ-úHs, from *wedʰ- (“to bind, lead”).

Pronunciation

• (Vedic) IPA^(key): /ʋɐ.dʱúː/
• (Classical Sanskrit) IPA^(key): /ʋɐ.d̪ʱuː/

Noun

व॒धू • (vadhū́) stem, f

1. a bride or newly-married woman, young wife, spouse or any wife or woman
2. a daughter-in-law
3. any younger female relation
4. the female of any animal, especially a cow or mare

Declension

Feminine ū-stem declension of व॒धू

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	व॒धूः (vadhū́ḥ)	व॒ध्वौ॑ (vadhvàu) व॒ध्वा॑¹ (vadhvā̀¹)	व॒ध्वः॑ (vadhvàḥ)
accusative	व॒धूम् (vadhū́m) व॒ध्व॑म्¹ (vadhvàm¹)	व॒ध्वौ॑ (vadhvàu) व॒ध्वा॑¹ (vadhvā̀¹)	व॒धूः (vadhū́ḥ) व॒ध्वः॑¹ (vadhvàḥ¹)
instrumental	व॒ध्वा (vadhvā́) व॒ध्वा॑¹ (vadhvā̀¹)	व॒धूभ्या॑म् (vadhū́bhyām)	व॒धूभिः॑ (vadhū́bhiḥ)
dative	व॒ध्वै (vadhvái) व॒ध्वे॑¹ (vadhvè¹)	व॒धूभ्या॑म् (vadhū́bhyām)	व॒धूभ्यः॑ (vadhū́bhyaḥ)
ablative	व॒ध्वाः (vadhvā́ḥ) व॒ध्वः॑¹ (vadhvàḥ¹) व॒ध्वै² (vadhvái²)	व॒धूभ्या॑म् (vadhū́bhyām)	व॒धूभ्यः॑ (vadhū́bhyaḥ)
genitive	व॒ध्वाः (vadhvā́ḥ) व॒ध्वः॑¹ (vadhvàḥ¹) व॒ध्वै² (vadhvái²)	व॒ध्वोः (vadhvóḥ) व॒ध्वोः॑¹ (vadhvòḥ¹)	व॒धूना॑म् (vadhū́nām)
locative	व॒ध्वाम् (vadhvā́m) व॒ध्वि॑¹ (vadhvì¹) व॒धू¹ (vadhū́¹)	व॒ध्वोः (vadhvóḥ) व॒ध्वोः॑¹ (vadhvòḥ¹)	व॒धूषु॑ (vadhū́ṣu)
vocative	वधु॑ (vádhu)	वध्वौ॑ (vádhvau) वध्वा॑¹ (vádhvā¹)	वध्वः॑ (vádhvaḥ)

• ¹Vedic
• ²Brāhmaṇas

Derived terms

• वधूमत् (vadhū́mat)
• वधूयु (vadhūyú)

Descendants

• Maharastri Prakrit: 𑀯𑀳𑀽 (vahū)
• Pali: vadhū
• Sauraseni Prakrit: 𑀯𑀳𑀽 (vahū), 𑀯𑀥𑀽 (vadhū)
  • Hindustani:

• Hindi: बहू (bahū)
  • → English: bahu
• Urdu: بہو (bahū)

• → Kannada: ವಧು (vadhu)
• ⇒ Telugu: వధువు (vadhuvu)

Further reading

• Monier Williams (1899), “वधू”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 917, column 1.