Visheshan (विशेषण) means adjective in Marathi — a word that describes or qualifies a noun (naama). Visheshan tells us more about the noun: what kind, how many, how much, or which one. For example, in 'सुंदर फूल' (beautiful flower), 'सुंदर' is the visheshan. Understanding visheshan and its types is an important part of Marathi Vyakaran (grammar) from class 5 to class 10.
Visheshan (विशेषण) = adjective in Marathi — describes a noun
Types: Gunavaachak (quality), Sankhyavaachak (number), Parimaanvaachak (quantity), Saarvanaamik (pronominal), Prashnavaachak (interrogative)
The noun described by visheshan is called visheshya (विशेष्य)
Visheshan comes BEFORE the noun in Marathi
Some visheshan change with gender: मोठा/मोठी/मोठे
Some visheshan do not change: गोड, सुंदर, हुशार
Important for Marathi grammar exams class 5 to 10
नामाचे (noun) गुण, संख्या, परिमाण, किंवा स्थान सांगणाऱ्या शब्दांना विशेषण म्हणतात. A word that describes or qualifies a noun by telling its quality, quantity, number, or specific identity is called visheshan (adjective). Examples: सुंदर मुलगी (beautiful girl) — सुंदर is visheshan. पाच आंबे (five mangoes) — पाच is visheshan. थोडे दूध (little milk) — थोडे is visheshan.
Marathi grammar recognises several types of visheshan:
गुणवाचक विशेषण (Gunavaachak — Quality Adjective): Describes the quality or characteristic of a noun. Examples: सुंदर (beautiful), मोठा (big), चांगला (good), वाईट (bad), गोड (sweet), कडू (bitter), लाल (red), काळा (black), हुशार (intelligent), आळशी (lazy).
संख्यावाचक विशेषण (Sankhyavaachak — Numerical Adjective): Tells the number of nouns. Examples: पाच आंबे (five mangoes), तीन मुले (three children), दहा वर्षे (ten years), पहिला क्रमांक (first rank).
परिमाणवाचक विशेषण (Parimaanvaachak — Quantity Adjective): Tells the quantity or measure. Examples: थोडे पाणी (little water), भरपूर अन्न (plenty of food), खूप काम (lots of work), कमी वेळ (less time).
सार्वनामिक विशेषण (Saarvanaamik — Pronominal Adjective): Demonstrative or pronoun-based adjectives. Examples: हा मुलगा (this boy), ती स्त्री (that woman), तो घर (that house), हे पुस्तक (this book).
प्रश्नवाचक विशेषण (Prashnavaachak — Interrogative Adjective): Used in questions. Examples: कोणता रंग? (which colour?), किती पैसे? (how much money?), कसला माणूस? (what kind of person?)
The noun that is described by visheshan is called Visheshya (विशेष्य). The visheshan always relates to its visheshya (noun). Examples: सुंदर फूल — सुंदर (visheshan), फूल (visheshya). मोठा माणूस — मोठा (visheshan), माणूस (visheshya). पाच मुले — पाच (visheshan), मुले (visheshya). In Marathi, the visheshan usually comes BEFORE the visheshya (noun). Example: चांगला मुलगा (good boy) — चांगला before मुलगा.
In Marathi, visheshan changes form according to the gender (लिंग) and number (वचन) of the noun it describes:
चांगला (masculine singular) → चांगली (feminine singular) → चांगले (neuter/plural) मोठा (masculine singular) → मोठी (feminine singular) → मोठे (neuter) गोड (sweet) — does not change: गोड माणूस, गोड स्त्री, गोड मूल Some adjectives change: मोठा, छोटा, काळा, लाल, गोरा — these change with gender. Some adjectives do not change: गोड, सुंदर, हुशार — these remain the same for all genders and numbers.
Gunavaachak (Quality): तो हुशार विद्यार्थी आहे — He is an intelligent student. संख्यावाचक (Numerical): माझ्याकडे दहा पुस्तके आहेत — I have ten books. परिमाणवाचक (Quantity): थोडे दूध प्या — Drink a little milk. सार्वनामिक (Pronominal): हा माझा मित्र आहे — This is my friend. प्रश्नवाचक (Interrogative): तुला कोणता रंग आवडतो? — Which colour do you like?
20 Visheshan examples in Marathi: सुंदर, मोठा, लहान, गोड, कडू, काळा, पांढरा, हुशार, आळशी, चांगला, वाईट, धाडसी, भित्री, थंड, गरम, जड, हलका, नवीन, जुना, खोल.
Visheshan (विशेषण) is the Marathi word for adjective — a word that describes or qualifies a noun (naama). It tells us about the quality, quantity, number, or identity of a noun. Example: 'सुंदर फूल' (beautiful flower) — 'सुंदर' is the visheshan; 'फूल' is the visheshya (noun being described). Visheshan comes before the noun in Marathi.
Types of visheshan in Marathi: (1) Gunavaachak (गुणवाचक) — Quality adjective: सुंदर, मोठा, चांगला, गोड. (2) Sankhyavaachak (संख्यावाचक) — Numerical adjective: पाच, तीन, दहा, पहिला. (3) Parimaanvaachak (परिमाणवाचक) — Quantity adjective: थोडे, भरपूर, खूप, कमी. (4) Saarvanaamik (सार्वनामिक) — Pronominal adjective: हा, ती, तो, हे. (5) Prashnavaachak (प्रश्नवाचक) — Interrogative adjective: कोणता?, किती?, कसला?
10 examples of visheshan (adjectives) in Marathi: 1. सुंदर (beautiful) 2. मोठा (big) 3. लहान (small) 4. गोड (sweet) 5. हुशार (intelligent) 6. आळशी (lazy) 7. धाडसी (brave) 8. काळा (black) 9. पांढरा (white) 10. नवीन (new). Each describes a quality of the noun that follows it.
Visheshya (विशेष्य) is the noun that is described or qualified by the visheshan (adjective). The visheshan tells us about the visheshya. Examples: 'मोठा माणूस' — माणूस is visheshya, मोठा is visheshan. 'पाच मुले' — मुले is visheshya, पाच is visheshan. In Marathi grammar, identifying the visheshan-visheshya relationship is a common exam question.
Yes, many visheshan (adjectives) change form according to the gender and number of the noun they describe. Example: मोठा (masculine singular) → मोठी (feminine singular) → मोठे (neuter/plural). चांगला → चांगली → चांगले. However, some adjectives do not change form: गोड, सुंदर, हुशार, धाडसी remain the same for all genders and numbers. Knowing which adjectives change and which do not is important for correct Marathi grammar.
Gunavaachak visheshan (गुणवाचक विशेषण) is a quality adjective — it describes the characteristic or quality of a noun. Examples: सुंदर (beautiful), मोठा (big), लहान (small), गोड (sweet), कडू (bitter), चांगला (good), वाईट (bad), हुशार (intelligent), धाडसी (brave), कमजोर (weak). These are the most common type of adjective and are used in almost every sentence.
Sankhyavaachak visheshan (संख्यावाचक विशेषण) is a numerical adjective — it tells the number or order of the noun. Examples: पाच आंबे (five mangoes), तीन मुले (three children), दहा वर्षे (ten years), पहिला क्रमांक (first rank), दुसरा बक्षीस (second prize), शेवटचा दिवस (last day). Sankhyavaachak includes both cardinal numbers (पाच, दहा) and ordinal numbers (पहिला, दुसरा).
1. तो हुशार विद्यार्थी आहे. (Gunavaachak — intelligent) 2. माझ्याकडे पाच पुस्तके आहेत. (Sankhyavaachak — five) 3. थोडे पाणी प्या. (Parimaanvaachak — little) 4. हा माझा मित्र आहे. (Saarvanaamik — this) 5. तुला कोणता रंग आवडतो? (Prashnavaachak — which)
Parimaanvaachak visheshan (परिमाणवाचक विशेषण) is a quantity adjective — it tells how much or what amount of the noun. Examples: थोडे पाणी (little water), भरपूर अन्न (plenty of food), खूप काम (lots of work), कमी वेळ (less time), जास्त पैसे (more money), इतका दूध (this much milk). These adjectives quantify uncountable nouns (like water, food, time) rather than counting individual items.
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