Immediate Family
The close ones
Start here. These are the words you will use in almost every conversation about your life.
Also called امی (ammi) at home, which is warmer and more affectionate. Ammi is what most Pakistani children actually say.
The everyday word, though ابو (abbu) is the affectionate version used at home. والد (walid) is the formal/written form.
Also used as a respectful address to any man, similar to "mate" or "bro" in English. Very common in everyday speech.
Similarly, بہن (behan) is used to address women respectfully as well, especially in service or public settings.
Elders also use بیٹا (bayta) to address a young man warmly, the way an older person might say "son" in English.
Notice how بیٹی (bayti) is the feminine of بیٹا (bayta). Changing the final a to i is one way Urdu forms the feminine.
The standard word for husband. میرے شوہر (meray shohar) = my husband.
The standard word for wife. میری بیوی (meri biwi) = my wife.
بچے (bachchay) is the plural. میرے بچے (meray bachchay) = my children.
Refers to the extended family as a whole. میرا خاندان (mera khaandaan) = my family. A central concept in Pakistani culture.
Grandparents
Daada, Daadi, Naana, Naani
Urdu has separate words for paternal and maternal grandparents. This is one of the first signs of how precise Urdu family vocabulary is.
Aunts & Uncles
Six words where English has two
English uses "aunt" and "uncle" for everyone. Urdu has a different word depending on which side of the family and sometimes even whether they are older or younger than your parent.
Saying "My"
Mera, meri, meray
Before you can talk about your family, you need to know how to say "my." In Urdu, the word for "my" changes depending on the noun it describes.
The three forms of "my"
Useful Phrases
Talking about your family
A few phrases that will come up constantly, especially when meeting Pakistani families for the first time.
آپ کے (aap kay) = your (formal), کتنے (kitnay) = how many, ہیں (hain) = are. A very common opening question when getting to know someone.
Swap in the numbers from Lesson 02. میرے (meray) = my (plural), اور (aur) = and, ہے (hay) = is/there is. The verb ہے (hay) works for both singular and plural here in casual speech.
یہ (yeh) = this. When introducing a person you respect, use ہیں (hain) instead of ہے (hay) as a sign of politeness, even for one person.
میں (mein) here means "in" (not "I"). پاکستان میں (Pakistan mein) = in Pakistan. Swap for any country or city.
کیا (kya) at the start of a sentence turns it into a yes/no question. It works like a question mark spoken aloud.
جی ہاں (ji haan) = yes (polite). جی نہیں (ji nahin) = no (polite). جی (ji) softens the yes or no, making it more respectful.
Quick Reference
All family words at a glance
Use this to drill the full set. Focus on the paternal and maternal distinctions — that is what makes Urdu different.
Why Urdu has so many family words
In Pakistani culture, family relationships are described with great precision because they carry different social expectations. You treat your داد (daada, paternal grandfather) and نانا (naana, maternal grandfather) differently in some families. Your چاچا (chacha, father's younger brother) has a different role in your life from your ماموں (maamoo'n, mother's brother). The language reflects those distinctions.
If you are learning Urdu to connect with a Pakistani family, getting these words right will mean a great deal. Using داد (daada) for the paternal grandfather and نانا (naana) for the maternal one shows you understand the family structure, not just the language. It is one of those small details that makes a big impression.
Practice
Try it yourself
Think through each situation, say the answer out loud, then check.
What would you say?
Picture the situation and respond in Urdu.
Family conversations take real practice.
Knowing the words is just the start. Being able to talk about your family, naturally, in the middle of a gathering, is a different thing. Book a free call and practise exactly that.