Marathi has three levels of "you", and the question for how are you changes with them: तू कसा आहेस for a close man, तू कशी आहेस for a close woman, and तुम्ही कसे आहात for anyone you want to treat with respect. The Marathi on this page is in Devanagari with a plain Latin reading under it. Long vowels are written double (aa, ee, oo), and the reading does not mark the tongue-curled sounds of ट and ठ, so ठीक is theek. Every phrase was checked against Wikivoyage, Wiktionary and Omniglot on 9 November 2026. The casual कसं काय and the reply बरा are everyday speech and appear on learner sites rather than in the phrasebooks.
| Marathi | English | Who you ask | Style |
|---|---|---|---|
| कसा आहेस?kasaa aahes? | How are you? | A man you know well, or a boy | Friendly |
| कशी आहेस?kashee aahes? | How are you? | A woman you know well, or a girl | Friendly |
| तुम्ही कसे आहात?tumhee kase aahaat? | How are you? | A man you respect, or a mixed group | Respectful |
| तुम्ही कशा आहात?tumhee kashaa aahaat? | How are you? | A woman you respect, or a group of women | Respectful |
| आपण कसे आहात?aapan kase aahaat? | How are you? | A man or a mixed group, in a formal setting | Formal |
| कसं काय?kasa kaay? | How is it going? | A friend | Casual |
The speaker's own gender does not change the question. The word that changes is the one for the person you ask, as in कसा आहेस (kasaa aahes) for a man and कशी आहेस (kashee aahes) for a woman. Wikivoyage lists both, and the formal आपण कसे आहात (aapan kase aahaat).
Wiktionary describes three levels of "you" in Marathi. तू (too) is the least formal and is for one person. तुम्ही (tumhee) is formal and takes the plural verb, and आपण (aapan) is the polite "you". The verb आहेस (aahes) goes with तू, and आहात (aahaat) goes with तुम्ही and आपण.
कसा (kasaa) means "how" or "what kind". In the table it becomes कशी for a woman. With the plural verb आहात a man gets कसे (kase) and a woman gets कशा (kashaa). If you are not sure which level fits, तुम्ही is the safer choice, because it is polite.
| Marathi | English | Said by |
|---|---|---|
| मी ठीक आहे.mee theek aahe. | I am fine. | Anyone |
| मी बरा आहे.mee baraa aahe. | I am well. | A man |
| मी बरी आहे.mee baree aahe. | I am well. | A woman |
| मी मजेत आहे.mee majet aahe. | I am doing great. | Anyone |
| मी ठीक आहे, आणि तुम्ही?mee theek aahe, aani tumhee? | I am fine, and you? | Anyone, to a person you address as तुम्ही |
| मी ठीक आहे, आणि तू?mee theek aahe, aani too? | I am fine, and you? | Anyone, to a friend |
The safest answer needs no gender. मी (mee) and आहे (aahe) are the same for a man and a woman, and ठीक (theek) is too. The word बरा (baraa), "well", does change: a man says बरा and a woman says बरी (baree). Wikivoyage gives मी ठीक आहे (mee theek aahe) as the answer. मजेत (majet) comes from मजा (majaa), "fun", and Wiktionary lists it as the form of मजा that means "in fun".
A young woman meets her friend's grandfather:
| Marathi | English |
|---|---|
| नमस्कार! तुम्ही कसे आहात?namaskaar! tumhee kase aahaat? | Hello! How are you? |
| नमस्कार! मी ठीक आहे, आणि तुम्ही?namaskaar! mee theek aahe, aani tumhee? | Hello! I am fine, and you? |
| मीही ठीक आहे, धन्यवाद.meehee theek aahe, dhanyavaad. | I am fine too, thank you. |
Two friends meet on the street:
| Marathi | English |
|---|---|
| कशी आहेस?kashee aahes? | How are you? |
| मी मजेत आहे, आणि तू?mee majet aahe, aani too? | I am doing great, and you? |
Wikivoyage gives नमस्कार (namaskaar) as hello and धन्यवाद (dhanyavaad) as thank you.
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|---|
| Saying तू कसा आहेस to a woman. | The ending follows the person you ask. A woman gets तू कशी आहेस. |
| Mixing the levels, as in तुम्ही कसा आहेस. | तुम्ही goes with आहात and आहेस goes with तू. Say तुम्ही कसे आहात or तू कसा आहेस. |
| Using तू with an older person or a stranger. | Start with तुम्ही, or आपण in a formal setting. Switch to तू when the other person does. |
| Using कसं काय in a formal meeting. | It is a casual phrase for friends. Use तुम्ही कसे आहात. |
To read the phrases yourself, start with the Marathi letters course. For a plan, read the best way to learn Marathi, or the easiest way to learn Marathi for a gentle start.
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Which Marathi Phrase Is Safest for a Stranger?
Use तुम्ही कसे आहात (tumhee kase aahaat) to a man and तुम्ही कशा आहात (tumhee kashaa aahaat) to a woman. Both are respectful.
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Sources
- Wikivoyage: Marathi phrasebook (तू कसा आहेस, तू कशी आहेस, आपण कसे आहात, मी ठीक आहे, धन्यवाद, नमस्कार)
- Wiktionary: आपण (Marathi, the polite you, and the pronouns तुम्ही and तू)
- Wiktionary: आहेस (Marathi, second person singular of असणे, with आहे, आहात and the other forms)
- Wiktionary: कसा (Marathi, how, of what kind)
- Wiktionary: मजा (Marathi, fun, with the locative मजेत)
- Sublearn: Marathi phrases (मी मजेत आहे, कसं काय, बरा)
- Omniglot: Marathi phrases
