मानो

As if

Level 6Sounds Like mānō

मानो introduces an imagined comparison: वह ऐसे बोल रहा था मानो सब जानता हो (He was talking as if he knew everything).

How It Works

मानो compares something real with something imagined. The speaker does not claim that the imagined part is true.

The usual shape is:

  • a main clause with ऐसे or इतना: वह ऐसे बात कर रहा था ...
  • मानो and a clause with a subjunctive verb: ... मानो हमें बरसों से जानता हो।

The subjunctive matches the time of the imagined picture:

Imagined pictureFormExample
a stateहोमानो दिवाली हो
a habit or ongoing fact-ता होमानो सब जानता हो
something already done-आ होमानो उसे ख़बर मिली हो

The main clause keeps its own tense. It can be present or past while the मानो clause stays subjunctive.

मानो is a little literary and is common in stories and descriptions. In speech, जैसे often does the same job: वह ऐसे देख रहा था जैसे मुझे पहचानता ही न हो.

The same word is also the तुम command of मानना (to believe or accept): मेरी बात मानो (listen to me). The sentence makes clear which one you have.

Examples (4)

  1. रीना ऐसे मुस्कुरा रही है मानो उसे कोई अच्छी ख़बर मिली हो।

    Reena is smiling as if she's had some good news.

    मिली हो pictures something that has already happened.

  2. कमरा इतना शांत था मानो उसमें कोई रहता ही न हो।

    The room was so quiet, it was as if nobody lived there at all.

    The main clause is past, and the imagined picture uses रहता हो.

  3. वह ऐसे बात कर रहा था मानो हमें बरसों से जानता हो।

    He was talking as if he had known us for years.

    ऐसे sets up the comparison, and जानता हो is the imagined state.

  4. पूरा शहर रोशनी से ऐसे जगमगा रहा था मानो दिवाली हो।

    The whole city was sparkling with lights as if it were Diwali.

    हो pictures an imagined situation: it was not really Diwali.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

मानोLevel 6As if

Learn This First

As if introduces a clause in the subjunctive, often after ऐसे in the main clause.

Words in This Pattern

मानों