# काली
## Hindi
### Pronunciation

* (Delhi) IPA: /kɑː.liː/, [käː.liː]

### Etymology 1

Semi-learned borrowing from Sanskrit कालिय (kāliya). Doublet of कालिय (kāliya).

#### Proper noun

काली • (kālī) m (Urdu spelling کالی)
* Kaliya (a Nāga living in the Yamuna river)

##### Declension
### Etymology 2

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit काली (kālī). By surface analysis, काल (kāl) +‎ -ई (-ī).

#### Noun

काली • (kālī) f (Urdu spelling کالی) (rare, formal)
* night
    Synonyms: see Thesaurus:रात
* black ink
* darkness, blackness
* abuse, censure, defamation

##### Declension
#### Proper noun

काली • (kālī) f (Urdu spelling کالی)
* (Hinduism) Kali, title of goddess Durga
    काली माँ ― kālī mā̃ ― mother Kali
* a female given name, Kali, from Sanskrit
* one of the seven tongues or flames of fire
* Satyavati (wife of Shantanu)

##### Declension
### Etymology 3

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

#### Adjective

काली • (kālī) (Urdu spelling کالی)
* direct/oblique/vocative feminine singular/plural of काला (kālā)

### References

* McGregor, Ronald Stuart (1993) “काली”, in The Oxford Hindi-English Dictionary, London: Oxford University Press
* Platts, John T. (1884) “काली”, in A dictionary of Urdu, classical Hindi, and English, London: W. H. Allen & Co.
* Caturvedi, Mahendra, Bhola Nath Tiwari (1970) “काली”, in A practical Hindi-English dictionary, Delhi: National Publishing House
* Dāsa, Śyāmasundara (1965–1975) “काली”, in Hindī Śabdasāgara [lit. Sea of Hindi words] (in Hindi), Kashi [Varanasi]: Nagari Pracarini Sabha
* “काली”, in ریخْتَہ لُغَت (rexta luġat) - Rekhta Dictionary [Urdu dictionary with meanings in Hindi & English], Noida, India: Rekhta Foundation, 2025.
* Turner, Ralph Lilley (1969–1985) “kālī”, in A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages, London: Oxford University Press

## Sanskrit
### Alternative scripts

* কালী (Assamese script)
* ᬓᬵᬮᬷ (Balinese script)
* কালী (Bengali script)
* 𑰎𑰯𑰩𑰱 (Bhaiksuki script)
* 𑀓𑀸𑀮𑀻 (Brahmi script)
* ကာလီ (Burmese script)
* કાલી (Gujarati script)
* ਕਾਲੀ (Gurmukhi script)
* 𑌕𑌾𑌲𑍀 (Grantha script)
* ꦏꦴꦭꦷ (Javanese script)
* 𑂍𑂰𑂪𑂲 (Kaithi script)
* ಕಾಲೀ (Kannada script)
* កាលី (Khmer script)
* ກາລີ (Lao script)
* കാലീ (Malayalam script)
* ᡬᠠ᠎᠊ᠠᠯᡳᡳ (Manchu script)
* 𑘎𑘰𑘩𑘲 (Modi script)
* ᢉᠠᢗᠯᠢᠢ (Mongolian script)
* 𑦮𑧑𑧉𑧓 (Nandinagari script)
* 𑐎𑐵𑐮𑐷 (Newa script)
* କାଲୀ (Odia script)
* ꢒꢵꢭꢷ (Saurashtra script)
* 𑆑𑆳𑆬𑆵 (Sharada script)
* 𑖎𑖯𑖩𑖱 (Siddham script)
* කාලී (Sinhalese script)
* 𑩜𑩛𑩽𑩑𑩛 (Soyombo script)
* 𑚊𑚭𑚥𑚯 (Takri script)
* காலீ (Tamil script)
* కాలీ (Telugu script)
* กาลี (Thai script)
* ཀཱ་ལཱི (Tibetan script)
* 𑒏𑒰𑒪𑒲 (Tirhuta script)
* 𑨋𑨊𑨬𑨁𑨊 (Zanabazar Square script)

### Etymology

From काल (kāla, “blackness”) +‎ -ई (-ī), from Proto-Dravidian *kār-.

### Pronunciation

* (Vedic) IPA: /kɑː.liː/
* (Classical Sanskrit) IPA: /kɑː.l̪iː/

### Noun

काली • (kālī) stem, f
* black colour, ink or blacking
* abuse, censure, defamation
* a row or succession of black clouds
* night
    Synonyms: see Thesaurus:रात्रि
* a worm or animalcule generated in the acetous fermentation of milk
    Synonym: क्षीरकीट (kṣīrakīṭa)
* a kind of clay

#### Declension

* ¹Vedic
* ²Brāhmaṇas

### Proper noun

काली • (kālī) stem, f
* (Hinduism) Kali (the most terrifying goddess, wife of Shiva, identified as Parvati in her benevolent aspect)
* Satyavati (wife of Shantanu)
* name of the plant kālāñjanī
* Operculina turpethum
* Bignonia suaveolens
* one of the seven tongues or flames of fire
* name of a female evil spirit (mother of the Kalakeyas)
* one of the sixteen Vidyadevis
* name of a river

#### Declension

* ¹Vedic
* ²Brāhmaṇas

#### Descendants

* Assamese: কালী (kali)
* Bengali: কালী (kali)
* Chinese: 迦梨 (Jiālí)
* English: Kali
* Gujarati: કાલિ (kāli)
* Hindi: काली (kālī)
* Malayalam: കാളി (kāḷi)
* Marathi: काली (kālī)
* Burmese: ကာလီ (kali)
* Nepali: काली (kālī)
* Newar: काली (kālī)
* Punjabi: ਕਾਲੀ (kālī)
* Sindhi: ڪالي
* Sinhalese: කාලී (kālī)
* Tamil: காளி (kāḷi)
* Telugu: కాళి (kāḷi)
* Thai: กาลี (gaa-lii)

### Adjective

काली • (kālī)
* feminine of काल (kāla)
    Synonyms: श्यामा (śyāmā), कृष्णा (kṛṣṇā)

### References

* Apte, Vaman Shivram (1890) “काली”, in The practical Sanskrit-English dictionary, Poona: Prasad Prakashan
* Monier Williams (1899) “काली”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 277.