What is Indian English? A Whole New Language for the Expat to Learn!

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This article is part of the "India survival Kit", a collection of articles written by an American expat living in India.

English is a widely used language in India. This might seem comforting to new English-speaking tourists, business visitors, or potential expatriates. But only on arrival is it apparent that Indian English is almost a separate language by itself. Foreigners will encounter a completely new vocabulary with common words used in entirely different contexts.

Consider the following conversation between an expatriate American lady and an Indian co-worker:

Indian: Where are you staying?
American: I am in a hotel right now. But I plan to move to a house once it is ready.

Indian: Ah, you mean a hotel room. Will you be shifting soon?
American: Shifting?

Indian: Yes, shifting from the room to your house?
American: The realtor said that it would be ready by May 10th.

Indian: Realtor?
American: Yes, the guy who arranged the house.

Indian: Ohh, you mean the broker. Then the house will definitely not be finished before 20th at least.
American: What do you mean?

Indian: These brokers are unreliable fellows. Oh it’s already 5 o’ clock. I have to go to the shop to change a dress. You carry on now. And give me a tinkle if you need any help.
American: ??!!

There are several words in this exchange that will sound weird to a non-Indian (and to an Indian too).

Hotel is usually synonymous with restaurant. Someone may offer to take you to a hotel for lunch. Don’t be alarmed.

Shifting is moving. You shift to a new house, not move.

A realtor is usually called a broker.

The date references are an indication of what is known as Indian Standard Time – a time considerably later than originally stated.

Change, in this context, means to return/exchange the dress. Not wear a new outfit. Carry on means ‘go ahead’. So you would ‘carry on’ with whatever you were doing, not carry on an affair.

A tinkle is a phone call, not a bodily function.

One reason for the language having evolved in this unique direction is that often people just translate a phrase in their native language literally into English. But honestly, that does not explain why some objects have names different from those used in other countries. Sometimes it’s a relic of the British, and at other times, just a ‘cool’ new adaptation.

Here is another cryptic conversation between an American and an Indian school administrator for you to decipher:

Indian: May I have your landline number?
American: Landline?

Indian: Yes, your house phone number.
American: Oh I can give you my cell phone number.

Indian: OK. Also please tell me where you will be staying.
American: We are not just staying but we are going to live here. Our address is 118/23, Chinmayanagar II phase, III block, 10th main, 5th cross, Kamaraj Layout, Bangalore-560100. I hope I got that right!

Indian: How many times will you be going out of station?
American: Out of station?

Indian: Yes, your son will be absent from school when you have business trips to other cities, isn’t it?
American: We are not going out-of-town on business trips.

Indian: OK, good. Now let us tick-off the school items that you will need to buy.
American: ??

Indian: You will need these notebooks and textbooks. Make sure you buy covers for them.
American: ??

Indian: You can get a school bag, pencils, pens, rubbers and a geometry box at the fancy store.
American:??

If you’re as puzzled as the expatriate was, here are the answers.

A landline is a home phone - a phone line that is connected to the ‘land’, in other words not a wireless.

Staying is not necessarily temporary. You can ‘stay’ permanently in your house.
Yes, Indian addresses are long!

Out-of-station, as you may have figured, is a reference to traveling out of town.
Tick-off is to check-off items on a list. Not make someone angry.

A notebook cover is brown paper with which school notebooks are usually covered. As an aside, a plastic bag, the kind you get in grocery stores, is also called a cover.
Rubber is a term for an eraser, not a contraceptive.

A geometry box or geo box is a pencil case with geometrical instruments such as a compass, protractor, ruler, etc.

Fancy store is a variety shop where you can buy all kinds of things, both fancy and mundane.

So when you make that trip to India, be prepared to be perplexed by the English used there. At the least, your experiences will make good stories to tell your friends back home. And of course, they will also make great writing material.

Editor: Nisha Giri

The India survival Kit is divided into four sections:

I) Cultural tips for newcomers to India

II) Doing business in India

III) An American's diary

IV) Street English in India: Indian English and the Indian way of communication

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