# Hindi/Urdu: Aalasi and Sust



## lcfatima

Is there a difference in shades of meaning between aalsi and sust for lazy?

I noticed that in Pakistan people use sust, but not aalasi. What are the origins of the two words, is one Persian and the other Indic?


----------



## panjabigator

I think the <aalasi> is from Sanskrit and <sust> is from Persian.  They are synonyms, but I usually hear <sust>.  I learned <aalasi> from Snell.


----------



## BP.

You just taught me a new word! Please give some usage examples as well...I mean can it be used in both meanings of _sust_?

*My double nelson post!


----------



## Illuminatus

What are the two meanings of _Sust_?

We use _aalsi_ all the time in Hindi. It simply translates to lazy. 

_Sust_, however, conveys the meaning of _lethargic_. It will be a temporary state, contrary to _aalsi_.

We often say, _aaj subah se susti chhayee hui hai = _I am _feeling _lazy since the morning (compare with _being_ lazy).

So, for me, the words are not inter-changeable


----------



## panjabigator

At first blush I thought they were synonymous, but now after looking at Illuminatus's examples I've changed my mind.  Your <susti> sentence is exactly what I would say.


----------



## Illuminatus

As another example, it will probably be like _Ser aalsi_ but _Estar sust_ []

<Aapka beTa bahut aalsi hai. Dinbhar ghar par baiTha rehta hai.>
<Kya baat hai, aaj bahut sust lag rahe ho? Raat to neend nahi hui kya?>


----------



## panjabigator

Your ser and estar examples really clear things up.  So a person who is habitually lazy is aalsi, but time to time laziness is just susti.


----------



## Illuminatus

Of course, it is not all black and white. My Spanish ain't good, but I guess even Ser and Estar aren't very distinctive at all times. But yeah, for most cases, <sust hona> is a state, while <aalsi hona> is nature. Sometimes, however, <sust hona> may be used for conveying the nature.


----------



## panjabigator

I looked in a Pakistani Panjabi online dictionary and it gives <aalsii> and <aalsan> as lazy.  <shayid panjaabii bolne vaalo.n ke lafziyaat me.n shaamil ho.n>


----------



## Illuminatus

I have never used or heard the word <aalsan>. It is a Punjabi thing?


----------



## BP.

We can use _sust_ for a person's lazy nature too e.g. _woh sust shakhS haey_, but also as an adjective e.g. _aaj woh sust_/_{susti say} kaam kar rahaa haey_. But I do think that the right word for a lazy-by-nature person is *kaahil*.

When I said "both meanings of _sust_" I meant the expression _sakht sust_ as a description of admonishment.


----------



## lcfatima

can kaahil be made feminine, or is it the same for both genders?


----------



## BP.

_kaahil_ as an adjective seems gender-invariant, at least with a gender-neutral word like _shakhS_ - person. But I guess you could say _kaahila 'aurat_. And you can definitely name a female child _kaahila_, although she'd hate her name when she grows up.


----------



## panjabigator

Illuminatus said:


> I have never used or heard the word <aalsan>. It is a Punjabi thing?



Yes, but I've never heard it.  It's what my Pakistani Panjabi online dictionary suggests.


----------



## macta123

aalsi is a very Hindi word comes of "aalsya " = lasiness (Sanskrit origin )

Sust is more of the Urdu word !


----------



## Faylasoof

In Urdu, apart from _sust _سُستand _kaahil_ كاہل we also have _kasalmand_ كَسَلمَند = indolent, lazy, slow

[Their adjectives are: _susti_ سُستی = _kaahili_ كاہِلی = _kasal_ كَسَل = laziness, indolence, indisposition]

Other related words and expressions for the above are:

كاہل الوجود= lazy by nature
سُست پَیماں = fickle ,capricious
  سُست  بُنیاد = shaky, unstable 
سُست رفَتا ر = slow-paced
سُست اِعتِقاد =  sceptical, incredulous


----------

