How to get to the station in Urdu
A visitor asks a passer-by for the way in the old city in Urdu. 6 phrases that the conversation is made of: «معاف کیجیے، بس اسٹیشن کہاں ہے؟» — Excuse me, where is the bus station?; «سیدھا جائیں، چوراہے پر بائیں۔» — Go straight, at the crossroads to the left.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a visitor asks a passer-by for the way in the old city. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- معاف کیجیے، بس اسٹیشن کہاں ہے؟maaf kidzhiye, bas steshan kahan hai?Excuse me, where is the bus station?
- سیدھا جائیں، چوراہے پر بائیں۔sidha dzhain, chaurahe per bainGo straight, at the crossroads to the left.
- دور ہے یا پیدل دس منٹ؟dur hai ya paidl das mint?Far, or ten minutes on foot?
- پیدل دس منٹ، پل کے پار۔paidl das mint, pul ke parTen minutes on foot, beyond the bridge.
- یہاں سے دور ہے؟yahan se dur hai?Is it far from here?
- نہیں، سگنل کے پاس پوچھ لیں، وہیں بس کھڑی ہے۔nahin, signal ke pas puchh len, wihin bas khari haiNo — ask at the traffic light, a bus stands there.
Lines one by one
| Urdu | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| معاف کیجیے، بس اسٹیشن کہاں ہے؟ | maaf kidzhiye, bas steshan kahan hai? | Excuse me, where is the bus station? |
| سیدھا جائیں، چوراہے پر بائیں۔ | sidha dzhain, chaurahe per bain | Go straight, at the crossroads to the left. |
| دور ہے یا پیدل دس منٹ؟ | dur hai ya paidl das mint? | Far, or ten minutes on foot? |
| پیدل دس منٹ، پل کے پار۔ | paidl das mint, pul ke par | Ten minutes on foot, beyond the bridge. |
| یہاں سے دور ہے؟ | yahan se dur hai? | Is it far from here? |
| نہیں، سگنل کے پاس پوچھ لیں، وہیں بس کھڑی ہے۔ | nahin, signal ke pas puchh len, wihin bas khari hai | No — ask at the traffic light, a bus stands there. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and noticeably so. The link turns up study after study, and together those studies cover almost twenty thousand people.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Urdu in this situation?
“معاف کیجیے، بس اسٹیشن کہاں ہے؟” (maaf kidzhiye, bas steshan kahan hai?) — Excuse me, where is the bus station? The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.