Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

gandhigiri

/ɡɑndiˈɡɪɹi/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.08 in modern English

Syllables
Gan-dhi-gi-ri
IPA
/ɡɑndiˈɡɪɹi/
16
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
4
Syllables
7
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

The practice of Gandhism (“the philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi, encompassing tenets such as non-violent activism”), often expressed through unorthodox forms of activism such as depositing flowers or planting trees.

Indian usage; Uncountable

Example Sentences

Etymology

Borrowed from Bombay Hindi गांधीगिरी (gāndhīgirī), from Hindi गांधी (gāndhī) (the surname of the Indian lawyer and anti-colonial nationalist Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948) who used non-violent resistance to lead the successful campaign for India’s independence from British rule) + -गिरी (-girī, “suffix meaning ‘the act of; doing’”). The Hindi word was coined in the movie Lage Raho Munna Bhai (Keep Going, Munna Bhai, 2006), in which it was used by the lead character who is a gangster in contrast to dadagiri (“gang rule; intimidating behaviour”).

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: गांधीगिरी, गांधी

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ɡɑndiˈɡɪɹi/
  • British English: /ɡɑːndiˈɡɪɹi/

Usage

Antonyms

Questions

How do you pronounce gandhigiri?
The recorded pronunciation is /ɡɑndiˈɡɪɹi/.
What does gandhigiri mean?
The practice of Gandhism (“the philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi, encompassing tenets such as non-violent activism”), often expressed through unorthodox forms of activism such as depositing flowers or planting trees.
Where does gandhigiri come from?
It is traced to Hindi.

How to pronounce gandhigiri

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “gandhigiri”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ɡɑndiˈɡɪɹi/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “gandhigiri”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “gandhigiri” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.