ਕਰੋ

What does karo mean in Punjabi?

Karo (ਕਰੋ) means 'do' in Punjabi. It is the polite way of asking someone to do something, used with elders, strangers, or a group, and it comes from the verb karna, 'to do'. You will hear it in everyday requests such as 'kamm karo', do the work, and 'madad karo', help me.

Where does karo come from?

Karo comes from the verb karna (ਕਰਨਾ), 'to do', 'to make' or 'to perform'. Wiktionary traces karna to Old Punjabi kari, Prakrit karei and Sanskrit karóti, 'he does'. The stem is kar, and karo is the stem with the polite ending o added. Karna is also Punjabi's main light verb, joining nouns and adjectives to make new verbs, so karo often carries that work into a request.

How is karo used in everyday requests?

Because karna is a light verb, karo appears in hundreds of everyday phrases. 'Kamm karo' means do the work, 'gall karo' means talk, 'saaf karo' means clean, and 'phone karo' means phone someone. English words take it too: Punjabi speakers say 'clean karo' and 'check karo'. Adding ji or kirpa karke makes the request softer: 'kirpa karke kamm karo' is 'please do the work'.

Karo, kar and kario: which form should you use?

Punjabi changes the ending to show respect. With tu, the familiar 'you' for a close friend or a child, the command is the bare stem: kar, do. With tusi, the polite 'you' for elders and strangers, and for any group, it is karo. A still softer form is the jussive kario, which sounds like a gentle request, 'please do'. To ask someone not to do something, put na after the verb: 'na karo', do not do it.