From Urdu/Persian 'naushadar', the traditional South Asian name for ammonium chloride (sal ammoniac).
From Urdu/Persian 'naushadar', the traditional South Asian name for ammonium chloride (sal ammoniac). It was used in Ayurvedic and Unani medicine, in dyeing fabrics, and as a soldering flux. The word entered Anglo-Indian usage via the spice and chemical trades of the subcontinent.
The dyer added a small amount of naushadar to the mordant bath to help fix the indigo to the cotton.
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Regional slang from around the English-speaking world — British, Australian, Irish, Caribbean, Nigerian, Filipino, AAVE, and the hyphenated-English dialects that make the internet sound local.
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(US, inorganic compound) An inorganic chemical compound, (NH4)2SO4, commonly used as a fertilizer and as a food additive (E517) used as an improving agent.
(India, obsolete) yellow arsenic, orpiment.
(obsolete) Native sodium carbonate; natron.
In Indian English, namkeen refers to any salty, savory snack eaten between meals — the kind of crunchy, spiced nibbles served in small bowls at tea time or with drinks. This includes sev, mixture, chivda, bhujia, and dozens of regional variants. The word comes directly from Hindi and is used across the subcontinent and in the diaspora. The category is enormous and central to South Asian snacking culture.
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(India) Ammonium chloride.
Naushadar is a Hindi/Urdu term for sal ammoniac (ammonium chloride), a traditional remedy in South Asian medicine. Not concerning unless used to refer to recreational substances. If your kid uses it constantly, ask them where they first heard it, not to police their speech but to understand which online community they are in. Most slang of this kind moves through TikTok and group chats, so seeing it in your child's vocabulary just means they are plugged into normal teen internet culture.
Naushadar is a Hindi/Urdu term for sal ammoniac (ammonium chloride), used in traditional medicine and metallurgy. Use in South Asian, scientific, and historical contexts. Formal equivalent: "ammonium chloride," "sal ammoniac." Common non-native mistake: assuming a single drug-related meaning; the term has legitimate chemical and traditional medicine usage. Read or listen to the word in context several times before trying it yourself; the right register is harder to learn than the dictionary meaning.
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