As a Hindi name
केलि · noun · feminine
खेल । क्रीड़ा · रति । मैथुन । समागमन । स्त्रीप्रसंग · हँसी । ठट्ठा । मजाक । दिल्लगी — Śabdasāgara
केलि · noun · feminine
एक पौधा जी नदियों के किनारे पर होता है । बरसात में इसमें सफेद सफेद फूल लगते हैं · केला (को॰) · हिरन की एक किस्म (को॰) — Śabdasāgara cross-reference followed: दे॰ कदली
केलि · keli · s.f.
Play, sport, pastime, amusement; amorous dalliance; coition (cf. khel) — Platts (1884), digital edition courtesy DSAL, University of Chicago, p. 889
केलि · feminine
play, sport; amorous play, dalliance; sexual intercourse; pastime, amusement
केलि · feminine
banana or plantain
a Hindi word, a tatsama: the Sanskrit word borrowed unchanged into Hindi केलि — per Wiktionary’s etymology record
“Learned borrowing from Sanskrit केलि (keli).” — per Wiktionary’s etymology record
keli m. f. play, sport, amorous sport, pastime, amusement, Mn. viii, 357; Mṛcch. &c.
disguise, concealment, Gal.
a Hindi word, a tadbhava: evolved from the Sanskrit through Prakrit कदल — per Wiktionary’s etymology record
“Inherited from Sanskrit कदल (kadala).” — per Wiktionary’s etymology record
kadala mf(ī [ā, L.]). the plantain or banana tree, Musa Sapientum (its soft, perishable stem is a symbol of frailty), Suśr.; R.; Megh.
kadala n. the banana, Suśr.
As a Sanskrit word
Meaning
play, sport, amorous sport, pastime, amusement, &c.
Verified derivationMultiple readings (4)Why this matches what you typed
M1 · same meaning "keli" is the vocative of "kelī" — the same word in a different grammatical case.
Gender counterpart
The kosha attests this stem in the feminine and the masculine — the same name serves without alteration.
Dictionary citations
keli m. f. play, sport, amorous sport, pastime, amusement, Mn. viii, 357; Mṛcch. &c.
disguise, concealment, Gal.
keli f. the earth, L.
keli mf. (-liḥ liḥ or -lī) Play, sport, pastime, amusement. f. (-liḥ) The earth. E. kila to sport, Uṇādi affix i.
kelī f. rarely for keli (play, sport).
kelī 1 Play, sport. 2 Amorous sport. Comp. — pikaḥ a cuckoo kept (pb) for pleasure. — vanī a pleasure-park, pleasure-grove. — śukaḥ a parrot kept for pleasure.
Alternative readings
More than one analysis survives full verification. That ambiguity is real, so we show every reading rather than pick one silently.
Caveats
Sources contain errors and engines have limits; every claim above carries its citation so you can verify it. This is guidance about names and their sources — not religious or astrological consultation. How we work · Our sources