Word Meaning
खोवें
khoweñ
Meaning
Lose, steal away, or deprive of (archaic present tense form).
Detailed Meaning
In classical Urdu and Rekhta, 'खोवें हैं' serves as an archaic present habitual verb form equivalent to modern 'खोती हैं' (they cause to lose or take away). In this couplet, it conveys how the endless narratives of sorrow and hardship continuously rob the speaker of his sleep. It emphasizes the active, sleep-depriving agony of bearing grief alone.
Etymology
From Sanskrit क्षपयति (kṣapayati) or Prakrit खोवइ (khovai), evolving into Hindi-Urdu खोना (khonā).
Usage
The verbal suffix '-वें हैं' was a common archaic device in eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century poetry to render third-person plural present habitual actions.
Examples
They take away the peace of the heart
They deprive one of sense and intellect