Learning a new language opens doors to understanding new cultures, forging connections, and expanding one’s worldview. Nepali, the official language of Nepal, is a rich and expressive language spoken by millions. One of the essential aspects of mastering Nepali is understanding its verb tenses. While it may seem daunting at first, with a structured approach, you can grasp the intricacies of Nepali verb tenses and use them effectively in conversation and writing.
The Basics of Nepali Verb Tenses
Verb tenses in Nepali are used to indicate the time at which an action occurs. Similar to English, Nepali has three primary tenses: past, present, and future. Each of these tenses can be further broken down into simple, continuous, and perfect aspects. By understanding these categories, you can begin to construct accurate and meaningful sentences in Nepali.
Present Tense
The present tense in Nepali is used to describe actions that are currently happening or general truths. There are three main forms of the present tense:
1. Simple Present: This form is used for habitual actions or general truths. For example, “He eats rice” or “She speaks Nepali.”
In Nepali, the verb conjugation in the simple present tense changes according to the subject. Here is a basic conjugation for the verb “to eat” (खानु – khānu):
– म खान्छु (ma khānchu) – I eat
– तिमी खान्छौ (timī khānchau) – You eat (informal)
– ऊ खान्छ (ū khāncha) – He/She eats
– हामी खान्छौं (hāmī khānchaũ) – We eat
– तिमीहरू खान्छौ (timīharu khānchau) – You all eat
– उनी खान्छन् (unī khānchan) – They eat
2. Present Continuous: This form is used for actions that are currently ongoing. For example, “He is eating rice” or “She is speaking Nepali.”
In Nepali, the present continuous tense is formed by adding the suffix “-दै” (-dai) to the verb stem, followed by the appropriate form of the auxiliary verb “to be” (छ – cha):
– म खान्दैछु (ma khāndaichu) – I am eating
– तिमी खान्दैछौ (timī khāndaichau) – You are eating (informal)
– ऊ खान्दैछ (ū khāndaicha) – He/She is eating
– हामी खान्दैछौं (hāmī khāndaichaũ) – We are eating
– तिमीहरू खान्दैछौ (timīharu khāndaichau) – You all are eating
– उनी खान्दैछन् (unī khāndaichan) – They are eating
3. Present Perfect: This form is used for actions that have been completed at the present moment. For example, “He has eaten rice” or “She has spoken Nepali.”
In Nepali, the present perfect tense is formed by adding the suffix “-एको/एकी” (-eko/ekī) to the verb stem, depending on the gender of the subject, followed by the appropriate form of “to be”:
– म खाएको छु (ma khāeko chu) – I have eaten (if speaker is male)
– म खाएकी छु (ma khāekī chu) – I have eaten (if speaker is female)
– तिमी खाएको छौ (timī khāeko chau) – You have eaten (informal, if listener is male)
– तिमी खाएकी छौ (timī khāekī chau) – You have eaten (informal, if listener is female)
– ऊ खाएको छ (ū khāeko cha) – He has eaten
– ऊ खाएकी छ (ū khāekī cha) – She has eaten
– हामी खाएको छौं (hāmī khāeko chaũ) – We have eaten (if at least one male)
– हामी खाएकी छौं (hāmī khāekī chaũ) – We have eaten (if all females)
– तिमीहरू खाएको छौ (timīharu khāeko chau) – You all have eaten (if at least one male)
– तिमीहरू खाएकी छौ (timīharu khāekī chau) – You all have eaten (if all females)
– उनी खाएको छन् (unī khāeko chan) – They have eaten (if at least one male)
– उनी खाएकी छन् (unī khāekī chan) – They have eaten (if all females)
Past Tense
The past tense in Nepali is used to describe actions that have already occurred. It also has three main forms:
1. Simple Past: This form is used for actions that were completed in the past. For example, “He ate rice” or “She spoke Nepali.”
In Nepali, the simple past tense is formed by adding the suffix “-यो/यो” (-yo/yo) to the verb stem, depending on the gender of the subject:
– म खानें (ma khāne) – I ate
– तिमी खान्यौ (timī khānyau) – You ate (informal)
– ऊ खान्यो (ū khānyo) – He ate
– ऊ खानिन् (ū khānin) – She ate
– हामी खायौं (hāmī khāyaũ) – We ate
– तिमीहरू खायौ (timīharu khāyau) – You all ate
– उनीहरूले खाए (unīharule khāe) – They ate
2. Past Continuous: This form is used for actions that were ongoing in the past. For example, “He was eating rice” or “She was speaking Nepali.”
In Nepali, the past continuous tense is formed by adding the suffix “-दै” (-dai) to the verb stem, followed by the appropriate form of the auxiliary verb “to be” in the past tense (थियो – thiyo):
– म खान्दै थिएँ (ma khāndaithieũ) – I was eating
– तिमी खान्दै थियौ (timī khāndaithiyau) – You were eating (informal)
– ऊ खान्दै थियो (ū khāndaithiyo) – He was eating
– ऊ खान्दै थिइन् (ū khāndaithiin) – She was eating
– हामी खान्दै थियौं (hāmī khāndaithiyaũ) – We were eating
– तिमीहरू खान्दै थियौ (timīharu khāndaithiyau) – You all were eating
– उनीहरू खान्दै थिए (unīharu khāndaithiye) – They were eating
3. Past Perfect: This form is used for actions that were completed before a certain point in the past. For example, “He had eaten rice” or “She had spoken Nepali.”
In Nepali, the past perfect tense is formed by adding the suffix “-एको/एकी” (-eko/ekī) to the verb stem, followed by the appropriate form of the auxiliary verb “to be” in the past tense:
– म खाएको थिएँ (ma khāeko thieũ) – I had eaten (if speaker is male)
– म खाएकी थिएँ (ma khāekī thieũ) – I had eaten (if speaker is female)
– तिमी खाएको थियौ (timī khāeko thiyau) – You had eaten (informal, if listener is male)
– तिमी खाएकी थियौ (timī khāekī thiyau) – You had eaten (informal, if listener is female)
– ऊ खाएको थियो (ū khāeko thiyo) – He had eaten
– ऊ खाएकी थिइन् (ū khāekī thiyin) – She had eaten
– हामी खाएको थियौं (hāmī khāeko thiyaũ) – We had eaten (if at least one male)
– हामी खाएकी थियौं (hāmī khāekī thiyaũ) – We had eaten (if all females)
– तिमीहरू खाएको थियौ (timīharu khāeko thiyau) – You all had eaten (if at least one male)
– तिमीहरू खाएकी थियौ (timīharu khāekī thiyau) – You all had eaten (if all females)
– उनीहरूले खाएको थिए (unīharule khāeko thiye) – They had eaten (if at least one male)
– उनीहरूले खाएकी थिए (unīharule khāekī thiye) – They had eaten (if all females)
Future Tense
The future tense in Nepali is used to describe actions that will occur. It also has three main forms:
1. Simple Future: This form is used for actions that will happen in the future. For example, “He will eat rice” or “She will speak Nepali.”
In Nepali, the simple future tense is formed by adding the suffix “-ला/ली” (-lā/lī) to the verb stem:
– म खान्छु (ma khānchu) – I will eat
– तिमी खान्छौ (timī khānchau) – You will eat (informal)
– ऊ खान्छ (ū khāncha) – He/She will eat
– हामी खान्छौं (hāmī khānchaũ) – We will eat
– तिमीहरू खान्छौ (timīharu khānchau) – You all will eat
– उनी खान्छन् (unī khānchan) – They will eat
2. Future Continuous: This form is used for actions that will be ongoing in the future. For example, “He will be eating rice” or “She will be speaking Nepali.”
In Nepali, the future continuous tense is formed by adding the suffix “-दै” (-dai) to the verb stem, followed by the appropriate form of the auxiliary verb “to be” in the future tense (हुनेछ – hunēcha):
– म खान्दै हुनेछु (ma khāndaī hunēchu) – I will be eating
– तिमी खान्दै हुनेछौ (timī khāndaī hunēchau) – You will be eating (informal)
– ऊ खान्दै हुनेछ (ū khāndaī hunēcha) – He/She will be eating
– हामी खान्दै हुनेछौं (hāmī khāndaī hunēchaũ) – We will be eating
– तिमीहरू खान्दै हुनेछौ (timīharu khāndaī hunēchau) – You all will be eating
– उनीहरू खान्दै हुनेछन् (unīharu khāndaī hunēchan) – They will be eating
3. Future Perfect: This form is used for actions that will have been completed by a certain point in the future. For example, “He will have eaten rice” or “She will have spoken Nepali.”
In Nepali, the future perfect tense is formed by adding the suffix “-एको/एकी” (-eko/ekī) to the verb stem, followed by the appropriate form of the auxiliary verb “to be” in the future tense:
– म खाएको हुनेछु (ma khāeko hunēchu) – I will have eaten (if speaker is male)
– म खाएकी हुनेछु (ma khāekī hunēchu) – I will have eaten (if speaker is female)
– तिमी खाएको हुनेछौ (timī khāeko hunēchau) – You will have eaten (informal, if listener is male)
– तिमी खाएकी हुनेछौ (timī khāekī hunēchau) – You will have eaten (informal, if listener is female)
– ऊ खाएको हुनेछ (ū khāeko hunēcha) – He will have eaten
– ऊ खाएकी हुनेछ (ū khāekī hunēcha) – She will have eaten
– हामी खाएको हुनेछौं (hāmī khāeko hunēchaũ) – We will have eaten (if at least one male)
– हामी खाएकी हुनेछौं (hāmī khāekī hunēchaũ) – We will have eaten (if all females)
– तिमीहरू खाएको हुनेछौ (timīharu khāeko hunēchau) – You all will have eaten (if at least one male)
– तिमीहरू खाएकी हुनेछौ (timīharu khāekī hunēchau) – You all will have eaten (if all females)
– उनीहरू खाएको हुनेछन् (unīharu khāeko hunēchan) – They will have eaten (if at least one male)
– उनीहरू खाएकी हुनेछन् (unīharu khāekī hunēchan) – They will have eaten (if all females)
Common Irregular Verbs
Like many languages, Nepali has its share of irregular verbs, which do not follow the standard conjugation patterns. Some of the most common irregular verbs include:
– हुनु (hunu) – to be
– जानु (jānu) – to go
– आउनु (āunu) – to come
– गर्नु (garnu) – to do
It’s essential to familiarize yourself with these irregular verbs and their conjugations in different tenses. For example:
हुनु (hunu) – to be:
– Present: म छु (ma chu) – I am
– Past: म थिएँ (ma thieũ) – I was
– Future: म हुनेछु (ma hunēchu) – I will be
जानु (jānu) – to go:
– Present: म जान्छु (ma jānechu) – I go
– Past: म गएँ (ma gaeũ) – I went
– Future: म जानेछु (ma jānechu) – I will go
आउनु (āunu) – to come:
– Present: म आउँछु (ma āunuchu) – I come
– Past: म आएँ (ma āeũ) – I came
– Future: म आउनेछु (ma ānechu) – I will come
गर्नु (garnu) – to do:
– Present: म गर्छु (ma garchu) – I do
– Past: म गरेँ (ma gareũ) – I did
– Future: म गर्नेछु (ma garnechu) – I will do
Practice and Application
Understanding verb tenses is a crucial step in mastering Nepali, but practice is essential to solidify this knowledge. Here are some tips to help you practice and apply what you’ve learned:
1. Daily Practice: Dedicate a few minutes each day to practice conjugating verbs in different tenses. Use flashcards, language apps, or write sentences in a journal.
2. Conversations: Engage in conversations with native Nepali speakers or fellow learners. Practice using different tenses in context to improve your fluency and confidence.
3. Reading and Listening: Read Nepali texts, such as newspapers, books, or online articles, and listen to Nepali audio resources, like songs, podcasts, or radio. Pay attention to how verbs are used in different tenses.
4. Writing Exercises: Write short stories, essays, or dialogues in Nepali, focusing on using various verb tenses. This will help you internalize the rules and improve your writing skills.
5. Language Classes: Consider enrolling in a Nepali language course, either online or in-person. A structured learning environment with guidance from an experienced teacher can significantly enhance your understanding and application of verb tenses.
Conclusion
Mastering Nepali verb tenses is a fundamental aspect of becoming proficient in the language. By understanding the structure and usage of present, past, and future tenses, you can communicate more accurately and effectively. Remember to practice regularly, engage in conversations, and immerse yourself in Nepali language resources to reinforce your learning. With dedication and perseverance, you will find yourself confidently using Nepali verb tenses in no time. Happy learning!
