Nepali has a different word for "you" at each level of respect, and the verb changes with it. The readings on this page are a plain spelling with no accent marks, and chh stands for the letter छ, so छ is written chha and च is written cha. Every form was checked against Wikivoyage, Wikibooks and Wiktionary.
| Nepali | English | Style | Where you use it |
|---|---|---|---|
| तपाईंलाई कस्तो छ?tapailai kasto chha? | How are you? | Polite | Elders, teachers, strangers |
| तपाईं कस्तो हुनुहुन्छ?tapai kasto hunuhunchha? | How are you? | Polite | The same people |
| सञ्चै हुनुहुन्छ?sanchai hunuhunchha? | Are you well? | Polite | Someone you have not seen in a long time |
| आरामै हुनुहुन्छ?aramai hunuhunchha? | Are you comfortable and well? | Polite | Someone you have not seen in a long time |
| तिमीलाई कस्तो छ?timilai kasto chha? | How are you? | Friendly | Friends, colleagues, people your age |
| तँलाई कस्तो छ?talai kasto chha? | How are you? | Very casual | Close friends, younger people |
| के छ?ke chha? | What is up? | Casual | Friends |
कस्तो (kasto) means "how" or "what sort of", and छ (chha) is the plain "is". The Nepalgo guide describes three levels of respect: तँ (ta) is low, तिमी (timi) is medium, and तपाईं (tapai) is high. It says तिमी is improper toward seniors, and तँ can be offensive outside a circle of juniors and close friends. तपाईं is for seniors, teachers, parents and elder siblings. It also mentions a fourth, very respectful level.
With तपाईं, the verb takes the respectful form हुनुहुन्छ (hunuhunchha), which Wiktionary lists for the second and third person. When you do not know which level to use, take तपाईं.
| Nepali | English | Style |
|---|---|---|
| सञ्चै छु, धन्यवाद।sanchai chhu, dhanyabad. | I am well, thank you. | Any person |
| म ठीक छु।ma thik chhu. | I am fine. | Any person |
| तपाईं चाहिँ?tapai chahin? | And you? | Polite |
| तिमी चाहिँ?timi chahin? | And you? | Friendly |
When you talk about yourself, the verb is छु (chhu), with म (ma), "I". सञ्चै (sanchai) means "well", and some books spell it सन्चै. Likewise, तपाईं is also written तपाईँ, as Wikivoyage does, and ठीक is sometimes written ठिक. धन्यवाद (dhanyabad) means "thank you".
| Nepali | English | Where you use it |
|---|---|---|
| नमस्ते।namaste. | Hello. | Any person, any time of day |
| नमस्कार।namaskar. | Hello. | Any person |
Wikibooks lists both as greetings and says नमस्कार is also common in Nepal.
A visitor meets a family's grandmother:
| Nepali | English |
|---|---|
| नमस्ते। तपाईं कस्तो हुनुहुन्छ?namaste. tapai kasto hunuhunchha? | Hello. How are you? |
| सञ्चै छु, धन्यवाद। तपाईं चाहिँ?sanchai chhu, dhanyabad. tapai chahin? | I am well, thank you. And you? |
Two friends meet:
| Nepali | English |
|---|---|
| के छ?ke chha? | What is up? |
| म ठीक छु। तिमीलाई कस्तो छ?ma thik chhu. timilai kasto chha? | I am fine. How are you? |
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|---|
| Asking an older person तिमीलाई कस्तो छ. | Use तपाईंलाई कस्तो छ or तपाईं कस्तो हुनुहुन्छ. |
| Asking a stranger तँलाई कस्तो छ. | Keep तँ for juniors and close friends. |
| Using हुनुहुन्छ about yourself, as in म सञ्चै हुनुहुन्छ. | हुनुहुन्छ is for the person you respect. For yourself, say म सञ्चै छु. |
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What Is the Difference Between Kasto Chha and Ke Chha?
तपाईंलाई कस्तो छ (tapailai kasto chha) asks how a person is, and it changes with the level of respect. के छ (ke chha) is a casual "what is up?" for friends, and the MSU open textbook lists it as an informal how are you.
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Sources
- Wikivoyage: Nepali phrasebook (how are you with हुनुहुन्छ, spelled तपाईँ; the reply सञ्चै छु; तपाई चाहिँ for and you)
- Learn Nepali Online: how are you in Nepali (तँलाई, तिमीलाई, तपाईंलाई and हजुरलाई कस्तो छ)
- Wikibooks: Nepali/Greetings (सन्चै हुनुहुन्छ and आरामै हुनुहुन्छ, for someone you have not seen in a long time)
- Nepalgo: Honorific speech, introduction (तँ, तिमी and तपाईं, with the verb changing at each level)
- MSU Libraries open textbook chapter: Nepali greetings (के छ? as an informal how are you for friends; reply म ठीक छु)
- Wiktionary: हुनुहुन्छ (high-respect present form of हुनु, for the second and third person)
- Wiktionary: कस्तो (kasto, how)
- Wiktionary: तपाईं (respectful you; तँ and तिमी are the lower forms)
