चिन्नु

Knowing a Person

Level 2Sounds Like cinnu

चिन्नु is for knowing a person or a place, unlike थाहा छ, which is for facts.

How It Works

चिन्नु means to know or recognize a person, or to know a place well. Here the one who knows is the doer, and the person known takes लाई: म उनलाई चिन्छु (I know her).

A place usually takes no लाई: उनीहरू पोखरा राम्ररी चिन्छन् (they know Pokhara well). The respect level follows the doer: तपाईं उहाँलाई चिन्नुहुन्छ? (do you know her?).

The negative present is चिन्दिनँ, and the simple past needs ले with a transitive verb: मैले उनलाई चिनिनँ (I did not recognize her).

Do not mix चिन्नु with थाहा छ. थाहा छ is for facts, like a name or a time, and the knower takes लाई. चिन्नु is for people and places, and the knower is the doer.

Both can be used in sentences about one person. मलाई उनको नाम थाहा छ means I know her name, and म उनलाई चिन्छु means I know her.

Examples (4)

  1. म उनलाई चिन्छु।

    I know her.

    उनलाई marks the person known.

  2. तपाईं उहाँलाई चिन्नुहुन्छ?

    Do you know her?

    The honorific verb चिन्नुहुन्छ.

  3. उनीहरू पोखरा राम्ररी चिन्छन्।

    They know Pokhara well.

    A place usually takes no लाई.

  4. मैले उनलाई चिनिनँ।

    I did not recognize her.

    ले goes with the transitive past.

Common Mistakes

  • Learners leave out ले with the past of चिन्नु.

    म उनलाई चिनिनँ।
    मैले उनलाई चिनिनँ।

    चिन्नु is transitive, so the doer takes ले in the past.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

चिन्नुLevel 2Knowing a Person

Learn This First

चिन्नु is for knowing a person.