Basic Sentence Order
A Nepali sentence puts the verb last, and short words after each noun show its job.
How It Works
English puts the verb in the middle. Nepali puts it at the end: doer + object or place + verb.
| Doer | Object or place | Verb |
|---|---|---|
| म | चिया | पिउँछु |
| सरिता | बजार | जान्छिन् |
| रमेश | घरमा | छ |
Small marker words such as मा (in, at) and लाई (to) come after the noun, never before it, and they are written joined to it. Time words like भोलि (tomorrow) usually come near the front.
The order is flexible. A speaker can move a word to the front to say what the sentence is about: चिया म पिउँछु means that tea is the thing I drink. The verb still stays at the end, though in speech a small word such as है or नि can follow it. Questions keep the same order, and the question word usually sits just before the verb: तपाईं कहाँ जानुहुन्छ?
Examples (5)
- म चिया पिउँछु।
I drink tea.
The doer म comes first and the verb पिउँछु comes last.
- सरिता बजार जान्छिन्।
Sarita goes to the market.
The place comes before the verb जान्छिन्.
- रमेश घरमा छ।
Ramesh is at home.
The marker मा is joined to घर, and the verb छ ends the sentence.
- हामी भोलि काठमाडौं जान्छौँ।
We are going to Kathmandu tomorrow.
The time word भोलि comes early, and the verb stays last.
- चिया म पिउँछु, कफी पिउँदिनँ।
I drink tea, but I do not drink coffee.
Moving चिया to the front stresses it.
How It Connects
Related Patterns
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
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