Theory #1 - Nepali Verb Conjugation: Past

Front 1

Past Tense

Back 1

भूत काल

Front 2

Present Tense

Back 2

वर्तमान कल

Front 3

Future Tense

Back 3

भविष्यत् कल

Front 4

Verbs are conjugated using the ____ (Dhatu) of the verb. To find the _____ of the word, remove 'nu' from the end of the word.

E.g. Khanu (to eat) -> _____ form = Kha

Back 4

Verbs are conjugated using the -root- of the verb.

Root form of Khanu = Kha (simply remove the 'nu')

Front 5

Five kinds of past tense:

Back 5

1. Simple Past Tense
2. Past Continuous Tense
3. Past Perfect Tense
4. Past (unknown-when-performed-but-aware-of-it-now) Tense
5.Past Habitual Tense.

Front 6

For the following cards, will list the tense, the context ("I", "we", "you", "she" etc. - in Nepali) and a standard verb with which to change to the correct conjugation.

Back 6

Go for it.

Front 7

Examples of simple past tense:

Basic, expanded and question form

Back 7

Basic simple past:
I/you/he/she/it/we/they helped
Expanded (emphatic) simple past:
I/you/he/she/it/we/they did help
Question form:
Did I/you/he/she/it/we/they help?

Front 8

Simple Past Tense
For म (ma: i) we add ___ to the verb to make it simple past tense

Back 8

we add ‘एँ’. If ‘le’ is to be added to ‘ma’, then ma will be ‘maile’ (मैले)

रोक्नु (roknu; to stop) = रोक् (rok) + एँ = रोकेँ (roke)

खानु (khanu; to eat) = खा (khan)+ एँ = खाएँ (khae)

Front 9

Simple Past Tense

For ‘हामी’ (hami; We) we add ___ to the verb to make it SPT

Back 9

we add ‘यौँ’

रोक्नु = रोक् + यौँ = रोक्यौँ (rokyaun)

खानु = खा + यौँ = खायौँ (khanyaun)

Front 10

Simple Past Tense
For ‘तँ’ (Ta) ; (informal rude version of I) we had ___ to the verb to make it SPT

Back 10

we add ‘इस्’. If le is to be added, then ‘ta’ will be ‘taile’ (तैँले)

रोक्नु = रोक् + इस = रोकिस् (rokis)

खानु = खा + छस्= खाइस् (khais)

Front 11

Simple Past Tense
For ‘तिमी’ (timi; Informal version of 'you') we add ___ to the verb to make it SPT

Back 11

we add ‘यौ’

रोक्नु = रोक् + यौ = रोक्यौ (rokyau)

खानु = खा + यौ = खायौ (khayau)

Front 12

Simple Past Tense
For ‘ऊ’ (uu; him) we add ___ to the verb to make it SPT

Back 12

we add ‘यो’. It le has to be added, then uu will be उसले’ 'usle' (उसले)

रोक्नु = रोक् + यो = रोक्यो (rokyo)

खानु = खा + यो = खायो (khayo)

Front 13

Simple Past Tense
If the subject or the 3rd Person is a girl, then we add ___ to the verb to make it SPT

Back 13

we add ‘छे’

रोक्नु = रोक् + ई = रोकी (rokche)

खानु = खा + ई = खाई (khanche)

Front 14

Simple Past Tense
If the subject or the 3rd person is a girl but we need to use honorifics or respect speech, we add ___ to the verb to make it SPT

Back 14

we add ‘इन’

रोक्नु = रोक् + इन = रोकिन (rokin)

खानु = खा + इन = खाइन (khain)

Front 15

Simple Past Tense
For ‘उनीहरु’ (uniharu: they), we add ___ to the verb to make it SPT

Back 15

we add ‘ए’

रोक्नु = रोक् + ए = रोके (roke)

खानु = खा + ए = खाए (khae)

Front 16

Simple Past Tense
For उँहा (uha; respect form for him/ her) तपाईँ (tapai; respect form of you), there is a slight change. We leave the verb intact (i.e. the way it is) and add ___ to the verb to make it SPT

Back 16

we add ‘भयो’

रोक्नु = रोक्नु + भयो = रोक्नुभयो (roknubhayo)

खानु = खानु + भयो = खानुभयो (roknubhayo)

Front 17

Past Continuous Tense example

Back 17

PCT indicates an action that was ongoing at the past time being considered
e.g.
At three o'clock yesterday, --I was working-- in the garden.

Front 18

Past Continuous Tense. To turn a verb to past continuous tense, replace ’नु’ (nu) with ___

Back 18

दै’ (dai) or तै (tai) and add various forms of थिएँ (thiyo)

Front 19

Past Continuous Tense

To turn a verb with subject म (ma) into Past Continuous Tense add ____

Back 19

दै’ (dai) or तै (tai) and थिएँ (thie)

Front 20

Past Continuous Tense
To turn a verb with subject हामी (hami)

Back 20

दै’ (dai) or तै (tai) and थियौँ (thiyau)

Front 21

Past Continuous Tense
To turn a verb with subject तँ (ta)

Back 21

दै’ (dai) or तै (tai) and थिइस् (thiis)

Front 22

Past Continuous Tense
To turn a verb with subject तिमी (timi)

Back 22

दै’ (dai) or तै (tai) and थियौ (thiyau)

Front 23

Past Continuous Tense
To turn a verb with subject ऊ (u)

Back 23

दै’ (dai) or तै (tai) and थियो (thiyo)

Front 24

Past Continuous Tense
To turn a verb with Female Subject

Back 24

दै’ (dai) or तै (tai) and थिई (thii)

Front 25

Past Continuous Tense
To turn a verb with subject उनीहरु (uniharu)

Back 25

दै’ (dai) or तै (tai) and थिए (thie)

Front 26

Past Continuous Tense
To turn a verb with subject Female Subject (respect)

Back 26

दै’ (dai) or तै (tai) and थिइन् (thiin)

Front 27

Past Continuous Tense
To turn a verb with subject तपाईँ (tapai)/ उहाँ (uha)

Back 27

दै’ (dai) or तै (tai) and हुनुहुन्थ्यो (hunuhunthyo)

or...

add हुदैँ, keep the suffix of the verb and add थियो (thiyo)? Confusing explanation. Take note of these.

Front 28

Past Perfect Tense example

Back 28

PAPT is formed by combining had (the past tense of the auxiliary have) with the past participle of the main verb. It is used when referring to an event that took place prior to the time frame being considered.This time frame may be stated explicitly, as a stated time or the time of another past action: example -
We had finished the job by 2 o'clock.
He had already left when we arrived.

Front 29

Past Perfect Tense. To turn a verb into past perfect tense we remove the ‘नु’ (and if there is a vowel before ‘नु’ we remove that also) and replace it with__

Back 29

with एको (eko)/ एकी (eki)/ एका (eka) depending on the context (eko if singular, eka if plural and eki if it’s feminine). singlular = i, you, plural = they etc.

If the letter that preceded ‘nu’ is a pure consonant, we convert the second last letter into its ‘ए’ form (e.g: if the second last letter (the letter that precedes ‘nu’) is क् then we change that क् into it’s ए form which is के [ke] ). The various forms of 'thiyo' will follow according to the PACT examples.

Front 30

Past Perfect Tense #2

If the verb is transitive (requires an object... e.g. i LOVE LAMB) then we need to add ____ to the subject (such as ma).

Back 30

ले

म becomes मैले etc.

Front 31

Past Perfect Tense #3

But for ‘तपाईँ’, instead of ‘एको’ we have to add ___

Back 31

‘भएको’ (baeko). Also, like above, the main verb remains unaltered.
e.g.
रोक्नु = रोक्नु + भएको + थियो = रोक्नुभएको + थियो = खानुभएको थियो (roknubhaeko thiyo)

Front 32

Past (unknown-when-performed-but-aware-of-it-now) Tense example

Back 32

his tense describes actions that were completed in the past but you were not aware of it but now you are aware of it.

Front 33

Past (unknown-when-performed-but-aware-of-it-now) Tense

Anyways, from the verb we remove the ‘नु’ and replace it with ___

Back 33

एछु (echu)/ एछौँ (echau)/ एछस् (echas)/ इछस् (echas)/ एछौ (echau)/ एछ (echa)/ एछन् (echan)/ इछ (icha)/ इछन् (ichan)/ भएछ (bhaecha) depending on the context. Pure consonant and pure vowels to be altered as in past perfect tense example.

Front 34

Past (unknown-when-performed-but-aware-of-it-now) Tense

For ‘म’ (ma; I) we add ___ to the verb

Back 34

एछु

Front 35

Past (unknown-when-performed-but-aware-of-it-now) Tense

For ‘हामी’ (hami; We) we add ___ to the verb

Back 35

एछौँ

Front 36

Past (unknown-when-performed-but-aware-of-it-now) Tense
For ‘तँ’ (Ta) ; informal rude version of I) we add ___
...and if subject is girl we add ___

Back 36

we add ‘ एछस्’. If subject is a girl, we add ‘ इछस्’

Front 37

Past (unknown-when-performed-but-aware-of-it-now) Tense
For ‘तिमी’ (timi; Informal version of you) we add ___ to the verb

Back 37

एछौ

Front 38

Past (unknown-when-performed-but-aware-of-it-now) Tense
For ‘ऊ’ (uu; him) we add ___ to the verb

Back 38

एछ

Front 39

Past (unknown-when-performed-but-aware-of-it-now) Tense
If the subject or the 3rd Person is a girl, then we add ___ to the verb

Back 39

इछ

Front 40

Past (unknown-when-performed-but-aware-of-it-now) Tense
If the subject or the 3rd person is a girl but we need to use honorifics or respect speech, we add ___ to the verb

Back 40

इछन्

Front 41

Past (unknown-when-performed-but-aware-of-it-now) Tense
For ‘उनीहरु’ (uniharu: they), we add ___ to the verb

Back 41

एछन्

Front 42

Past (unknown-when-performed-but-aware-of-it-now) Tense
For उँहा (uha; respect form for him/ her) तपाईँ (tapai; respect form of you), there is a slight change. We leave the verb intact (i.e. the way it is) and add ___ to the verb

Back 42

भएछ

Front 43

Past Habitual Tense

Back 43

Describes things that you or the subject used to do in the past (might not now).

Front 44

Past habitual tense suffixes

Back 44

we first convert the ‘नु’ to ‘न्' (n) and add the following: थेँ (the)/ थ्यौँ (thyau)/ थिस् (this)/ थ्यो(thyo)/ थ्यौ (thau)/ थी (thi)/ थिन् (thin)/ थे (the)/ हुन्थ्यो (hunthyo) according to the context.