Vocabulary

INTRODUCTION If you think of English or any other language, then people quite do not speak so literally. For example, by saying the above, I am not pulling your leg.  When an expression conveys a figurative (sometimes literal) meaning, then they are called idioms. Their figurative meanings are different from literal ones. Such kind of expressions are … Read more

For some reason the earlier lesson with the same name got deleted and I still don’t know how. So, this is just the same thing, intended to fill that ‘Dead’ link that had stayed for some pretty long time. Corpse लास (lās) Cremation Pyre आर्यघाट (āryaghāṭ) Death God यमराज (yamarāj) Death/Demise मृत्यु (mṛtyu) Final Rites … Read more

Flower = फूल (phul) Bud = कोपिला (kopila) Rose = गुलाब (gulaab) Lotus = कमल (kamal) Camellia = क्यामेलिया (kyameliya) Rhododendron = गुराँस (guras) Gladiolus = ग्लेडुलस (gledulas) Chrysanthemum = गोदावरी (godavari) Blue passion flower = घडीफूल (ghadiphul) Jasmine = चमेली (chameli) Tulip = ट्यूलिप (tyulip)  Hibiscus = जिभ्रे फूल (jibro phul) Indian trumpet flower = टोटला (totala) Moss-rose Purslane = दशबजे फूल (dashbaje phul) Angel’s Trumpet = धोक्रे … Read more

Polysemous Words are Equivocal Terms. An equivocal term is a word which sound the same and spell the same but have two or more than two different meanings. Such words are called अनेकार्थक शब्द (anekarthak sabda) in Nepali. For example, the word ‘Ring’ is a Equivocal Term, with two meanings ‘Ornament’ and ‘Phone Noise’. _ कर (kar)  _ हात (haat)  _ … Read more

Nepal follows a separate calendar, called ’Vikram Samvat’, which consists of 12 months and 365 days (You don’t say?). Anyways, the first month starts roughly from Mid-April (usually april 14) and ends 12 months later. There are two spellings, one is the archaic spelling and the other is the modern spelling. Of course, I won’t … Read more

Phrases and Proverbs are called ‘उखान’ (ukhan) in Nepali. Such ‘ukhan’ are passed down as wisdom throughout ages. Hence, they give us some wisdom and knowledge. English Translations of some make no sense, but the Original makes so much sense. So, some might seem weird…. This is an EXTREMELY SHORT version of the total number … Read more

Baby words are words that you would use as a child, or with young children. Such words are called शिशु शब्द (śiśu śabda) in Nepali. An example in English would be boo-boo, which refers to an injury. Cat सुरी (surī) Cloth(es) नाना (nānā) Cow बाँ (bā~) [lit. moo] Dog भौभौ (bhaubhau) [lit. woof-woof] Excretion आची … Read more

Antonyms are ‘Opposite Words’. In Nepali, Antonyms are called ‘विपरीतार्थक शब्द’ (biparitarthak sabda). Some common Antonyms are: अनुग्रह (anugraha) विग्रह (vigraha) Integrate/ Combine Differentiate/ Separate अमृत (amṛt) विष (viṣ) Ambrosia Poison अहिले (ahile) उहिले (uhile) Now Long time ago आकाश (ākāś) पाताल (pātāl) Sky Ground आगो (āgo) पानी (pānī) Fire Water आदि (ādi) अन्त (anta) … Read more

Onomatopoeic words are called “अनुकरणात्मक शब्द” (anukaranatmak sabda) in Nepali. These words function like adverbs. Here are some such words that are pretty common. Also, some of the words like ‘chittika’ are not really the ‘sound’ concept (like: knock-knock) but more of a different concept of ‘being X’ or ‘X to happen’. : Dropping Sound: खत्रक्क (khatrakka) It is like … Read more

Homophones are everywhere. You know puns? They are punny. Here is a list of some common homophones in Nepali. A homophone is a group of word which sound (almost) the same but have different meanings and have different spellings. For example, new and knew, euthanasia and youth in Asia… Homophones are called ‘श्रुतिसमभिन्नार्थक शब्द’ (shrutisambhinarthak sabda) in Nepali. अन्न (anna) = Grain; Crop  अन्य (anya) = … Read more