1. Imperatives (giving orders!)

In English the language we use to ask for things is very polite. I would like, please bring me etc. In Sinhala the language used will seem to an English speaker to be rather abrupt and rude. This is not the case. Although the words for please and thank you are rarely used politeness is shown in the manner of asking. Smile and give your order in a pleasant voice and you will be thought of as polite!

The different verb forms and tenses are expressed by adding a suffix to the root form of the verb. The infinitive form which is used to give orders is made by adding nn~ / Nn to the end of the verb. Look at the examples from the dialogue:

T1.5i

2. There is / there are

In Sinhala they use the same words for have got and there is / there are. There is no need to worry about agreement with the subject of the verb in Sinhala. For example in English we use there are if the subject is plural (there are a lot of cars on the road) and there is if the subject is singular (there is a cat on the chair).

However, unlike in English, in Sinhala, a difference is made between animate and inanimate. In this lesson’s dialogue we used tiyen~wa: / ñ@ynv` in the following examples:

T1.5j

Notice here again how the verb (there are) is at the end of the sentence. In both these sentences the subjects are food and inanimate.

However, in Unit 1 Lesson 4 dialogue we saw inn~wa: / iNnvq being used to express the idea of there is and there are for things animate. Do you remember these examples?

 ©2004 speaksinhala.com - All rights reserved.