Learning Sinhala: a practical guide
This is a written companion to the free Sinhala course on LanguagePath: what the language is like, how it sounds, the phrases you will use first, how the course is structured, and what to watch out for. Everything here comes from the same lessons you can practise interactively above.
What Sinhala is like
Sinhala ( සිංහල ) is an Indo-Aryan language — a cousin of Hindi and a close relative of Pali and Sanskrit, the sacred languages of Buddhism. It is not related to Tamil, which belongs to a different language family. Word order is subject-verb-object, much like English, and the verb usually comes last: maṭa mēka ōna — to me this is wanted — means I want this. There are no articles. Vowels come in short and long pairs (a/ā, i/ī, u/ū), and retroflex consonants curl the tongue back.
Words you may already know
Pronunciation notes
Sinhala is written in its own beautiful round script. Learn these letters and you can sound out almost any word aloud.
- අ / a — short "a" — as in "but", as in අම්මා = ammā = mother.
- ආ / ā — long "ā" — as in "father", as in ආයුබෝවන් = ayubōvan = hello.
- ඇ / æ — "æ" — between a and e, as in "cat", as in ඇපල් = æpal = apple.
- ඉ / i — short "i" — as in "bit", as in කිරි = kiri = milk.
- උ / u — short "u" — as in "put", as in කුකුළු = kukuḷu = chicken.
- ට / ṭ — retroflex "t" — tongue curls back, as in කට = kaṭa = mouth.
- ඩ / ḍ — retroflex "ḍ" — tongue curls back, as in කඩ = kaḍa = shop.
- ණ / ṇ — retroflex nasal "n" (dental න = na), as in ණ = ṇa vs න = na.
First phrases
The pocket phrases below are the ones learners reach for most often. Say each one out loud a few times before moving on.
| Sinhala | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ආයුබෝවන් | AH-yoo-BOH-van | Hello / welcome |
| සුබ උදෑසනක් | SOO-bah oo-DAE-sah-nak | Good morning |
| සුබ සැන්දෑවක් | SOO-bah SAN-dae-vak | Good evening |
| කොහොමද? | koh-hoh-MAH-dah | How are you? |
| හොඳින්, ස්තූතියි | HON-din, STOO-tee-yee | Well, thanks |
| මගේ නම Alex | MAH-gay nam Alex | My name is... |
| ස්තූතියි | STOO-tee-yee | Thank you |
| බොහොම ස්තූතියි | BOH-hoh-mah STOO-tee-yee | Thanks a lot |
| කරුණාකර | KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah | Please |
| සමාවෙන්න | sah-MAH-ven-nah | Sorry / excuse me |
| ඔව් | ov | Yes |
| නැත | NAE-thah | No |
| එක | EH-kah | 1 |
| දෙක | DEH-kah | 2 |
| තුන | TOO-nah | 3 |
| හතර | HAH-thah-rah | 4 |
| පහ | PAH-hah | 5 |
| දහය | DAH-hah-yah | 10 |
| වතුර | WAH-thoo-rah | water |
| බත් | bath | rice |
| තේ | thay | tea |
| කෝපි | KOH-pee | coffee |
| කිරි | KEE-ree | milk |
| කොහෙද...? | koh-HEH-dah | Where is...? |
| දකුණට | DAH-koo-nah-tah | to the right |
| වමට | WAH-mah-tah | to the left |
| කෙළින්ම | KEH-leen-mah | straight ahead |
| බස් නැවතුම | bas NAE-wah-thoo-mah | the bus stop |
| කීයද? | KEE-yah-dah | how much is it? |
| මේක කීයද? | MAY-kah KEE-yah-dah | how much is this? |
How the Sinhala course is structured
The course has 16 short lessons that build on each other. Each one introduces a few new pieces and then asks you to construct sentences you have never seen, before revealing the answer:
- Greetings — ආයුබෝවන් — ආයුබෝවන් · සුබ උදෑසනක් · කොහොමද?
- Being polite — ස්තූතියි & කරුණාකර — ස්තූතියි · කරුණාකර · සමාවෙන්න
- Numbers 1–10 — එක · දෙක · තුන · දහය
- I want" — මට ... ඕන — මට ... ඕන · මට ... එපා
- Food & drink — වතුර · බත් · තේ · කෝපි
- Getting around — කොහෙද? · දකුණට · වමට · බස්
- Questions — මොකක්ද? · කොහෙද? · කවුද? · කවදාද?
- Family & people — පවුල · අම්මා · තාත්තා · මිත්රයා
- Time, days & weather — අද · හෙට · ඊයේ · වැස්ස
- Your name — මගේ නම — මගේ නම · ඔබේ නම මොකක්ද?
- Health & emergency — උදව්! · රෝහල · මට තේරෙන්නේ නැහැ
- Tying it together — greetings · politeness · ordering · directions — a capstone
- Airport & tickets — ගුවන්තොටුපළ · ගමන් බලපත්රය · ටිකට්
- The taxi — ටැක්සි · යන්න · හෝටල් · නවත්තන්න
- The hotel — වෙන්කිරීම · කාමරය · යතුර · රැය
- Ask for help — තේරෙන්නේ නැහැ · හෙමින් · ඉංග්රීසි
Inside the lessons
Here is how a few of the lessons explain the language, with worked examples and the word-by-word breakdown the course uses.
Greetings — ආයුබෝවන්
Key pieces: ආයුබෝවන් · සුබ උදෑසනක් · කොහොමද?
The very first word you'll hear in Sri Lanka: ආයුබෝවන් (ayubōvan) — hello and welcome. Say it with a warm smile.
- ආයුබෝවන් (AH-yoo-BOH-van) — hello / welcome
- සුබ උදෑසනක් (SOO-bah oo-DAE-sah-nak) — good morning
- සුබ සැන්දෑවක් (SOO-bah SAN-dae-vak) — good evening
- ඔව් (ov) — yes
- නැත (NAE-thah) — no
To say “Hello, thank you” in Sinhala: ආයුබෝවන්, ස්තූතියි (AH-yoo-BOH-van, STOO-tee-yee). Built from ආයුබෝවන් = hello; ස්තූතියි = thank you.
To ask how someone is: කොහොමද? (kohomada?). The reply: හොඳින්, ස්තූතියි — well, thanks.
- කොහොමද? (koh-hoh-MAH-dah) — How are you?
- හොඳින්, ස්තූතියි (HON-din, STOO-tee-yee) — Well, thanks
- ආයුබෝවන් (AH-yoo-BOH-van) — goodbye
To say “Hello, how are you?” in Sinhala: ආයුබෝවන්, කොහොමද? (AH-yoo-BOH-van, koh-hoh-MAH-dah). Built from ආයුබෝවන් = hello; කොහොමද? = how are you?.
Being polite — ස්තූතියි & කරුණාකර
Key pieces: ස්තූතියි · කරුණාකර · සමාවෙන්න
Two magic words: ස්තූතියි (s-tuthiyi) = thank you, and කරුණාකර (karunākara) = please. Use them everywhere.
Say සමාවෙන්න (samāvenna) for sorry or excuse me.
- ස්තූතියි (STOO-tee-yee) — thank you
- කරුණාකර (KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah) — please
- සමාවෙන්න (sah-MAH-ven-nah) — sorry / excuse me
- ඔව් (ov) — yes
- නැත (NAE-thah) — no
To say “A tea, please” in Sinhala: තේ එකක්, කරුණාකර (thay EH-kak, KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah). Built from තේ = tea; එකක් = a / one; කරුණාකර = please.
To say “Thank you very much” in Sinhala: බොහොම ස්තූතියි (BOH-hoh-mah STOO-tee-yee). Built from බොහොම = very much; ස්තූතියි = thank you.
Numbers 1–10
Key pieces: එක · දෙක · තුන · දහය
Numbers are the fastest win. Listen and repeat: එක, දෙක, තුන .
- එක (EH-kah) — 1
- දෙක (DEH-kah) — 2
- තුන (TOO-nah) — 3
- හතර (HAH-thah-rah) — 4
- පහ (PAH-hah) — 5
- හය (HAH-yah) — 6
- හත (HAH-thah) — 7
- අට (AH-tah) — 8
- නවය (NAH-vah-yah) — 9
- දහය (DAH-hah-yah) — 10
To say “Two teas, please” in Sinhala: තේ දෙකක්, කරුණාකර (thay DEH-kak, KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah). Built from තේ = tea; දෙක = two; කරුණාකර = please.
To ask a price: කීයද? (kīyada?) — how much is it?
To say “How much is it?” in Sinhala: කීයද? (KEE-yah-dah). Built from කීයද? = how much is it?.
To say “Five, please” in Sinhala: පහක්, කරුණාකර (PAH-hak, KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah). Built from පහ = five; කරුණාකර = please.
I want" — මට ... ඕන
Key pieces: මට ... ඕන · මට ... එපා
The phrase to ask for anything: මට ... ඕන (maṭa ... ōna) = to me ... is wanted = I want. මට = to me.
ඕන (ōna) = want / need. Put it at the end: මට වතුර ඕන = I want water.
To say “I want water” in Sinhala: මට වතුර ඕන (MAH-tah WAH-thoo-rah OH-nah). Built from මට = to me; වතුර = water; ඕන = want.
To say “I want tea” in Sinhala: මට තේ ඕන (MAH-tah thay OH-nah). Built from මට = to me; තේ = tea; ඕන = want.
To politely decline: මට එපා (maṭa epā) — I don't want it / that's enough.
To say “I don't want coffee” in Sinhala: මට කෝපි එපා (MAH-tah KOH-pee eh-PAH). Built from මට = to me; කෝපි = coffee; එපා = don't want it.
Food & drink
Key pieces: වතුර · බත් · තේ · කෝපි
Eating in Sri Lanka? Key words: වතුර (water), බත් (rice), තේ (tea), කෝපි (coffee).
- වතුර (WAH-thoo-rah) — water
- බත් (bath) — rice
- තේ (thay) — tea Memory hook: ≈ English tea (loan).
- කෝපි (KOH-pee) — coffee Memory hook: ≈ English coffee (loan).
- කිරි (KEE-ree) — milk
To say “I want rice” in Sinhala: මට බත් ඕන (MAH-tah bath OH-nah). Built from මට = to me; බත් = rice; ඕන = want.
To say “Water and tea, please” in Sinhala: වතුර සහ තේ, කරුණාකර (WAH-thoo-rah sah thay, KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah). Built from වතුර = water; සහ = and; තේ = tea.
රසයි! (rasayi) = delicious!
To say “It's delicious!” in Sinhala: රසයි! (RAH-sah-yee). Built from රසයි = delicious.
Getting around
Key pieces: කොහෙද? · දකුණට · වමට · බස්
The most useful question anywhere: කොහෙද? (koheda?) — where is…?
- කොහෙද...? (koh-HEH-dah) — Where is...?
- දකුණට (DAH-koo-nah-tah) — to the right
- වමට (WAH-mah-tah) — to the left
- කෙළින්ම (KEH-leen-mah) — straight ahead
- බස් නැවතුම (bas NAE-wah-thoo-mah) — the bus stop Memory hook: ≈ English bus (loan).
To say “Where is the bus stop?” in Sinhala: බස් නැවතුම කොහෙද? (bas NAE-wah-thoo-mah koh-HEH-dah). Built from බස් නැවතුම = bus stop; කොහෙද? = where is?.
To say “Where is the bathroom?” in Sinhala: වැසිකිළිය කොහෙද? (WAE-see-kee-lee-yah koh-HEH-dah). Built from වැසිකිළිය = bathroom; කොහෙද? = where is?.
දකුණට (right) and වමට (left) tell you which way to turn.
To say “Straight ahead” in Sinhala: කෙළින්ම (KEH-leen-mah). Built from කෙළින්ම = straight ahead.
Questions
Key pieces: මොකක්ද? · කොහෙද? · කවුද? · කවදාද?
Question words are your best friends: මොකක්ද? (what?), කොහෙද? (where?), කවුද? (who?), කවදාද? (when?), කොහොමද? (how?).
- මොකක්ද? (MOH-kak-dah) — what?
- කොහෙද? (koh-HEH-dah) — where?
- කවුද? (KAH-voo-dah) — who?
- කවදාද? (KAH-vah-dah-dah) — when?
- කොහොමද? (koh-hoh-MAH-dah) — how?
To say “What is this?” in Sinhala: මේක මොකක්ද? (MAY-kah MOH-kak-dah). Built from මේක = this; මොකක්ද? = what?.
To say “Who is that?” in Sinhala: ඒ කවුද? (ay KAH-voo-dah). Built from ඒ = that; කවුද? = who?.
To ask "is there…?": තියෙනවද? (tiyenawadā?).
To say “Is there wifi?” in Sinhala: වයිෆයි තියෙනවද? (WY-fy tee-YEH-nah-vah-dah). Built from වයිෆයි = wifi; තියෙනවද? = is there?.
Family & people
Key pieces: පවුල · අම්මා · තාත්තා · මිත්රයා
Family words: පවුල (pawula = family), අම්මා (ammā = mother), තාත්තා (thāththā = father).
- පවුල (PAH-woo-lah) — family
- අම්මා (AHM-mah) — mother
- තාත්තා (THATH-thah) — father
- අක්කා (AK-kah) — elder sister
- මිත්රයා (MIT-rah-yah) — friend Memory hook: ≈ Sanskrit mitra (cognate root).
To say “I have a family” in Sinhala: මට පවුලක් තියෙනවා (MAH-tah PAH-woo-lak tee-YEH-nah-vah). Built from මට = to me; පවුලක් = a family; තියෙනවා = there is / I have.
To say “She is my mother” in Sinhala: ඇය මගේ අම්මා (AE-yah MAH-gay AHM-mah). Built from ඇය = she; මගේ = my; අම්මා = mother.
Time, days & weather
Key pieces: අද · හෙට · ඊයේ · වැස්ස
Today is අද , tomorrow is හෙට , yesterday is ඊයේ .
- අද (AH-dah) — today
- හෙට (HEH-tah) — tomorrow
- ඊයේ (EE-yay) — yesterday
- වැස්ස (WAS-sah) — rain
- උණුසුම් (OO-noo-soom) — hot
To say “See you tomorrow” in Sinhala: හෙට හමුවෙමු (HEH-tah HAH-moo-way-moo). Built from හෙට = tomorrow; හමුවෙමු = let's meet.
To say “It will rain today” in Sinhala: අද වැස්ස (AH-dah WAS-sah). Built from අද = today; වැස්ස = rain.
Ask about the weather: කාලගුණය කොහොමද? — how's the weather?
Your name — මගේ නම
Key pieces: මගේ නම · ඔබේ නම මොකක්ද?
Introduce yourself: මගේ නම Alex = my name is Alex.
To say “My name is Alex” in Sinhala: මගේ නම Alex (MAH-gay nam Alex). Built from මගේ = my; නම = name; Alex = your name.
To ask someone's name: ඔබේ නම මොකක්ද?
To say “What's your name?” in Sinhala: ඔබේ නම මොකක්ද? (oh-BAY nam MOH-kak-dah). Built from ඔබේ = your; නම = name; මොකක්ද? = what?.
To say pleased to meet you: ඔබව දැකීම සතුටක් .
To say “Pleased to meet you” in Sinhala: ඔබව දැකීම සතුටක් (oh-BAH-wah DAE-kee-mah SAH-too-tak). Built from ඔබව = you; දැකීම = seeing; සතුටක් = a joy.
Health & emergency
Key pieces: උදව්! · රෝහල · මට තේරෙන්නේ නැහැ
The most important words if you need help: උදව්! (help!), රෝහල (hospital), පොලිසිය (police).
- උදව්! (OO-dahv) — help!
- රෝහල (ROH-hah-lah) — the hospital
- පොලිසිය (poh-LEE-see-yah) — the police
- මට තේරෙන්නේ නැහැ (mah-tah THAY-ren-nay NAE-hae) — I don't understand
To say “Help!” in Sinhala: උදව්! (OO-dahv). Built from උදව් = help.
To say “I need help” in Sinhala: මට උදව් ඕන (MAH-tah OO-dahv OH-nah). Built from මට = to me; උදව් = help; ඕන = want / need.
To say “I don't understand” in Sinhala: මට තේරෙන්නේ නැහැ (mah-tah THAY-ren-nay NAE-hae). Built from මට = to me; තේරෙන්නේ = understand; නැහැ = not.
Tying it together
Key pieces: greetings · politeness · ordering · directions — a capstone
Great — you've built a real toolkit. This capstone uses only words you've met. Build each line yourself before revealing.
To say “Hello, how are you?” in Sinhala: ආයුබෝවන්, කොහොමද? (AH-yoo-BOH-van, koh-hoh-MAH-dah). Built from ආයුබෝවන් = hello; කොහොමද? = how are you?.
To say “I want tea, please” in Sinhala: මට තේ ඕන, කරුණාකර (MAH-tah thay OH-nah, KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah). Built from මට ... ඕන = I want; තේ = tea; කරුණාකර = please.
To say “Where is the bus stop?” in Sinhala: බස් නැවතුම කොහෙද? (bas NAE-wah-thoo-mah koh-HEH-dah). Built from බස් නැවතුම = bus stop; කොහෙද? = where is?.
To say “How much is it?” in Sinhala: කීයද? (KEE-yah-dah). Built from කීයද? = how much is it?.
Airport & tickets
Key pieces: ගුවන්තොටුපළ · ගමන් බලපත්රය · ටිකට්
You have landed. The building is the ගුවන්තොටුපළ . Your document is a ගමන් බලපත්රය .
- ගුවන්තොටුපළ (goo-WAHN-toh-too-pah-lah) — the airport
- ගමන් බලපත්රය (GAH-mahn BAH-lah-path-rah-yah) — the passport
- ටිකට් පත (tee-KAT pah-thah) — the ticket
- ගුවන් යානය (goo-WAHN YAH-nah-yah) — the flight
- ගේට්ටුව (GAYT-too-wah) — the gate
To say “Where is the airport?” in Sinhala: ගුවන්තොටුපළ කොහෙද? (goo-WAHN-toh-too-pah-lah koh-HEH-dah). Built from ගුවන්තොටුපළ = the airport; කොහෙද? = where is?.
To say “Here is my passport” in Sinhala: මෙන්න මගේ ගමන් බලපත්රය (MEN-nah MAH-gay GAH-mahn BAH-lah-path-rah-yah). Built from මෙන්න = here is; මගේ = my; ගමන් බලපත්රය = passport.
To say “A ticket, please” in Sinhala: ටිකට් පතක්, කරුණාකර (tee-KAT pah-thak, KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah). Built from ටිකට් පතක් = a ticket; කරුණාකර = please.
To say “Where is the gate?” in Sinhala: ගේට්ටුව කොහෙද? (GAYT-too-wah koh-HEH-dah). Built from ගේට්ටුව = the gate; කොහෙද? = where is?.
The taxi
Key pieces: ටැක්සි · යන්න · හෝටල් · නවත්තන්න
The driver is waiting. ටැක්සි is the word you need. Tell them where to go with මට යන්න ඕන .
- ටැක්සි (TAK-see) — the taxi
- රියදුරු (ree-yah-DOO-roo) — the driver
- මට යන්න ඕන (MAH-tah YAN-nah OH-nah) — I want to go
- මෙතන නවත්තන්න (MEH-thah-nah nah-WAT-tan-nah) — stop here
To say “Taxi, please” in Sinhala: ටැක්සියක්, කරුණාකර (TAK-see-yak, KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah). Built from ටැක්සියක් = a taxi; කරුණාකර = please.
To say “I want to go to the hotel” in Sinhala: මට හෝටල් එකට යන්න ඕන (MAH-tah HOH-tal EH-kah-tah YAN-nah OH-nah). Built from මට ... ඕන = I want; හෝටල් එකට = to the hotel; යන්න = to go.
To say “Stop here, please” in Sinhala: මෙතන නවත්තන්න, කරුණාකර (MEH-thah-nah nah-WAT-tan-nah, KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah). Built from මෙතන = here; නවත්තන්න = stop; කරුණාකර = please.
To say “How much is it?” in Sinhala: කීයද? (KEE-yah-dah). Built from කීයද? = how much is it?.
The hotel
Key pieces: වෙන්කිරීම · කාමරය · යතුර · රැය
At the desk: මට වෙන්කිරීමක් තියෙනවා — I have a reservation.
- හෝටල් (HOH-tal) — the hotel
- වෙන්කිරීම (wen-kee-REE-mah) — the reservation
- කාමරය (KAH-mah-rah-yah) — the room
- යතුර (YAH-thoo-rah) — the key
- එක රැයක් (EH-kah RAY-yak) — one night
To say “I have a reservation” in Sinhala: මට වෙන්කිරීමක් තියෙනවා (MAH-tah wen-kee-REE-mak tee-YEH-nah-vah). Built from මට = to me; වෙන්කිරීමක් = a reservation; තියෙනවා = there is.
To say “A room for one night, please” in Sinhala: එක රැයකට කාමරයක්, කරුණාකර (EH-kah RAY-yah-kah-tah KAH-mah-rah-yak, KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah). Built from එක රැයකට = for one night; කාමරයක් = a room; කරුණාකර = please.
To say “The key, please” in Sinhala: යතුර, කරුණාකර (YAH-thoo-rah, KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah). Built from යතුර = the key; කරුණාකර = please.
To say “Where is my room?” in Sinhala: මගේ කාමරය කොහෙද? (MAH-gay KAH-mah-rah-yah koh-HEH-dah). Built from මගේ = my; කාමරය = room; කොහෙද? = where is?.
Ask for help
Key pieces: තේරෙන්නේ නැහැ · හෙමින් · ඉංග්රීසි
When the language is too fast: හෙමින් කියන්න, කරුණාකර — slower, please.
- හෙමින් (HEH-min) — slower
- ආයෙත් (AH-yeth) — again
- ඉංග්රීසි (ing-GREE-see) — English
- උදව් කරන්න පුළුවන්ද? (OO-dahv KAR-nan POO-loo-wan-dah) — can you help?
To say “I don't understand” in Sinhala: මට තේරෙන්නේ නැහැ (mah-tah THAY-ren-nay NAE-hae). Built from මට = to me; තේරෙන්නේ = understand; නැහැ = not.
To say “Slower, please” in Sinhala: හෙමින් කියන්න, කරුණාකර (HEH-min kee-YAN-nah, KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah). Built from හෙමින් = slowly; කියන්න = speak; කරුණාකර = please.
To say “Can you help me?” in Sinhala: මට උදව් කරන්න පුළුවන්ද? (MAH-tah OO-dahv KAR-nan POO-loo-wan-dah). Built from මට = to me; උදව් කරන්න = help; පුළුවන්ද? = can you?.
To say “Do you speak English?” in Sinhala: ඔබ ඉංග්රීසි කතා කරනවද? (oh-BAH ing-GREE-see kah-TAH kah-rah-nah-vah-dah). Built from ඔබ = you; ඉංග්රීසි = English; කතා කරනවද? = do you speak?.
Culture and etiquette
Ayubowan — the greeting
ආයුබෝවන් (ayubōvan) means "may you live long". Welcomers often press their palms together in a slight bow. Greeting this way shows respect — and a warm smile goes a long way.
Rice & curry
The classic meal is rice with several curries — dhal, vegetables, fish and sambol. Sri Lankan food loves spice, coconut and lime. බත් (rice) is the heart of nearly every plate.
Ceylon tea
Sri Lanka is famous for high-grown Ceylon tea. Locals drink it strong with milk and sugar, often all day at tea shops. A tea stop is a social ritual, not just a drink.
Buddhism & temples
Theravada Buddhism shapes daily life in the Sinhala-speaking south. At a temple, remove your shoes, cover shoulders and knees, and never point your feet at Buddha statues. Walk around stupas clockwise.
Head & feet
The head is the most sacred part of the body and the feet the lowest — so never touch a person's head, and don't point your feet at someone or a shrine. A small habit that shows big respect.
Two languages, one island
Sinhala (Indo-Aryan) and Tamil (Dravidian) are unrelated languages that share Sri Lanka. Most Sri Lankans speak Sinhala; Tamil is common in the north and east. A few Sinhala words greet you anywhere.
Example dialogues
At a tea shop
You: ආයුබෝවන්! තේ එකක්, කරුණාකර. (AH-yoo-BOH-van! thay EH-kak, KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah) — Hello! A tea, please.
Shopkeeper: හරි. කිරි එක්කද? නැද්ද? (HAH-ree. KEE-ree EK-kah-dah? NAD-dah?) — Sure. With milk, or without?
You: කිරි එක්ක, ස්තූතියි. (KEE-ree EK-kah, STOO-tee-yee) — With milk, thanks.
Shopkeeper: මෙන්න. පණහයි. (MEN-nah. PAH-nah-yee) — Here you go. Fifty rupees.
You: බොහොම ස්තූතියි! (BOH-hoh-mah STOO-tee-yee) — Thank you very much!
Bus & tuk-tuk
You: සමාවෙන්න, බස් නැවතුම කොහෙද? (sah-MAH-ven-nah, bas NAE-wah-thoo-mah koh-HEH-dah) — Excuse me, where is the bus stop?
Local: එච්චර දුර නෑ. කෙළින්ම යන්න. (ECH-chah-ra doo-rah noh. KEH-leen-mah YAN-nah) — It's not far. Go straight.
You: ස්තූතියි. මට ත්රීරෝදයක් ඕන. (STOO-tee-yee. MAH-tah three-ROH-dah-yak OH-nah) — Thanks. I need a tuk-tuk.
Driver: කොහෙද යන්නේ? (koh-HEH-dah YAN-nay) — Where to?
You: ගාලු මුවදොරට, කරුණාකර. (GAH-loo moo-WAH-doh-rah-tah, KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah) — To Galle Face, please.
At a restaurant
Waiter: ආයුබෝවන්! මොනවද කන්නේ? (AH-yoo-BOH-van! MOH-nah-vah-dah KAN-nay) — Hello! What will you eat?
You: බත් සහ මාළුවක්, කරුණාකර. (bath sah MAH-loo-vak, KAH-roo-NAH-kah-rah) — Rice and a fish curry, please.
Waiter: හොඳයි. බොන්න මොනවද? (HON-dy. BON-nah MOH-nah-vah-dah) — Great. What to drink?
You: වතුර, ස්තූතියි. (WAH-thoo-rah, STOO-tee-yee) — Water, thanks.
Waiter: මෙන්න. රසයි නේද? (MEN-nah. RAH-sah-yee NAY-dah) — Here. Delicious, isn't it?
You: රසයි! බොහොම ස්තූතියි! (RAH-sah-yee! BOH-hoh-mah STOO-tee-yee) — Delicious! Thank you very much!
Written by the LanguagePath editorial team from our own course material. Pronunciation guides are approximate English respellings; tap any phrase in the app above to hear it. Native-speaker review of every course is ongoing — tell us if you spot an error.