A1 · शुरुआती चैप्टर 9

Postpositions: The Nepali Prepositions

2 कुल नियम
1 मिनट
इस अध्याय के नियम त्वरित अभ्यास

Chapter in 30 Seconds

Master the art of location and direction by placing small markers after your nouns.

  • Identify places using the -ma marker.
  • Direct actions toward people using the -lai marker.
  • Construct simple sentences describing movement and position.
Connect your world with Nepali postpositions.

तुम क्या सीखोगे

Learning how to use markers like 'ma' (in) and 'lai' (to). These are placed after nouns to show relationships.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:

  1. 1
    By the end you will be able to describe where objects are located in a room.
  2. 2
    By the end you will be able to express giving objects to specific people.

टिप्स और ट्रिक्स (2)

💡

Attach it!

Always write '-ma' attached to the noun. It makes reading much easier.
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: The Locative Marker '-ma'
💡

Don't overthink

If you are talking about a person, just add -lai.
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: The Dative Marker '-lai'

मुख्य शब्दावली (6)

कोठा room झोला bag म I साथी friend किताब book दिन्छु give

Real-World Preview

book-open

At the Library

Review Summary

  • Noun + ma
  • Noun + lai

सामान्य गलतियाँ

You placed the marker before the noun. In Nepali, it must attach to the end of the word.

Wrong: मा किताब (Ma kitab)
सही: किताबमा (Kitabma)

Word order matters. The recipient with -lai should come before the verb.

Wrong: मलाई दिन्छु साथी (Malai dinchu sathi)
सही: म साथीलाई दिन्छु (Ma sathilai dinchu)

Don't use a hyphen! The marker is attached directly to the word.

Wrong: घर-मा (Ghar - ma)
सही: घरमा (Gharma)

इस अध्याय के नियम (2)

1

The Locative Marker '-ma'

A1
2

The Dative Marker '-lai'

A1

Next Steps

You've taken a huge step in building complex sentences. Keep practicing, and you'll be speaking fluently in no time!

Label your room items using sticky notes with '-ma'.

Continue to: Plurals and Possession

त्वरित अभ्यास (8)

Choose the correct sentence.

Which is correct?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Ma bazaar-ma chhu.
The suffix must be attached.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: The Locative Marker '-ma'

Fill in the blank.

Ram ___ pani deu.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: lai
Ram is the recipient.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: The Dative Marker '-lai'

Fill in the blank.

Ma ___ chhu. (I am in the house.)

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: gharma
Gharma is the correct locative form.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: The Locative Marker '-ma'

Correct the sentence.

Find and fix the mistake:

In ghar ma chhu.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Gharma chhu.
Remove the English preposition.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: The Locative Marker '-ma'

Fill in the blank.

Sita ___ bolau.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: lai
Sita is the person being called.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: The Dative Marker '-lai'

Fix the error.

Find and fix the mistake:

Kitab-lai deu.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Kitab deu
No -lai for inanimate objects.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: The Dative Marker '-lai'

Choose the correct sentence.

Which is correct?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Ma-lai bhok lagyo
Experiencer takes -lai.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: The Dative Marker '-lai'

Choose the correct feeling.

Ma-lai ___ lagyo.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: bhok
Bhok is a feeling.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: The Dative Marker '-lai'

Score: /8

सामान्य प्रश्न (4)

No, use '-lai' for people.
No, it is always a suffix.
No, only for people or personified objects.
No, it stays the same.
पिछला अध्याय
The Present Tense
अगला अध्याय
Plurals and Possession
रोडमैप पर वापस