A1 Honorifics & Register 1 min read 쉬움

Second Person: Low Honorific (Ta)

Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds

Use the 'Ta' form when speaking to close friends, children, or pets to show intimacy and informality.

  • Use 'Ta' (तिमी/तँ) for close friends; 'Tँ' is the most intimate form.
  • Verbs ending in 'chas' (छस्) or 'gas' (गइस्) indicate the 'Ta' register.
  • Never use this with elders or strangers to avoid sounding rude.
Subject (तँ) + Verb root + छस्/इस्/एस्

Ta-Form Verb Conjugation (Present)

Verb Root Ta-Form (Present)
जानु
जा
जाँदै छस्
खानु
खा
खाँदै छस्
बस्नु
बस
बस्दै छस्
आउनु
आउँदै छस्
सुत्नु
सुत
सुत्दै छस्
पढ्नु
पढ
पढ्दै छस्

Meanings

The 'Ta' (तँ) register is the lowest honorific level in Nepali, used for intimate relationships, children, or to show authority/contempt.

1

Intimate/Close

Used between best friends or siblings.

“तँ के गर्दै छस्?”

“तँलाई भोक लाग्यो?”

Reference Table

Reference table for Second Person: Low Honorific (Ta)
Form Structure Example
Affirmative
Root + छस्
तँ जान्छस्
Negative
न + Root + छस्
तँ जाँदैनस्
Question
Root + छस्?
तँ जान्छस्?
Past
Root + इस्
तँ गइस्
Future
Root + ने छस्
तँ जाने छस्
Imperative
Root
तँ जा

격식 수준 스펙트럼

격식체
तपाईँ खाँदै हुनुहुन्छ?

तपाईँ खाँदै हुनुहुन्छ? (Dining)

중립
तिमी खाँदै छौ?

तिमी खाँदै छौ? (Dining)

비격식체
तँ खाँदै छस्?

तँ खाँदै छस्? (Dining)

속어
खाँदै छस्?

खाँदै छस्? (Dining)

Nepali Honorific Hierarchy

Register

Intimate

  • तँ Ta

Neutral

  • तिमी Timī

Formal

  • तपाईँ Tapai

수준별 예문

1

तँ कहाँ छस्?

Where are you?

2

तँ खा

You eat

3

तँ सुत्

You sleep

4

तँ आइज

You come

1

तँ किन रुँदै छस्?

Why are you crying?

2

तँलाई के भयो?

What happened to you?

3

तँ नजा

Don't go

4

तँ के गर्दै छस्?

What are you doing?

1

तँलाई यो मन पर्छ?

Do you like this?

2

तँ हिजो किन आएनस्?

Why didn't you come yesterday?

3

तँ भोलि आउँछस्?

Will you come tomorrow?

4

तँ धेरै राम्रो छस्।

You are very good.

1

तँलाई थाहा छ, मलाई यो मन पर्दैन।

You know, I don't like this.

2

तँ किन यस्तो गर्छस्?

Why do you do this?

3

तँलाई मद्दत चाहिन्छ?

Do you need help?

4

तँ पक्कै आउँछस् होला।

You will surely come, right?

1

तँ नआएसम्म म पर्खन्छु।

I will wait until you come.

2

तँ जतिसुकै रिसाए पनि मलाई फरक पर्दैन।

No matter how much you get angry, it doesn't matter to me.

3

तँलाई के लाग्छ, हामीले के गर्नुपर्छ?

What do you think, what should we do?

4

तँ बिना म केही गर्न सक्दिनँ।

I cannot do anything without you.

1

तँलाई थाहा छ कि छैन, तर मलाई यो मन पर्छ।

Whether you know it or not, I like this.

2

तँ जस्तो मान्छे मैले कहिल्यै देखेको छैन।

I have never seen a person like you.

3

तँलाई केही भन्नु छ भने भन।

If you have something to say, say it.

4

तँलाई म सधैँ माया गर्छु।

I will always love you.

혼동하기 쉬운

Second Person: Low Honorific (Ta) Ta vs Timī

Learners often use them interchangeably.

Second Person: Low Honorific (Ta) Ta vs Tapai

Using Ta in formal settings.

Second Person: Low Honorific (Ta) Ta conjugation vs Timī conjugation

Mixing endings.

자주 하는 실수

तपाईँ खा

तँ खा

Mixing formal pronoun with informal verb.

तँ जानुहुन्छ

तँ जान्छस्

Wrong verb conjugation.

तँलाई नमस्ते

तँलाई के छ?

Namaste is too formal for Ta.

तँ आउनुहोस्

तँ आइज

Mixing registers.

तँ काम गर्नुहुन्छ

तँ काम गर्छस्

Register mismatch.

तँलाई भोक लाग्यो?

तँलाई भोक लाग्यो?

Actually correct, but tone matters.

तँ जान्छौ

तँ जान्छस्

Using Timī ending for Ta.

तँ जानु भयो

तँ गइस्

Formal past tense with Ta.

तँलाई के चाहियो?

तँलाई के चाहिन्छ?

Tense mismatch.

तँ आउनु पर्छ

तँ आउनुपर्छ

Spelling/Register.

तँ आउनु भएको थियो

तँ आएको थिइस्

High honorific past perfect.

문장 패턴

तँ ___ गर्दै छस्?

तँलाई ___ मन पर्छ?

तँ ___ आउँछस्?

तँ ___ नजा।

Real World Usage

Texting constant

तँ कहाँ छस्?

Social Media very common

तँ कस्तो छस्?

Home constant

तँ खा।

Travel occasional

तँ यता आइज।

Food Delivery rare

तँलाई के चाहिन्छ?

Job Interview never

N/A

💡

Start with Timī

If you are unsure, use Timī. It is safer than Ta.
⚠️

Avoid Ta with Elders

It is considered very disrespectful.
🎯

Listen to Natives

Observe how friends talk to each other.
💬

Intimacy takes time

Don't rush to use Ta.

Smart Tips

Use Ta to show you are close.

तिमी के गर्दै छौ? तँ के गर्दै छस्?

Use Ta for natural flow.

तिमी यता आऊ। तँ यता आइज।

Use Ta to express intensity.

तिमीले किन यस्तो गर्यौ? तँ किन यस्तो गर्छस्?

Use Ta for genuine warmth.

तिमी धेरै राम्रो छौ। तँ धेरै राम्रो छस्।

발음

तँ जाँदै छस्↗

Intonation

Ta-form questions often have a rising pitch at the end.

Rising

तँ आउँछस्↗

Question

암기하기

기억법

Ta is for 'Tiny' or 'Tight' friends.

시각적 연상

Imagine a small circle of two best friends whispering secrets. That circle is the 'Ta' zone.

Rhyme

Use 'Ta' with a friend, never with a trend.

Story

Ram and Hari are best friends since childhood. They always use 'Ta' when they talk. One day, they meet a teacher and switch to 'Tapai'.

Word Web

तँछस्इस्एस्आइजखा

챌린지

Write 3 sentences using 'Ta' to a imaginary best friend.

문화 노트

Used between close friends and family members.

Commonly used for children and animals.

Used on social media among peers.

Derived from ancient Indo-Aryan roots for intimate address.

대화 시작하기

तँ के गर्दै छस्?

तँलाई के मन पर्छ?

तँ भोलि के गर्छस्?

तँलाई यो ठाउँ कस्तो लाग्छ?

일기 주제

Write about your best friend using 'Ta'.
Describe a conversation with your sibling.
Write a dialogue where you are angry at a friend.
Reflect on why 'Ta' is important for intimacy.

자주 하는 실수

Incorrect

정답


Incorrect

정답


Incorrect

정답


Incorrect

정답

Test Yourself

Fill in the blank.

तँ कहाँ ___ छस्?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: जाँदै
Present continuous.
Choose the correct form. 객관식

तँ ___ छस्।

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: राम्रो
Correct adjective usage.
Correct the sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

तँ जानुहुन्छ।

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: तँ जान्छस्
Register mismatch.
Build a sentence. Sentence Building

तँ / के / गर्दै / छस्

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: तँ के गर्दै छस्?
Correct word order.
Match the pronoun with the verb. Match Pairs

Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: छस्
Correct conjugation.
Translate to Nepali. 번역

Where are you?

Answer starts with: तँ ...

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: तँ कहाँ छस्?
Ta-form question.
Select the formal equivalent. 객관식

तँ (Informal) -> ?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: तपाईँ
Formal pronoun.
Fill in the blank.

तँ ___ खा।

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: छिटो
Adverb usage.

Score: /8

연습 문제

8 exercises
Fill in the blank.

तँ कहाँ ___ छस्?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: जाँदै
Present continuous.
Choose the correct form. 객관식

तँ ___ छस्।

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: राम्रो
Correct adjective usage.
Correct the sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

तँ जानुहुन्छ।

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: तँ जान्छस्
Register mismatch.
Build a sentence. Sentence Building

तँ / के / गर्दै / छस्

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: तँ के गर्दै छस्?
Correct word order.
Match the pronoun with the verb. Match Pairs

तँ + ?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: छस्
Correct conjugation.
Translate to Nepali. 번역

Where are you?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: तँ कहाँ छस्?
Ta-form question.
Select the formal equivalent. 객관식

तँ (Informal) -> ?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: तपाईँ
Formal pronoun.
Fill in the blank.

तँ ___ खा।

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: छिटो
Adverb usage.

Score: /8

자주 묻는 질문 (8)

Absolutely not. It is highly disrespectful.

No, Ta is more intimate.

Use the -छस् suffix.

Apologize immediately and switch to Tapai.

Yes, in literature and casual texts.

No, never.

Yes, it is standard across Nepal.

Add 'न' before the verb.

Scaffolded Practice

1

1

2

2

3

3

4

4

Mastery Progress

Needs Practice

Improving

Strong

Mastered

In Other Languages

Spanish high

Nepali has three levels, Spanish has two.

French high

Tu

French is less hierarchical.

German high

Du

German has a clear binary system.

Japanese moderate

Omae

Japanese is more context-dependent.

Arabic moderate

Anta

Arabic has gendered pronouns.

Chinese low

Ni

Chinese lacks honorific conjugation.

Learning Path

Prerequisites

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