Present Tense in Sinhala
Tense 1 of 3 — Present
Grammar Explanation
In Sinhala, the present tense describes actions happening now or habitual actions. The verb is placed at the END of the sentence (Subject–Object–Verb order). Present tense verbs typically end in -නවා (-nawa) in spoken Sinhala. This is one of the most common verb endings you will encounter.
📐 Sentence Structure
Subject + (Object) + Verb(-නවා)
🔤 Verb Endings
Most present-tense verbs end in -නවා (-nawa). Example: කනවා (kanawa) = eat, බොනවා (bonawa) = drink, යනවා (yanawa) = go.
Mama bath kanawa.
→ I eat rice.
Ohu paasalata yanawa.
→ He goes to school.
Aeya wathura bonawa.
→ She drinks water.
Api sinhala igenagannawa.
→ We learn Sinhala.
Lamai kreeda karanawa.
→ Children play.
Oya kena kiri bonawa.
→ That person drinks milk.
ammaa gedara innawa.
→ Mom is at home.
Mama pothak kiyawanawa.
→ I read a book.
Owun sinaashenawa.
→ They are laughing.
Oya hodin igenagannawa.
→ You learn well.
Quick Tips
- ✓All present tense verbs end in -නවා (-nawa) in spoken Sinhala.
- ✓Sinhala is a SOV language: Subject comes first, Verb comes last.
- ✓The verb form does NOT change for I, You, He, She, We, They — unlike English!
- ✓Add 'දැන්' (daen = now) at the start to emphasize the action is happening right now.