ބިލު ދެއްވާ
“ބިލު ދެއްވާ” (bilu dhevvaa) — the bill, please in Maldivian. Phrase, level A1, topic — at a café and a restaurant. There is no word for 'please' here: all the politeness sits in the verb form — dhevvaa instead of the plain dhee. In a live sentence: “ބިލު ދެއްވާ. ޝުކުރިއްޔާ.” — The bill, please. Thank you. You can hear how it sounds right here. Written with the characters ބ, ި, ލ, ު, ދ, ެ, އ, ް, ވ, ާ.
In short
| Written in Maldivian | ބިލު ދެއްވާ |
| Read in Latin letters | bilu dhevvaa |
| Translation | the bill, please |
| Part of speech | phrase |
| Level | A1 |
- ބިލު ދެއްވާbilu dhevvaathe bill, please
Why it looks that way
There is no word for 'please' here: all the politeness sits in the verb form — dhevvaa instead of the plain dhee
A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
In a live sentence
A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.
- ބިލު ދެއްވާ. ޝުކުރިއްޔާ.bilu dhevvaa. shukuriyyaa.The bill, please. Thank you.
Nearby words: at a café and a restaurant
Order, ask the price, ask for the bill. A short and entirely predictable conversation — a convenient place to test yourself for the first time.
- ކޮފީkofeecoffeeAn English loanword written in Thaana. There are many like it — listen for the familiar
- ސައިsaiteaSai means both tea and a light meal in general: the morning sai is breakfast
- ބޭނުންbeynunwant, needOne word for 'want' and 'need': fen beynun, 'water is needed'
- ބިލުbilubillEnglish bill — the check in a cafe or for a service. A bank account is a different word, account
- ކެފޭkefeycafeA city word — a place with coffee, air conditioning and wifi. The island hotaa opens at dawn and serves coffee in a glass, not a cup
- ކްރޮސާންkroasaancroissantDhivehi writes the loan by sound: k with a sukun is a bare consonant — hence the kr- cluster no native word ever has
- ކިރު ކޮފީkiru kofeecoffee with milkThe description first, no preposition: kiru plus kofee — the same order as hunu fen, 'hot water'
- ކޮފީ ޖޯޑެއްkofee joadeha cup of coffeeIndefiniteness is an ending, not an article: joadu, 'a cup', takes -eh and becomes joadeh, 'one cup'
- ހަކުރު އަޅާhakuru alhaawith sugarThe partner of hakuru naalhaa, 'without sugar': take the negation off the verb and what is left is 'put sugar'
- އިތުރު އެއްޗެއް ބޭނުންތޯ؟ithuru echcheh beynuntho?anything else?The polite question is assembled by the particle -tho on the end: beynun, 'needed', becomes beynuntho, 'do you need'
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “at a café and a restaurant”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “the bill, please” in Maldivian?
There is no word for 'please' here: all the politeness sits in the verb form — dhevvaa instead of the plain dhee
- How do you say “coffee with milk” in Maldivian?
The description first, no preposition: kiru plus kofee — the same order as hunu fen, 'hot water'
- How do you say “want, need” in Maldivian?
One word for 'want' and 'need': fen beynun, 'water is needed'
- How do you say “anything else?” in Maldivian?
The polite question is assembled by the particle -tho on the end: beynun, 'needed', becomes beynuntho, 'do you need'
- How do you say “croissant” in Maldivian?
Dhivehi writes the loan by sound: k with a sukun is a bare consonant — hence the kr- cluster no native word ever has
How not to forget this word
Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.
- This has been tested on foreign words too. The difference shows up most when you test yourself a few days later rather than straight away.checked many timesKim & Webb, 2022, Language Learning 72(2) · 48 experiments, 3,411 participants, 98 comparisons.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- An answer you worked out yourself sticks better than one handed to you.checked many timesBertsch et al., 2007, Memory & Cognition 35(2) · 86 studies, 445 comparisons, d = 0.40.
Frequently asked
How do you say “the bill, please” in Maldivian?
«ބިލު ދެއްވާ», read “bilu dhevvaa”. In a live sentence: “ބިލު ދެއްވާ. ޝުކުރިއްޔާ.” — The bill, please. Thank you. You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Phrase, level A1, from the set “at a café and a restaurant”; written with the characters ބ, ި, ލ, ު, ދ, ެ, އ, ް, ވ, ާ.
How is “ބިލު ދެއްވާ” written in Latin letters?
bilu dhevvaa. This is a practical spelling — you need it to read aloud and be understood, not to meet an academic standard.
Why does this word look the way it does?
There is no word for 'please' here: all the politeness sits in the verb form — dhevvaa instead of the plain dhee. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
Can I hear how it sounds?
Yes, right on this page: click the word and it will play. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.