Lingoflyފެން ބިލު
- ފެން ބިލުfen biluwater bill
“ފެން ބިލު” (fen bilu) — water bill in Maldivian. Noun, level A2, topic — home and things. Fen is 'water'. Fresh water is desalinated on the islands, and the bill is noticeable. In a live sentence: “ފެން ބިލު މި މަހު ބޮޑު” (fen bilu mi mahu bodu) — The water bill is big this month. You can hear how it sounds right here. Written with the characters ފ, ެ, ނ, ް, ބ, ި, ލ, ު. One of 215 words in the set “home and things” in the Maldivian course.
In short
| Written in Maldivian | ފެން ބިލު (fen bilu) |
| Read in Latin letters | fen bilu |
| Translation | water bill |
| Part of speech | noun |
| Level | A2 |
Why it looks that way
Fen is 'water'. Fresh water is desalinated on the islands, and the bill is noticeable.
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.
- ފެން ބިލު މި މަހު ބޮޑުfen bilu mi mahu boduThe water bill is big this month
Nearby words: home and things
Room, key, water, electricity. You will need them on your first day in a rented flat.
- ގެgehouseHouse and home in one. The same ge at the end of a word is the possessive ending — two different things
- ވަށިގަނޑުvashigandubasketThe n before ḍ (ޑ) is written plain and sounds with a nasal twang: va-shi-gan-du
- ކޮތަޅުkothalhubag (plastic)The lh is said with the tongue curled back, duller than a plain l
- ހަލާކުވެފައިhalaakuvefaibrokenArabic halaak, 'ruin', plus 'having become' — literally 'come to ruin'
- ދިރިއުޅޭ ތަންdhiriulhey thanhousingLiterally 'the place where one lives': dhiri is life, ulhey comes from the verb for 'I live'
- ކޮޓަރިkotariroomAny room. A hotel room is also a kotari
- ބަދިގެbadhigekitchenThe second syllable is the same ge, 'house' — literally 'the house of fire'
- ފާހާނާfaahaanaabathroomFrom Urdu paakhaana. The dictionary spells it with the Arabic letter kh, pronounced as plain h; the simplified spelling is also common. One word for the bathroom and the toilet
- ބެލްކަނިbelkanibalconyEnglish balcony. In Malé the balcony is the main source of breeze in the flat
- ފަންގިފިލާfangifilaafloor (storey)The storey and the ceiling are one word. The first floor is the 'first fangifilaa'
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “home and things”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “water bill” in Maldivian?
Fen is 'water'. Fresh water is desalinated on the islands, and the bill is noticeable.
- How do you say “kitchen” in Maldivian?
The second syllable is the same ge, 'house' — literally 'the house of fire'
- How do you say “bag (plastic)” in Maldivian?
Any bag or sack. Plastic bags cost money in the Maldives, so you'll hear 'do you need a bag?' at every till
- How do you say “floor (storey)” in Maldivian?
The storey and the ceiling are one word. The first floor is the 'first fangifilaa'
- How do you say “room” in Maldivian?
Any room. A hotel room is also a kotari
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 “water bill” in Maldivian?
«ފެން ބިލު» (fen bilu), read “fen bilu”. In a live sentence: “ފެން ބިލު މި މަހު ބޮޑު” (fen bilu mi mahu bodu) — The water bill is big this month. You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Noun, level A2, from the set “home and things”; written with the characters ފ, ެ, ނ, ް, ބ, ި, ލ, ު.
How is “ފެން ބިލު” (fen bilu) written in Latin letters?
fen bilu. 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?
Fen is 'water'. Fresh water is desalinated on the islands, and the bill is noticeable. 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 this 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.