LingoflyAsking the way in Maldivian
19 words in Maldivian on the topic “asking the way”: ކޮބާ؟ (kobaa) — where?, ކަނާތަށް (kanaathah) — to the right, ވާތަށް (vaathah) — to the left, ސީދާ (seedhaa) — straight ahead. 19 words can be played from recordings.
19 words on the topic
- ކޮބާ؟kobaa?where?Asked about a thing you're looking for: kobaa fen?, 'where is the water?'
- ކަނާތަށްkanaathahto the rightkanaath is 'the right hand', -ah the direction: literally 'toward the right hand'
- ވާތަށްvaathahto the leftVaath is 'the left hand' plus the same directional ending
- ސީދާseedhaastraight aheadOf a road, and of a person — 'straight, honest'
- ކައިރިkairicloseFrom it comes kaireegai, 'near' — the most frequent place phrase
- ދުރުdhurufarPartner to kairi. 'Is it far?' is dhuruthaa?
- މިތާmithaahereMi, 'this', plus thaa, 'place'. Partner to ethaa, 'there'
- އެތާethaathereE, 'that', plus thaa, 'place'. Further from the speaker than mithaa
- މަގުmagustreet, roadStreet, road and way. In Malé addresses it's the second word: Majeedhee magu
- ކިހިނެއް ދާނީkihineh dhaaneehow do I get there?Literally 'how will I go'. To a stranger on the street you ask politely, with the -thoa particle
- ފޯރުންfoarunto get toLiterally 'to reach': about the end of the journey, not the walking itself. Day to day people just say 'to go'
- އަނެއް ކޮޅުގައިaneh kolhugaion the other sideKolhu is an end, an edge; faraath is the side of a thing. Compare the phrase 'across the road'; here there's no object — just the other side
- ދެ ފިޔަވަޅު ދުރުގައިdhe fiyavalhu dhurugaitwo steps awayThe literal build: 'at the distance of two steps'. Livelier is 'not far at all' — and in Malé it's true: you walk the island in an hour
- ކަންމަތި ފަހަނައަޅާފައިkanmathi fahanaalhaafaiaround the cornerLiterally 'having passed the corner'. Malé has few corners in the European sense: the streets cut the island into a grid, and directions are given by corners
- ވާތްފަރާތުގައިvaaiyfaraathugaito the left ofWorks like a word after the noun: what you count from stands first with the -ge tail — 'of the bank, at the left side'. Vaath is the left hand
- ކަނާތްފަރާތުގައިkanaaiyfaraathugaito the right ofPartner to the left-of phrase. Kanaath is the right hand — the one you give and take with, which in a decent house matters more than the side of the road
- މެދުތެރޭގައިmedhuthereygaiin the middleMedhugai means 'amid a named thing'; medhutheregai stands alone, of the middle of a road or a square
- ދެން އޮތް ކަންމަތިdhen oiy kanmathithe next cornerLiterally 'the corner that lies further'. Oiy comes from the lying verb: streets and roads in Dhivehi lie rather than stand
- މަގުމަތިންmagumathinon the wayLiterally 'from the street': the -in tail here means 'along the road, in passing'. The same root as in passer-by and street lamp
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How it sounds in a sentence
A word list is a blank. Conversation is made of sentences, and these are the ones the words fit into most often.
What is worth knowing about these words
ކޮބާ؟ (kobaa?) — where? Asked about a thing you're looking for: kobaa fen?, 'where is the water?'
ކަނާތަށް (kanaathah) — to the right. Kanaath is 'the right hand', -ah the direction: literally 'toward the right hand'.
ވާތަށް (vaathah) — to the left. Vaath is 'the left hand' plus the same directional ending.
ސީދާ (seedhaa) — straight ahead. Of a road, and of a person — 'straight, honest'.
Test yourself
First by ear — the way you will meet the word in conversation. Click the speaker and pick the translation.
- What is this word?
It is ކޮބާ؟ (kobaa?) — where?
- What is this word?
It is އެތާ (ethaa) — there.
- What is this word?
It is ވާތްފަރާތުގައި (vaaiyfaraathugai) — to the left of.
- What is this word?
It is ވާތަށް (vaathah) — to the left.
- What is this word?
It is ކިހިނެއް ދާނީ (kihineh dhaanee) — how do I get there?
Now the other way around: recall the spelling from the meaning. That is harder, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “where?” in Maldivian?
Asked about a thing you're looking for: kobaa fen?, 'where is the water?'
- How do you say “there” in Maldivian?
E, 'that', plus thaa, 'place'. Further from the speaker than mithaa
- How do you say “to the left of” in Maldivian?
Works like a word after the noun: what you count from stands first with the -ge tail — 'of the bank, at the left side'. Vaath is the left hand
- How do you say “to the left” in Maldivian?
Vaath is 'the left hand' plus the same directional ending
- How do you say “how do I get there?” in Maldivian?
Literally 'how will I go'. To a stranger on the street you ask politely, with the -thoa particle
How to learn the set instead of just reading it
Right, left, straight on, how far. You ask the way rarely — and always at the moment when there is no time to work it out.
A list is read in a minute and forgotten in a day. What works: hide the translation, try to recall, get it wrong — and come back to the same words tomorrow.
- 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.
- Study spread over days wins not only in experiments but in ordinary classrooms, with real students.checked many timesMawson & Kang, 2025, Behavioral Sciences 15(6):771 · 22 studies, d = 0.54 (confidence interval 0.31–0.77). The authors warn that individual studies disagree widely.
Frequently asked
How do you say “where?” in Maldivian?
«ކޮބާ؟» (kobaa), read “kobaa?” Asked about a thing you're looking for: kobaa fen?, 'where is the water?' It is one of 19 words in the set “asking the way” — the rest are in the table above.
How many direction words do you need to start?
The whole set on this page is 19 words, but there is no need to start with all of it: the words you will need in the next few days are enough. Take them a few at a time — five to seven new ones per session.
Is there audio?
Yes, 19 words on this page can be played — click the speaker next to the word. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.