The verb does not change for person
"I go", "you go", "we go" — the verb is one and the same, යනවා. Only the pronoun in front of it changes. For example: “මම යනවා” — I go. A rule from the Sinhala course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
"I go", "you go", "we go" — the verb is one and the same, යනවා (yanavā). Only the pronoun in front of it changes.
The form in -නවා does for "now" and for "tomorrow" alike. So කනවා (kanavā) is "I eat" and "I will eat", බොනවා (bonavā) is "I drink" and "I will drink".
A request comes from the ending -න්න: යන්න (yanna) is "go", කියන්න (kiyanna) is "say".
The trap: your hand wants to hang a personal ending on the verb. Do not — මම යනවා (mama yanavā) and අපි යනවා (api yanavā) differ in the first word only.
Table
| Person | Phrase | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| මම | මම යනවා | I go |
| ඔයා | ඔයා යනවා | you go |
| ඇය | ඇය යනවා | she goes |
| අපි | අපි යනවා | we go |
By example
- මම යනවාmama yanavāI go
- අපි යනවාapi yanavāWe go
- කෙළින් යන්නkeḷin yannaGo straight
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
Sinhala verb conjugation?
"I go", "you go", "we go" — the verb is one and the same, යනවා. Only the pronoun in front of it changes.
Does the Sinhala verb change for person?
The form in -නවා does for "now" and for "tomorrow" alike. So කනවා is "I eat" and "I will eat", බොනවා is "I drink" and "I will drink".
How the Sinhala present tense on nawa works?
A request comes from the ending -න්න: යන්න is "go", කියන්න is "say".
What does it look like in an example sentence Sinhala?
“මම යනවා” (mama yanavā) — I go. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.