Shopping and money in Sinhala
91 words Sinhala words on the topic “shopping and money”: කීයද? — how much is it?, ගණන — price, රුපියල් — rupee, කඩේ — shop. 91 words can be played from recordings.
91 words on the topic
- කීයද?kīyada?how much is it?Literally just 'how much?'. The same particle -da as in kohomada and koheda
- ගණනgaṇanapriceAlso 'number' and 'count': muḷu ganana, 'the total'. The retroflex ṇ sits in the middle. The familiar ganan, 'expensive', is the same word in the plural — literally 'in price'
- රුපියල්rupiyalrupeeOne form for any number, no agreement at all: rupiyal sīyayi, 'a hundred rupees'. In speech the sum is often named with no word at all — just the number
- කඩේkaḍēshopA roadside shop with everything at once. A big one is supiri veladasala on the sign, and the word is used nowhere but there
- වෙළඳපොළveḷandapoḷamarketLiterally 'trading place': velanda is trade, pola is the ground. Pola on its own is the village fair at the weekend. Hard to read: two 'heavy' l sounds and a half-nasal
- කවුන්ටරයkavunṭarayacounterThe English counter with a Sinhala ending -ya. At the market the counter is more often just called the shop
- මුදලාලිmudalālishopkeeperThe owner of the shop, and at the same time the polite way to address him: 'Shopkeeper, how much?' — this is how the price talk starts
- ගනුදෙනුකරුවාganudenukaruvāshopperLiterally 'the one who makes the deal': ganudenu is trade. The ending -vā marks the living, as in 'friend'. In speech people often just say the English 'customer'
- තරාදියtarādiyascalesThe very beam scales of the market. The electronic kind is called the English 'scale'
- කිලෝkilōkilogramCounted through eka: kilō ekak is one kilogram, kilō dekak is two
- නැවුම්nævumfreshStands before the word: nævum māḷu, 'fresh fish'. In city speech people often use the English 'fresh' or alut, 'new'
- ඉදුණුiduṇuripeFrom the verb idenavā, 'to ripen'. Not ripe yet is idilā nǣ, 'hasn't ripened'
- මිල ටැගයmila ṭægayaprice tagMila is the bookish 'price', and it's the one on tags and signs; in speech the price is asked through ganana
- ගණන්gaṇanexpensiveThe same word as 'price' (ganana), but in the plural: 'in prices' — that means dear. The full phrase is ganan væḍiyi
- ලාභයිlābhayicheaplaa-ba-yi; the bh in lābha is an aspirated b, you can hear the puff of air
- වට්ටමvaṭṭamadiscountYou ask for it so: vaṭṭamak denna, 'give a discount'. Haggling at the market is the norm; in a supermarket it is not
- ඉතුරු සල්ලිituru sallichange (money)Literally 'the money left over'. Salli is money in general, always plural
- රිසිට් එකrisiṭ ekareceiptThe English receipt. The bill to pay is a different word — bila
- මුළු ගාන කීයද?muḷu gāna kīyada?how much in total?Literally 'the full sum is how much?'. Gāna is the spoken twin of ganana, and muḷu is 'whole, entire'
- මේක ගණන් වැඩියිmēka gaṇan væḍiyithis is expensiveVæḍiyi is 'too much'. The phrase with which haggling begins
- ටිකක් අඩු කරන්න පුළුවන්ද?ṭikak aḍu karanna puḷuvanda?can you make it cheaper?Literally 'can you reduce it a little?'. Puḷuvanda is 'can you' — the universal polite wrapper for any request
- මම මේක ගන්නවාmama mēka gannavāI'll take itGannavā is 'to take, to buy'. Word order as always: I → this → take
- මට එපාmaṭa epāI don't need itEpā is the exact opposite of ōnē. It also works as a polite 'no, thanks' and as a prohibition: yanna epā, 'don't go'
- ග්රොසරි කඩේgrosari kaḍēgrocery storeThe English grocery plus the familiar kaḍē. A chain like Cargills will be called the supermarket
- කූඩයkūḍayabasketA woven basket and the shop's basket alike. A long u: kuu-daya
- පෝලිමpōlimaqueueA word you hear every day on the island: pōḷimē innavā, 'to stand in the queue'
- කැෂියර් එකkæṣiyar ekacheckoutThe English cashier: both the till and the person behind it. People ask: where is the checkout?
- බෑග් එකbǣg ekabagThe English bag. A plastic one is a silli bag, and shops charge for it separately
- ඇරලාæralāopen for businessFrom the verb 'to open'. The -lā form describes a state: 'it stands opened'. On the door of a shop at noon you'll see exactly this
- වහලාvahalāclosedThe pair to æralā, from vahanavā, 'to close'. On a shop door at noon you'll read exactly this
- තෝරනවාtōranavāto chooseAn ordinary -navā verb: it covers 'I choose', 'you choose' and 'let's choose' alike
- සයිස් එකsayis ekasizeThe English size — in a clothes shop you'll hear no other word. The bookish pramāṇaya lives in manuals
- මල්ලmallabag (cloth)A soft bag, a sack, a poke — everything that isn't a box: a coconut sack, a things-sack. A lady's handbag is 'the handbag'
- ෆිටින් රූම් එකfiṭin rūm ekafitting roomThe English fitting room: they ask 'where is the fitting room?'. In a small shop there may be none at all
- අඳලා බලනවාandalā balanavāto try onLiterally 'having put on, to look'. The pair 'having done, look' means 'to try doing': 'try the taste' is built the same way
- සයිස් එක හරිsayis eka hariit fitsLiterally 'the size is right'. Hari is the universal 'right, fine, OK'
- ගොඩක් ලොකුයිgoḍak lokuyitoo biggoḍak is 'very, a lot'. There is no separate word for 'too', and at the shop this is enough
- ගොඩක් පොඩියිgoḍak poḍiyitoo smallThe pair to 'too big'. To ask for a bigger size: 'is there a bigger one?'
- වොරන්ටි එකvaranṭi ekawarrantyEnglish warranty, the slip of paper on appliances. The bookish æpakaraya turns up in contracts but puzzles a shop
- බඩුව ආපහු දෙන එකbaḍuva āpahu dena ekareturnLiterally 'the giving-a-thing-back': Sinhala builds a noun out of a whole phrase with eka. The bookish phrase hangs on the till wall
- දැන්වීමdænvīmaadvertisingThe word covers advertising, a job notice, an announcement — everything 'brought to notice'. Kin to the familiar dannavā, to know
- ඇඩ් එකæḍ ekaTV commercialThe video between programs specifically. A printed ad isn't called this — that's dænvīma
- බ්රෑන්ඩ් එකbrǣnḍ ekabrandbrænd e-ka; the æ is long, twice the length of the short vowel
- ලෝගෝ එකlōgō ekalogoEnglish whole, both vowels long. The bookish lānchanaya stands on a coat of arms and on an office seal
- සේල් එකsēl ekathe salesThe familiar 'discount' is one item off; sēl eka is the whole store event. The window says just sēl
- හොඳ ඕෆර් එකක්honda ōfar ekaka good dealhon-da o-far e-kak; the nd is one sound, tongue tip at the palate
- මිල ගණන් සසඳනවාmila gaṇan sasandanavāto compare pricesmi-la ga-nan sa-san-da-na-va; the nd is one sound, not two syllables
- පැකට් එකpækaṭ ekapacketEnglish packet. It names a pack of biscuits and a sachet of spices alike
- වීදුරුvīdurupane of glassThe same word without the ending as the familiar 'glass, tumbler': material and vessel differ only in shape
- ලෝහlōhametal as a materialThe general word; a specific metal is named: iron, copper
- ප්ලාස්ටික්plāsṭikplastic as a materialEnglish plastic. 'A plastic chair' is said with it straight
- කඩදාසිkaḍadāsipaper as a materialA collective. One sheet is 'one paper'
- ශක්තිමත්śaktimatsturdyshak-ti-mat; the sh is softer than the retroflex ṣ
- හොඳ ක්වොලිටිhonda kvoliṭihigh-qualityEnglish quality with the native 'good': there's no separate adjective for it
- මෝල් එකmōl ekashopping mallEnglish mall. The bookish phrase stands on the sign and is never said aloud
- ෂෝ කේස් එකṣō kēs ekashop windowEnglish show case — the glass cabinet inside the shop and the window outside alike
- කැෂියර් කෙනාkæṣiyar kenācashierThe familiar 'cashier' word is the till as a place; the person behind it takes 'person' after it
- බඩු ගැනීමbaḍu gænīmapurchaseLiterally 'the taking of things', an action noun. A shopping trip is said simpler — 'going shopping'
- ලොයල්ටි කාඩ් එකloyalṭi kāḍ ekaloyalty cardEnglish loyalty card. At the till they ask: 'do you have a loyalty card?'
- ගිෆ්ට් රැප් එකgifṭ ræp ekagift wrapEnglish gift wrap. 'Wrap it as a gift' is said with it
- ට්රොලි එකṭroli ekashopping cartEnglish trolley. The familiar 'basket' is the small basket for a small buy
- බඩුව මාරු කරනවාbaḍuva māru karanavāto exchange an itemThe familiar 'thing' and 'to swap' together. At the shop: 'can this be swapped for me?'
- රිටර්න් කරනවාriṭarn karanavāto process a returnEnglish return. In Sinhala the same is 'give the thing back', but where there's paperwork they say riṭarn
- දෝෂ සහිතdōṣa sahitadefectiveLiterally 'with a flaw'. At the shop they put it shorter: 'this one has a problem'
- සයිස් එක හරි ගියේ නෑsayis eka hari giyē nǣthe size doesn't fitThe familiar 'the size is right' in the past, with the -ē nǣ negation
- රිසිට් එක තියාගන්නවාrisiṭ eka tiyāgannavāto keep the receiptThe familiar risiṭ eka plus 'to keep on oneself'. Without the receipt no return goes through
- මේක ෆේක් එකක්mēka fēk ekakit's a fakeEnglish fake. The bookish word lives in newspaper headlines
- බඩුව තියෙනවාbaḍuva tiyenavāin stockLiterally 'the thing exists'. They ask it the other way round, one word: 'is there any?'
- වෙන පාටකට මාරු කරනවාvena pāṭakaṭa māru karanavāto exchange it for another colorThe familiar 'color' in the -ṭa form: an exchange is always 'to something', and that's the -ṭa
- අත් ඔරලෝසුවat oralōsuvawristwatchLiterally 'hand clock': the familiar at, hand. The wall one is 'wall clock'
- සෙන්ට්senṭperfumeFrom English scent. To put perfume on is literally 'to strike scent'
- කොස්මෙටික්ස්kosmeṭikscosmeticsEnglish whole. The bookish phrase hangs on the beauty salon's sign
- සෙකන්ඩ් හෑන්ඩ්sekanḍ hǣnḍsecond-handEnglish second hand. About a car they also say 'already used'
- කේවල් කරනවාkēval karanavāto haggleAt the market and with the tuk-tuk you can't do without it. 'He's haggling' is said with it
- පොත් කඩේpot kaḍēbookstoreThe familiar 'books' in the plural plus the shop word. The familiar 'library' is where books are borrowed, not bought
- තොග වශයෙන්toga vaśayenwholesaleLiterally 'in the form of a batch': the batch word is the goods stock. In Pettah the signs read 'wholesale and retail'
- වගකීම් කාලයvagakīm kālayawarranty periodLiterally 'the time of responsibility', from the familiar responsibility word. At the shop they ask 'how long is the responsibility period?' and hand you a slip
- ඇණවුමට හදනæṇavumaṭa hadanamade to orderLiterally 'made upon order': the same order word as in 'contracting party'. The course knows the English loan for a shop order; this one is about the contract kind
- ගන්නවාgannavāto takeAlso 'to buy'. As a helper it means 'do for oneself': kara gannavā, 'have it done for yourself'
- දෙනවාdenavāto giveThe 'to whom' takes the dative -ṭa: maṭa denna, 'give me'. As a helper it means 'do for another'
- මිලදී ගන්නවාmiladī gannavāto buyLiterally 'take for the price': mila is 'price'. Needed where plain gannavā would be ambiguous
- කිලෝ එකක් කීයද?kilō ekak kīyada?how much per kilo?kīyada is 'how much', and no verb 'costs' is needed. This is how people ask about anything that goes on the scales
- වට්ටමක් තියෙනවද?vaṭṭamak tiyenavada?is there a discount?You know vaṭṭama, 'discount'; the tail -k adds 'some kind of'. At the market people haggle with exactly this phrase
- ඔයාලා ළඟ තියෙනවද?oyālā ḷanga tiyenavada?do you have any?Literally 'is it near you?' — possession in Sinhala is expressed as closeness. The name of the goods is inserted before the phrase
- මම මේක ගන්නම්mama mēka gannamI'll take thisYou know mama mēka gannavā, 'I take this'. The tail -nnam turns it into a decision made out loud right now, and at the counter that is exactly what people say
- මට බෑග් එකක් ඕනmaṭa bǣg ekak ōnaI need a bagYou know bǣg eka, 'bag'. Ōna means 'needed' and asks for no verb of its own
- කැෂියර් එක කොහෙද?kæṣiyar eka kohēda?where is the checkout?You know kæṣiyar eka, 'the checkout'; kohēda asks the place and stands at the end
- එච්චරයිeccarayithat's allLiterally 'this much'. To the cashier one says just this word when taking nothing else
- කෑෂ්ද කාඩ්ද?kǣṣda kārḍda?cash or card?Both words are English and familiar to you; the tail -da on each of them is what makes the 'or'
- බාකි ඕන නෑbāki ōna nǣkeep the changebāki is 'the remainder', what is owed back. To a tuk-tuk driver and to a waiter people say exactly this
- බඩු ලැයිස්තුවbaḍu læyistuvashopping listbaḍu is both 'things' and 'goods' at once. Built like the to-do list you know
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.
- මේ අඹ කීයද?mē amba kīyada?How much is this mango?
- ගණන ටිකක් අඩු කරන්නgaṇana ṭikak aḍu karannaBring the price down a little
- ටිකට් එකට රුපියල් පනහක්ṭikaṭ ekaṭa rupiyal panahakFifty rupees for the ticket
- කඩේ ළඟයිkaḍē ḷangayiThe shop is near
- මම වෙළඳපොළට යනවාmama veḷandapoḷaṭa yanavāI'm going to the market
- කවුන්ටරය ළඟට එන්නkavunṭaraya ḷangaṭa ennaPlease come up to the counter
What is worth knowing about these words
කීයද? (kīyada?) — how much is it?. Literally just 'how much?'. The same particle -da as in kohomada and koheda
ගණන (gaṇana) — price. Also 'number' and 'count': muḷu ganana, 'the total'. The retroflex ṇ sits in the middle. The familiar ganan, 'expensive', is the same word in the plural — literally 'in price'
රුපියල් (rupiyal) — rupee. One form for any number, no agreement at all: rupiyal sīyayi, 'a hundred rupees'. In speech the sum is often named with no word at all — just the number
කඩේ (kaḍē) — shop. A roadside shop with everything at once. A big one is supiri veladasala on the sign, and the word is used nowhere but there
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 කීයද? (kīyada?) — how much is it?.
- What is this word?
It is කවුන්ටරය (kavunṭaraya) — counter.
- What is this word?
It is නැවුම් (nævum) — fresh.
- What is this word?
It is වට්ටම (vaṭṭama) — discount.
- What is this word?
It is ටිකක් අඩු කරන්න පුළුවන්ද? (ṭikak aḍu karanna puḷuvanda?) — can you make it cheaper?.
Now the other way around: recall the spelling from the meaning. That is harder, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “how much is it?” in Sinhala?
Literally just 'how much?'. The same particle -da as in kohomada and koheda
- How do you say “counter” in Sinhala?
The English counter with a Sinhala ending -ya. At the market the counter is more often just called the shop
- How do you say “fresh” in Sinhala?
Stands before the word: nævum māḷu, 'fresh fish'. In city speech people often use the English 'fresh' or alut, 'new'
- How do you say “discount” in Sinhala?
You ask for it so: vaṭṭamak denna, 'give a discount'. Haggling at the market is the norm; in a supermarket it is not
- How do you say “can you make it cheaper?” in Sinhala?
Literally 'can you reduce it a little?'. Puḷuvanda is 'can you' — the universal polite wrapper for any request
How to learn the set instead of just reading it
How much it costs, whether there is a smaller one, whether cards are accepted. A shop forgives mistakes: miss a word and they will show you the thing with their hands anyway.
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.
- This holds 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 “how much is it?” in Sinhala?
«කීයද?», read “kīyada?”. Literally just 'how much?'. The same particle -da as in kohomada and koheda. It is one of 91 words in the set “shopping and money” — the rest are in the table above.
How many shopping words do you need to start?
A dozen is enough. The set of 91 words on this page covers nearly every everyday case on the topic — but it is best taken a few at a time, not all at once.
Is there audio?
Yes, 91 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.