Unit 4 — Grammar Focus

Review: Simple Past

In this review section, you will revisit the main uses of the Nepali simple past tense.

The simple past is one of the most important verb patterns in Nepali. It is used to talk about completed actions, past events, and recent updates.

In English, we often distinguish between:

• I went.
• I have gone.
• She ate.
• She has eaten.

Nepali often uses the simple past form for both meanings. The exact English translation depends on the context.

1. Main Uses of the Simple Past

The Nepali simple past is mainly used for completed events.

It can describe:

• something that happened in the past
• something someone did
• something that was true at a past time
• something that has just happened

For example:

म गएँ।
ma gaẽ.
I went. / I have gone.

उहाँ आउनुभयो।
uhā̃ āunubhayo.
He/She came. / He/She has arrived.

मैले खाना खाएँ।
maile khānā khāẽ.
I ate food. / I have eaten.

Simple Rule

Nepali simple past focuses on completion.

English may translate the same Nepali form as either simple past or present perfect, depending on the situation.

Try It Now

Compare the meanings.

पानी आयो।
pānī āyo.
It rained. / It has started raining.

उहाँ जानुभयो।
uhā̃ jānubhayo.
He/She went. / He/She has gone.

काम भयो।
kām bhayo.
The work happened. / The work has been done.

2. Time Expressions in Past-Tense Narration

When telling a story or reporting past events, Nepali often uses time expressions to organize the sequence of events.

These time expressions tell the listener when something happened.

For example:

हिजो
hijo
yesterday

आज बिहान
āja bihāna
this morning

त्यसपछि
tyaspachi
after that

पछि
pachi
later / after

Time expressions help organize a narrative. They show the order of events and make the story easier to follow.

Table 14.4.1 – High-frequency time markers for past narration (time-setting phrases)

Table 14.4.2 – Clock-time expressions used in narratives (baje / half / quarter-to forms)

Simple Rule

Use time expressions to anchor past events.

Then use simple past verbs to say what happened.

For example:

हिजो म स्कुल गएँ।
hijo ma skul gaẽ.
Yesterday, I went to school.

त्यसपछि मैले खाना खाएँ।
tyaspachi maile khānā khāẽ.
After that, I ate food.

Try It Now

Read the short sequence aloud.

हिजो म कक्षामा गएँ।
hijo ma kakṣāmā gaẽ.
Yesterday, I went to class.

त्यसपछि मैले नेपाली पढेँ।
tyaspachi maile nepālī paḍhẽ.
After that, I studied Nepali.

पछि म घर गएँ।
pachi ma ghar gaẽ.
Later, I went home.

3. Common Questions in Past-Tense Narration

Nepali uses common question patterns when asking about past events.

These questions are useful for conversations, interviews, storytelling, and classroom practice.

Common past-tense questions ask:

• when something happened
• where someone went
• what someone did
• what happened next

Table 14.4.3 – Interrogative frames for past-tense narration

These questions often appear in a natural sequence.

For example:

पहिले के गर्नुभयो?
pahile ke garnubhayo?
What did you do first?

त्यसपछि के गर्नुभयो?
tyaspachi ke garnubhayo?
What did you do after that?

अनि के भयो?
ani ke bhayo?
And what happened?

Try It Now

Practise the question chain.

A: हिजो के गर्नुभयो?
hijo ke garnubhayo?
What did you do yesterday?

B: मैले नेपाली पढेँ।
maile nepālī paḍhẽ.
I studied Nepali.

A: त्यसपछि के गर्नुभयो?
tyaspachi ke garnubhayo?
What did you do after that?

B: म घर गएँ।
ma ghar gaẽ.
I went home.

4. Transitivity and Subject Marking in the Simple Past

In Nepali, subject marking in the simple past often depends on whether the verb is transitive or intransitive.

A transitive verb takes a direct object.

For example:

read a book

eat food

write a letter

open the door

In many simple past sentences with transitive verbs, the subject takes –ले (–le).

For example:

मैले किताब पढेँ।
maile kitāb paḍhẽ.
I read a book.

उहाँले ढोका खोल्नुभयो।
uhā̃le ḍhokā kholnubhayo.
He/She opened the door.

An intransitive verb does not take a direct object.

For example:

go

come

sit

stand

arrive

happen

In simple past sentences with intransitive verbs, the subject usually does not take –ले (–le).

For example:

म गएँ।
ma gaẽ.
I went.

उहाँ आउनुभयो।
uhā̃ āunubhayo.
He/She came.

Table 14.4.4 – Transitive verbs in the simple past: ergative subject marking with –ले (–le)

Table 14.4.5 – Intransitive verbs in the simple past: unmarked subject (no –ले)

Simple Rule

Transitive past sentence with a direct object → subject often takes –ले (–le)

Intransitive past sentence with no direct object → subject usually does not take –ले (–le)

Compare

मैले किताब पढेँ।
maile kitāb paḍhẽ.
I read a book.

म स्कुल गएँ।
ma skul gaẽ.
I went to school.

In the first sentence, किताब (kitāb) is a direct object, so the subject is marked with मैले (maile).

In the second sentence, स्कुल (skul) is a destination, not a direct object, so the subject remains म (ma).

Common Mistake

Do not add –ले (–le) to every past-tense subject.

Use –ले especially when someone does an action to a direct object.

5. Honorific Forms in Past-Tense Reporting

Nepali uses special honorific past forms when the subject is respectful.

These forms are especially common with:

तपाईं
tapāī̃
you, polite

उहाँ
uhā̃
he/she, respectful

उहाँहरू
uhā̃harū
they, respectful

Instead of regular past endings, respectful subjects often use:

–नुभयो
–nubhayo
affirmative honorific past

–नुभएन
–nubhaena
negative honorific past

For example:

तपाईं जानुभयो।
tapāī̃ jānubhayo.
You went.

उहाँ आउनुभयो।
uhā̃ āunubhayo.
He/She came.

उहाँले किताब पढ्नुभयो।
uhā̃le kitāb paḍhnubhayo.
He/She read a book.

तपाईं जानुभएन।
tapāī̃ jānubhaena.
You did not go.

उहाँ आउनुभएन।
uhā̃ āunubhaena.
He/She did not come.

Table 14.4.6 – Honorific past forms with तपाईं / उहाँ (tapāī̃ / uhā̃): –nubhayo / –nubhaena

Simple Rule

Use –नुभयो (–nubhayo) for respectful affirmative past forms.

Use –नुभएन (–nubhaena) for respectful negative past forms.

Try It Now

Change the sentences into respectful past forms.

उहाँ जानुभयो।
uhā̃ jānubhayo.
He/She went.

उहाँ जानुभएन।
uhā̃ jānubhaena.
He/She did not go.

तपाईंले काम गर्नुभयो।
tapāī̃le kām garnubhayo.
You worked. / You did the work.

तपाईंले काम गर्नुभएन।
tapāī̃le kām garnubhaena.
You did not work. / You did not do the work.

Can You Do This Now?

At the end of this review, you should be able to:

• recognize the main uses of the Nepali simple past
• understand why one Nepali past form may have two possible English translations
• use time expressions to organize past events
• ask basic questions about past events
• distinguish transitive and intransitive past sentences
• use –ले (–le) with transitive past sentences
• avoid –ले (–le) with most intransitive past sentences
• recognize honorific past forms ending in –नुभयो (–nubhayo) and –नुभएन (–nubhaena)