Yes, no and the essentials in Sinhala
The small words that carry half of every conversation, and the ones that rescue it. Play the ten Sinhala words against the clock, with a note on how locals really use each one after every answer. All ten are written out below.
All 10 Sinhala phrases in this lesson
- ඔව්OW
- Yes
- නෑNAY
- No
- හරිHA-ri
- Okay
- මට තේරෙන්නේ නෑma-TA TEY-ren-ney NAY
- I don't understand
- ඔබට ඉංග්රීසි කතා කරන්න පුළුවන්ද?o-BA-ta IN-gree-si ka-TAA ka-RAN-na pu-LU-wan-da
- Do you speak English?
- ආයෙත් කියන්නAA-yet ki-YAN-na
- Can you repeat that?
- හෙමින් කියන්නHE-min ki-YAN-na
- Slowly, please
- මේ මොකක්ද?MEY mo-KAK-da
- What is this?
- මට ... අවශ්යයිma-TA ... a-WASH-ya-yi
- I need...
- මට උදව් කරන්න පුළුවන්ද?ma-TA u-DAW ka-RAN-na pu-LU-wan-da
- Can you help me?
Short and clear, rhyming with English "cow." Sri Lankans also use a distinctive sideways head wobble to signal agreement; if you see it, it means yes, not no.
Direct but perfectly polite when said calmly. A firmer "නැහැ" (na-HAY) exists but "nay" works in all everyday situations. Pair it with a gentle head shake to avoid ambiguity.
The workhorse agreement word meaning "fine, correct, alright." You will hear it constantly in conversation. It also means "right" as in correct, so context tells you which meaning applies.
Say this slowly and clearly when conversation outpaces you. Most Sri Lankans will immediately switch to simpler Sinhala or English. The island has high English literacy especially in cities and tourist areas.
English is an official language of Sri Lanka, so many people can help. In rural areas and among older generations Sinhala dominates. Asking this shows respect for the local language.
Literally "say it again".
Literally "say it slowly".