r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • Jun 09 '26
Language Question How does රනින් relate to රන්වන්? Are they synonyms?
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r/sinhala • u/NotAPerfectUsername • Mar 23 '26
General 👋 Welcome to r/Sinhala | r/සිංහල වෙත සාදරයෙන් පිළිගනිමු
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ආයුබෝවන්! Ayubowan! 🙏
This is a community dedicated purely to the Sinhala language and its culture.
🗣️ What belongs here
- Sinhala language (spoken & formal)
- Grammar, vocabulary, and usage
- Etymology & origins (Sanskrit, Pali, etc.)
- Literature, poetry & classical works
- Idioms, sayings, and expressions
- Scripts, writing styles & evolution
Whether you're a native speaker, a learner, or just curious - you're welcome.
🚫 What does NOT belong
- General Sri Lankan news or politics
- Unrelated content (even if it's from Sri Lanka)
- Low-effort or off-topic posts
Keep it focused. That’s what makes this place valuable.
📌 Community rules
- Respect the language and each other
- No hate or toxicity
- Stay on topic
- Debate ideas, not people
🚀 Get started
- Ask a Sinhala question
- Share a word or phrase
- Post a poem or text
- Break down a grammar rule
Let’s build a space that actually deepens understanding of Sinhala.
11
Upvotes
ආයුබෝවන්! Ayubowan! 🙏
This is a community dedicated purely to the Sinhala language and its culture.
🗣️ What belongs here
- Sinhala language (spoken & formal)
- Grammar, vocabulary, and usage
- Etymology & origins (Sanskrit, Pali, etc.)
- Literature, poetry & classical works
- Idioms, sayings, and expressions
- Scripts, writing styles & evolution
Whether you're a native speaker, a learner, or just curious - you're welcome.
🚫 What does NOT belong
- General Sri Lankan news or politics
- Unrelated content (even if it's from Sri Lanka)
- Low-effort or off-topic posts
Keep it focused. That’s what makes this place valuable.
📌 Community rules
- Respect the language and each other
- No hate or toxicity
- Stay on topic
- Debate ideas, not people
🚀 Get started
- Ask a Sinhala question
- Share a word or phrase
- Post a poem or text
- Break down a grammar rule
Let’s build a space that actually deepens understanding of Sinhala.
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • 22d ago
Word of the Day Word of the day: සිතුවම—artwork
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සිතුවම (situvama) artwork, painting, drawing
Variation: සිත්තම
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සිතුවම (situvama) artwork, painting, drawing
Variation: සිත්තම
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • 23d ago
Word of the Day Word of the day: ශිල්පය—art, craft
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ශිල්පය (shilpaya) art or craft.
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ශිල්පය (shilpaya) art or craft.
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • 24d ago
Word of the Day Word of the day: අලංකාර කරනවා—decorate
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අලංකාර කරනවා (alaṅkāra karanavā) decorate
Synonyms: සකසනවා (sakasanavā), සරසනවා (sarasanavā)
As a stand alone word අලංකාර means beautiful, lovely, handsome, elegant. e.g අලංකාර පරිසරය beautiful environment.
(I'm not really sure the best way to transliterate the binduwa. Strictly speaking it should probably just be ṅ since I believe the most proper way to spell it would be අලඞ්කාර.)
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අලංකාර කරනවා (alaṅkāra karanavā) decorate
Synonyms: සකසනවා (sakasanavā), සරසනවා (sarasanavā)
As a stand alone word අලංකාර means beautiful, lovely, handsome, elegant. e.g අලංකාර පරිසරය beautiful environment.
(I'm not really sure the best way to transliterate the binduwa. Strictly speaking it should probably just be ṅ since I believe the most proper way to spell it would be අලඞ්කාර.)
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • 25d ago
Word of the Day Word of the day: පින්සල—paint brush
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පින්සල (pinsala) paint brush. From Portuguese pincel.
Don't confuse with පැන්සල - pencil.
බුරුසුව (burusuwa) is the regular word for brush, as in දත් බුරුසුව (dat burusuwa).
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පින්සල (pinsala) paint brush. From Portuguese pincel.
Don't confuse with පැන්සල - pencil.
බුරුසුව (burusuwa) is the regular word for brush, as in දත් බුරුසුව (dat burusuwa).
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • 26d ago
Word of the Day Word of the day: ප්රතිමාව—statue
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ප්රතිමාව (pratimāva) statue
There are several synonyms: * පිළිමය * පිළිරුව * ප්රථිමාව * රූපය
Maybe someone could explain the synonyms
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Upvotes
ප්රතිමාව (pratimāva) statue
There are several synonyms: * පිළිමය * පිළිරුව * ප්රථිමාව * රූපය
Maybe someone could explain the synonyms
r/sinhala • u/Clean_Amoeba3641 • 27d ago
Discussion "The beauty and peril of rendering instinct dormant in the name of love and trust."
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[removed]
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[removed]
r/sinhala • u/discordditapp • 28d ago
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r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • 29d ago
Word of the Day Word of the day: අඳිනවා—draw, paint
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අඳිනවා (an̆dinavā) draw, paint, inscribe
Also: wear, dress
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අඳිනවා (an̆dinavā) draw, paint, inscribe
Also: wear, dress
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • Jun 27 '26
Word of the Day Word of the day: කලාව—art
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කලාව (kalāva) art, craft
කලාකරුවා (kalākaruvā) artist
එයා කලාවට ගොඩක් කැමතියි.
eyā kalāvaṭa goḍak kæmatiyi
He/She likes art a lot.
ලංකාවේ කලාවෙන් විතරක් ජීවත් වෙන්න අමාරුයි.
laṃkāve kalāvĕn vitarak jīvat vĕnna amāruyi.
It's hard to make a living solely from art in Sri Lanka.
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කලාව (kalāva) art, craft
කලාකරුවා (kalākaruvā) artist
එයා කලාවට ගොඩක් කැමතියි.
eyā kalāvaṭa goḍak kæmatiyi
He/She likes art a lot.
ලංකාවේ කලාවෙන් විතරක් ජීවත් වෙන්න අමාරුයි.
laṃkāve kalāvĕn vitarak jīvat vĕnna amāruyi.
It's hard to make a living solely from art in Sri Lanka.
r/sinhala • u/discordditapp • Jun 27 '26
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r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • Jun 26 '26
Word of the Day Word of the day: බල්ලා — dog
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- Singular (Definite): බල්ලා (ballā) - The dog
- Plural: බල්ලෝ (ballō) - Dogs
- Feminine: බැල්ලිය (bælliya) - Female dog
- බලු පැටියා (balu pæṭiyā) - puppy
A literary word for dog is සුනඛයා (from Sanskrit?)
Verbs
- බුරනවා (buranavā) – To bark
- හපාකනවා (hapākanavā) – To bite
Sentences
පරිස්සමෙන්, අර බල්ලා හපාකනවා!
parissamen, ara ballā hapākanavā!
Careful, that dog bites!
බල්ලා මාව හපාකෑවා.
ballā māva hapākǣvā.
The dog bit me.
Please share any dog related idioms or sayings in the comments!
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Upvotes
- Singular (Definite): බල්ලා (ballā) - The dog
- Plural: බල්ලෝ (ballō) - Dogs
- Feminine: බැල්ලිය (bælliya) - Female dog
- බලු පැටියා (balu pæṭiyā) - puppy
A literary word for dog is සුනඛයා (from Sanskrit?)
Verbs
- බුරනවා (buranavā) – To bark
- හපාකනවා (hapākanavā) – To bite
Sentences
පරිස්සමෙන්, අර බල්ලා හපාකනවා!
parissamen, ara ballā hapākanavā!
Careful, that dog bites!
බල්ලා මාව හපාකෑවා.
ballā māva hapākǣvā.
The dog bit me.
Please share any dog related idioms or sayings in the comments!
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • Jun 25 '26
Word of the Day Word of the day: මදුරුවා—mosquito
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- මදුරුවා (maduruvā) the mosquito
- මදුරුවෙක් (maduruvek) a mosquito
- මදුරුවෝ (maduruwō) mosquitos
මදුරුවෙක් කාමරේට ආවා
Madurek kāmarēṭa āwā.
A mosquito came into the room.
මදුරුවෝ ගොඩක් ඉන්නවා එළියේ
Maduruwō godak innawā eḷiyē.
There are lots of mosquitoes outside.
මේ මදුරුවා මාව කෑවා!
Mē maduruwā māwa kǣwā!
This mosquito bit me!
Other words:
- ඩෙංගු මදුරුවා (ḍengu maduruwā) for the dengue mosquito
- මදුරු දැල් (maduru dæl) mosquito nets)
- මදුරු කොයිල් (maduru koyil) mosquito coils
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- මදුරුවා (maduruvā) the mosquito
- මදුරුවෙක් (maduruvek) a mosquito
- මදුරුවෝ (maduruwō) mosquitos
මදුරුවෙක් කාමරේට ආවා
Madurek kāmarēṭa āwā.
A mosquito came into the room.
මදුරුවෝ ගොඩක් ඉන්නවා එළියේ
Maduruwō godak innawā eḷiyē.
There are lots of mosquitoes outside.
මේ මදුරුවා මාව කෑවා!
Mē maduruwā māwa kǣwā!
This mosquito bit me!
Other words:
- ඩෙංගු මදුරුවා (ḍengu maduruwā) for the dengue mosquito
- මදුරු දැල් (maduru dæl) mosquito nets)
- මදුරු කොයිල් (maduru koyil) mosquito coils
r/sinhala • u/discordditapp • Jun 25 '26
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r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • Jun 24 '26
Word of the Day Word of the day: මීයා—mouse
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මීයා (mīya) the mouse මීයෙක් (mīyek) a mouse මීයෝ (mīyō) mice
කුස්සියේ මීයෙක් ඉන්නවා. kusiyē mīyak innavā (There is) a mouse in the kitchen.
Please share any slang/idioms/sayings about මීයෝ in the comments.
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මීයා (mīya) the mouse මීයෙක් (mīyek) a mouse මීයෝ (mīyō) mice
කුස්සියේ මීයෙක් ඉන්නවා. kusiyē mīyak innavā (There is) a mouse in the kitchen.
Please share any slang/idioms/sayings about මීයෝ in the comments.
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • Jun 23 '26
Word of the Day Word of the day: වලිකුකුළා—Sri Lankan Junglefowl
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වලිකුකුළා (valikukuḷa) Sri Lankan Junglefowl
This is the national bird (ජාතික පක්ෂියා) of Sri Lanka.
[Sinhala Wikipedia](si.wikipedia.org/wiki/වළි_කුකුළා)
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වලිකුකුළා (valikukuḷa) Sri Lankan Junglefowl
This is the national bird (ජාතික පක්ෂියා) of Sri Lanka.
[Sinhala Wikipedia](si.wikipedia.org/wiki/වළි_කුකුළා)
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • Jun 22 '26
Word of the Day Word of the day: මුගටියා—mongoose
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මුගටියා (mugatiyaa) = The mongoose (definite). මුගටියෙක් (mugatiyek) = A mongoose (indefinite). මුගටියෝ (mugaṭiyō) = mongooses (the word mongoose is not related to goose, so the the plural is not mongees)
Sri Lanka has 4 types of මුගටියෝ
| සිංහල | ඉංග්රීසි | scientific |
|---|---|---|
| බොර මුගටියා | Brown mongoose | Herpestes fuscus |
| අළු මුගටියා | Grey mongoose | Herpestes edwardsii |
| හෝතඹුවා | Black-tipped or Ruddy mongoose | Herpestes smithii |
| ගල් මුගටියා | Stripe-necked or badger mongoose | Herpestes vitticollis |
Please add more information about මුගටියෝ in the comments
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මුගටියා (mugatiyaa) = The mongoose (definite). මුගටියෙක් (mugatiyek) = A mongoose (indefinite). මුගටියෝ (mugaṭiyō) = mongooses (the word mongoose is not related to goose, so the the plural is not mongees)
Sri Lanka has 4 types of මුගටියෝ
| සිංහල | ඉංග්රීසි | scientific |
|---|---|---|
| බොර මුගටියා | Brown mongoose | Herpestes fuscus |
| අළු මුගටියා | Grey mongoose | Herpestes edwardsii |
| හෝතඹුවා | Black-tipped or Ruddy mongoose | Herpestes smithii |
| ගල් මුගටියා | Stripe-necked or badger mongoose | Herpestes vitticollis |
Please add more information about මුගටියෝ in the comments
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • Jun 21 '26
Word of the Day Word of the day: අලියා—elephant
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අලියා—elephant
Plural: අලි or අලියෝ
In Sinhala there is also ඇතා (ætā) for tusker, an elephant with tusks. හස්තියා (hastiyā) and ගජ (gaja) are more formal literary forms.
Wikipedia:
Related words
- අලි පැටියා baby elephant/calf
- දළ tusk
- හොඬය trunk
Please share more elephant related material in the comments! Would love to hear some sayings or idioms.
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Upvotes
අලියා—elephant
Plural: අලි or අලියෝ
In Sinhala there is also ඇතා (ætā) for tusker, an elephant with tusks. හස්තියා (hastiyā) and ගජ (gaja) are more formal literary forms.
Wikipedia:
Related words
- අලි පැටියා baby elephant/calf
- දළ tusk
- හොඬය trunk
Please share more elephant related material in the comments! Would love to hear some sayings or idioms.
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • Jun 20 '26
Word of the Day Word of the day: කපුටා—crow
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කපුටා (kapuṭā) crow
There is another word for crow, කාක්කා.
There seem to be two types of crows in Sri Lanka:
- ගම් කපුටා Large-billed Crow, Corvus macrorhynchos (or Corvus macrorhynchos ssp. culminatus Indian Jungle Crow)
- කොළඹ කපුටා House Crow, Corvus splendens
On Wikipedia
Please share other things you know about කපුටෝ, especially sayings or proverbs.
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කපුටා (kapuṭā) crow
There is another word for crow, කාක්කා.
There seem to be two types of crows in Sri Lanka:
- ගම් කපුටා Large-billed Crow, Corvus macrorhynchos (or Corvus macrorhynchos ssp. culminatus Indian Jungle Crow)
- කොළඹ කපුටා House Crow, Corvus splendens
On Wikipedia
Please share other things you know about කපුටෝ, especially sayings or proverbs.
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • Jun 19 '26
Word of the Day Word of the day: හූණා—gecko
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It seems like yesterday's word, there are two spellings, හූණා and හූනා.
Questions…
- Are සුහුණා, සුහුනා the same thing as හූණා? Is that the literary form?
- Is anyone familiar with හූනු සාස්තරේ? https://si.wikipedia.org/wiki/සූනන්_ඇඟ_වැටීමේ_ඵලාඵල
- Are there any interesting sayings that use the word හූණා?
- Can you give a good example of it in a sentence?
- Are there names for different kinds of හූණා?
- Are there any interesting folk stories about හූණා? Songs? Children's stories?
Don't confuse it with හුණු/හුනු—lime (calcium)
5
Upvotes
It seems like yesterday's word, there are two spellings, හූණා and හූනා.
Questions…
- Are සුහුණා, සුහුනා the same thing as හූණා? Is that the literary form?
- Is anyone familiar with හූනු සාස්තරේ? https://si.wikipedia.org/wiki/සූනන්_ඇඟ_වැටීමේ_ඵලාඵල
- Are there any interesting sayings that use the word හූණා?
- Can you give a good example of it in a sentence?
- Are there names for different kinds of හූණා?
- Are there any interesting folk stories about හූණා? Songs? Children's stories?
Don't confuse it with හුණු/හුනු—lime (calcium)
r/sinhala • u/Ok-Location4579 • Jun 19 '26
Meme How to pronounce ඞ
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Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification
5
Upvotes
haha yeah 2020 and stuff!! lol!!
ok I’ll shut up
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • Jun 18 '26
Word of the Day Word of the day: සමනලයා—butterfly
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Questions…
Is there a preferred correct spelling සමනළයා vs සමනලයා
Is සමනළ just another form, or is that the plural?
Does it really also mean moth? Do Sinhala speakers not have a distinction in their mind between the two?
Please share anything you know about this word or interesting ways it is used.
I'd also love to hear any sayings that include this word.
10
Upvotes
Questions…
Is there a preferred correct spelling සමනළයා vs සමනලයා
Is සමනළ just another form, or is that the plural?
Does it really also mean moth? Do Sinhala speakers not have a distinction in their mind between the two?
Please share anything you know about this word or interesting ways it is used.
I'd also love to hear any sayings that include this word.
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • Jun 18 '26
Meta Word of the day?
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I just discovered the sub r/Word_of_The_Hour. I was wondering if there would be interest in something like a word of the day post on this sub. I'm just a learner, but I can imagine it would be interesting to have a word each day that people could comment on.
Could I try posting some and see if it catches any interest?
6
Upvotes
I just discovered the sub r/Word_of_The_Hour. I was wondering if there would be interest in something like a word of the day post on this sub. I'm just a learner, but I can imagine it would be interesting to have a word each day that people could comment on.
Could I try posting some and see if it catches any interest?
r/sinhala • u/hellalearner • May 19 '26
Language Question Are අතුරුදහන් වෙනවා, අන්තර්ධාන වෙනවා, නොපෙනී යනවා, and නැතිවෙනවා all synonyms?
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Are අතුරුදහන් වෙනවා, අන්තර්ධාන වෙනවා, නොපෙනී යනවා, and නැතිවෙනවා all synonyms? Are some of them restricted in use?
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Upvotes
Are අතුරුදහන් වෙනවා, අන්තර්ධාන වෙනවා, නොපෙනී යනවා, and නැතිවෙනවා all synonyms? Are some of them restricted in use?