Welcome to our grammar learning hub! In this lesson, we break down the conjugation of verbs in all forms of the continuous (progressive) tense. Whether you’re a beginner or just brushing up on your Nepali skills, this lesson will help you understand how to use continuous tenses in different contexts—past, present, and future.
To form the continuous tense in Nepali, follow these two simple steps. Using “to walk” (हिँड्नु / hidnu) as an example, we’ll show you how to build the continuous form that is used across all three tenses.
| Step | Action | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Step 1 | Remove the suffix -nu from the verb infinitive | हिँड्नु (hidnu) → हिँड (hid) |
| Step 2 | Add दै (dai) to the verb root to form the continuous base | हिँड (hid) + दै → हिँड्दै (hiddai) |
Once you have the continuous form (हिँड्दै), you add different conjugative suffixes depending on the tense (present, past, or future) and the subject pronoun.
Structure: Subject + हिँड्दै (hiddai) + छु/छे/छ/छौँ/छौ/छन् (chu/che/cha/chau/chau/chan)
The present continuous tense describes actions that are happening right now. Each subject pronoun has a different conjugative suffix to match the person and number.
| English | Romanized Nepali | Nepali Script |
|---|---|---|
| I am walking. | Ma hiddai chu | म हिँड्दै छु। |
| You (informal) are walking. | Timi hiddai chau | तिमी हिँड्दै छौ। |
| You (formal) are walking. | Tapai hiddai hunuhuncha | तपाईं हिँड्दै हुनुहुन्छ। |
| He is walking. (informal) | Uh hiddai cha | ऊ हिँड्दै छ। |
| She is walking. (informal) | Uni hiddai chin | उनी हिँड्दै छिन्। |
| He/She is walking. (formal) | Uha hiddai hunuhuncha | उहाँ हिँड्दै हुनुहुन्छ। |
| We are walking. | Hami hiddai chau | हामी हिँड्दै छौं। |
| They are walking. | Uniharu hiddai chan | उनीहरू हिँड्दै छन्। |
Structure: Subject + हिँड्दै (hiddai) + थियो/थिए/etc. (thiyo/thiye/etc.)
The past continuous tense describes actions that were happening at a specific time in the past. The suffix changes to match the subject pronoun while using the past tense marker.
| English | Romanized Nepali | Nepali Script |
|---|---|---|
| I was walking. | Ma hiddai thiye | म हिँड्दै थिएँ। |
| You (informal) were walking. | Timi hiddai thiyou | तिमी हिँड्दै थियौ। |
| You (formal) were walking. | Tapai hiddai hunuthiyo | तपाईं हिँड्दै हुनुहुन्थ्यो। |
| He was walking. (informal) | Uh hiddai thiyo | ऊ हिँड्दै थियो। |
| She was walking. (informal) | Uni hiddai thien | उनी हिँड्दै थिइन्। |
| He/She was walking. (formal) | Uha hiddai hunuthiyo | उहाँ हिँड्दै हुनुहुन्थ्यो। |
| We were walking. | Hami hiddai thiyou | हामी हिँड्दै थियौँ। |
| They were walking. | Uniharu hiddai thiye | उनीहरू हिँड्दै थिए। |
Structure: Subject + हिँड्दै (hiddai) + हुनेछ/हुनेछन्/etc. (hunecha/hunechan/etc.)
The future continuous tense describes actions that will be happening at a specific time in the future. The future marker हुनेछ is added with the appropriate conjugation for each subject.
| English | Romanized Nepali | Nepali Script |
|---|---|---|
| I will be walking. | Ma hiddai hunechu | म हिँड्दै हुनेछु। |
| You (informal) will be walking. | Timi hiddai hunechau | तिमी हिँड्दै हुनेछौ। |
| You (formal) will be walking. | Tapai hiddai hunu hunecha | तपाईं हिँड्दै हुनुहुनेछ। |
| He will be walking. (informal) | Uh hiddai hunecha | ऊ हिँड्दै हुनेछ। |
| She will be walking. (informal) | Uni hiddai hunechin | उनी हिँड्दै हुनेछिन्। |
| He/She will be walking. (formal) | Uha hiddai hunu hunecha | उहाँ हिँड्दै हुनुहुनेछ। |
| We will be walking. | Hami hiddai hunechau | हामी हिँड्दै हुनेछौं। |
| They will be walking. | Uniharu hiddai hunechan | उनीहरू हिँड्दै हुनेछन्। |
When using continuous tenses with objects or additional information, the structure is: [Subject] + [object] + [verb root] + दै + [conjugative suffix]. These examples show how the continuous tense functions in practical, real-world contexts.
| Tense & Context | Romanized Nepali | Nepali Script |
|---|---|---|
| Present Continuous I am walking in the park. |
Ma park ma hiddai chu. | म पार्कमा हिँड्दै छु। |
| Past Continuous We were walking home. |
Hami ghar tira hiddai thiyou. | हामी घरतिर हिँड्दै थियौँ। |
| Future Continuous She will be walking to school. |
Uni vidhyalatira hiddai hunechin. | उनी विद्यालयतिर हिँड्दै हुनेछिन्। |
The continuous tense in Nepali is essential for describing ongoing actions across all time periods. By mastering the basic formation pattern (remove -nu, add दै, then add the appropriate conjugative suffix), you can conjugate any verb in the continuous tense and speak about actions in progress with confidence and accuracy.
|
Principle 01
Consistent Pattern
The formation process is the same for all verbs: remove -nu, add दै, then add the conjugative suffix that matches the tense and subject. |
Principle 02
Three Tenses
Present, past, and future continuous tenses follow the same structure but use different conjugative suffixes to indicate the time period. |
Principle 03
Subject Agreement
The conjugative suffix changes based on the subject pronoun (I, you, he/she, we, they) and formality level (informal vs. formal). |
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