Verbal Nouns & Stems

Question 1

This course presents Bengali verbs with the front of the cards in English and the backs using Bengali script and a phonetic representation in the Roman alphabet. To learn the Bengali alphabet, see the other course I have created called Bengali Language. (The one with a portrait of the poet Rabindranath Tagore as the icon.)

Bengali verbs are highly inflected and are regular with only few exceptions.

They consist of a stem and an inflection suffix that depends on the person doing the verb, whether it happens past, present or future, is completed or ongoing etc.

Verbs are traditionally listed in Bengali dictionaries in their “verbal noun” form, which is usually formed by adding -a, or sometimes -ōwa to the verb’s stem.

For example করা /kora/ (to do) is formed from the stem কর /kor-/. And জাওয়া /jaōwa/ (to go) is formed from the stem দা /ja-/.

(A verbal noun is a verb used as a noun. For example, in English ‘to laugh’ is a verb in its infinitive form, and ‘a laugh’ is a verbal noun.)

Answer 1

A stem can end in either a vowel or a consonant. Verbs are conjugated for tense and person by changing the endings, which are largely the same for all verbs, but vary somewhat depending on whether the stem ends in a consonant or vowel. In some cases the final vowel may morph to achieve ‘vowel harmony’ with certain inflection suffixes.

This first deck lists the verbal noun forms of 22 common verbs. The second deck lists all the conjugations of all these verbs in the simple present tense. Then there is a seperate deck for each of the 22 verbs listing all of their conjugations.

Question 2

say

Answer 2

বলা /bola/
Stem: বল- /bol-/

Question 3

do

Answer 3

করা /kora/
Stem: কর /kor-/

Question 4

go

Answer 4

যাওয়া /jaōwa/
Stem: যা- /ja-/

Note: In the present perfect and past perfect /ja/ becomes /ge/. In the past simple it becomes /gi/. In the past habitual it becomes /je/.

Question 5

see

Answer 5

Vernal noun: দেখা /dekha/
Stem: দেখ- /dekh-/

Question 6

hear/listen

Answer 6

শোনা /shona/
Stem: শোন- /shon-/

Question 7

write

Answer 7

লেখা /lekha/
Stem: লেখ /lekh-/

Question 8

keep

Answer 8

রাখা /rakha/
Stem: রাখ- /rakh-/

Question 9

become/happen

Answer 9

হওয়া /ho’ōa/
Stem: হ- /ho-/

Question 10

wash

Answer 10

ধোয়া /dhōa/
Stem: ধো- /dhō-/

Note that in most of the conjugations of this verb the /ō/ of the root becomes /u/.

Question 11

eat

Answer 11

খাওয়া /khaōwa/
Stem: খা- /kha-/

Question 12

give

Answer 12

দেওয়া /deōwa/
Stem: দে- /de-/

Note that in most of the conjugations of this verb the /e/ of the root becomes /i/

Question 13

open

Answer 13

খোলা /khōla/
Stem: খোল- /khōl-/

Note that in most of the conjugations of this verb the /ō/ of the root becomes /u/.

Question 14

know (a person), recognise

Answer 14

চেনা /chena/
Stem: চেন- /chen-/

Question 15

know
(In the sense of comprehend)

Answer 15

জানা /jana/
Stem: জান- /jan-/

Question 16

come

Answer 16

আসা /asha/
Stem: আস- /ash-/

Question 17

sit

Answer 17

বসা /bosha/
Stem: বস- /bosh-/

Question 18

sleep

Answer 18

ঘুমানো /ghumanō/
Stem: ঘুমান- /ghuman-/

Question 19

get

Answer 19

পাওয়া /paōwa/
Stem: পা- /pa-/

Note: In the present perfect, past simple, past perfect and past continuous conjugations the /a/ in the stem becomes /e/.

Question 20

want

Answer 20

চাওয়া /chaōwa/
Stem: চা- /cha-/

Note: In the present perfect and past perfect conjugations the /a/ of the stem becomes /e/.

Question 21

read

Answer 21

Verbal noun:
পড়া /porha/
Stem: পড়- /porh-/

A note in pronunciation. ড় /rh/ is not r followed by h. It’s a slightly breathy r.

Question 22

take

Answer 22

Verbal noun:
নেওয়া /neowa/
Stem: নে- /ne-/

Question 23

come

Answer 23

Verbal noun:
আসা /asha/
Stem: আস- /ash-/