This 9th lesson teaches an important aspect in Bengali which is the interrogative form also called questions. In addition, there is a list of vocabulary terms about misunderstanding and finally some commonly used phrases. I will try to give examples using both vocabulary and grammar. That way it will be easy for you to see the words when they are separate and when they are in a sentence. Going through the whole page should take about 30 min. Make sure to read the pronunciation and hear the audio as well. If you have any question about this course, please email me directly at Bengali Classes.
Questions
Being able to ask questions is what makes us curious beings, which in turns broadens our knowledge. It is no different when it comes to learning Bengali. You will always be asking questions, and the following are some tools to help you in that quest.
The following are the 5 Ws + "how" commonly used adverbs to express the interrogative form. Most likely, whenever a question needs to be asked, one of them should be used. The table contains 3 columns (English, Bengali, and Audio). Make sure you repeat each word after hearing it by either clicking on the audio button or by reading the pronunciation. That should help with memorization as well as improving your pronunciation.
Interrogative Form in Bengali
Questions
Bengali
Audio
How?
কেমন করে? kēmana karē?
What?
কি? Ki?
When?
কখন? Kakhana?
Where?
কোথায়? Kōthāẏa?
Who?
কে? Kē?
Why?
কেন? Kēna?
Now we will try to implement the adverbs above into full Bengali sentences. That way you will be able to use the word not only by itself but embedded in a structure.
Bengali Questions in a Sentence
Can I come?
আমি কি আস্তে পারি? Āmi ki āstē pāri?
Can I help you?
আমি কি আপনাকে সাহায্য করতে পারি? Āmi ki āpanākē sāhāyya karatē pāri?
Can you help me?
আপনি কি আমাকে সাহায্য করবেন? Āpani ki āmākē sāhāyya karabēna?
Do you know her?
আপনি কি উনাকে (ঐ মহিলাকে) জানেন? Āpani ki unākē (ai mahilākē) jānēna?
Do you speak English?
আপনি কি ইংরাজি বলতে পারেন? Āpani ki inrāji balatē pārēna?
How difficult is it?
কাজ টা কি কঠিন? Kāja ṭā ki kaṭhina?
How far is this?
জায়গাটা কত দূরে ? Jāẏagāṭā kata dūrē?
How much is this?
এটার দাম কত? Ēṭāra dāma kata?
How would you like to pay?
আপ্নি কি ভাবে দাম/পেমেন্ট করতে চান? Āpni ki bhābē dāma/pēmēnṭa karatē cāna?
What is this called?
এটাকে কি বলে? Ēṭākē ki balē?
What is your name?
আপনার নাম কি? Āpanāra nāma ki?
What time is it?
এখন কটা বাজে? Ēkhana kaṭā bājē?
When can we meet?
আমরা কখন দেখা করতে পারি? Āmarā kakhana dēkhā karatē pāri?
Where do you live?
আপনি কোথায় থাকেন? Āpani kōthāẏa thākēna?
Who is knocking at the door?
দরজায় কে কড়া নাড়ছে? Darajāẏa kē kaṛā nāṛachē?
Why is it expensive?
এটার দাম এত বেশী কেন? Ēṭāra dāma ēta bēśī kēna?
Questions?
If you have any questions, please contact me using the Bengali contact form on the header above.
Vocabulary List about Misunderstanding
There are times when you will not understand what a person said in Bengali, or simply that you want them to repeat a word. The following are 24 expressions used to clear misunderstandings. Very essential to any conversation!
Misunderstanding in Bengali
Misunderstanding
Bengali
Audio
Can you repeat?
আরেকবার বলবেন? Ārēkabāra balabēna?
Can you speak slowly?
আপনি কি একটু ধীরে বলবেন? Āpani ki ēkaṭu dhīrē balabēna?
Did you understand what I said?
আমি যেটা বললাম সেটা কি আপনি বুঝতে পেরেছেন? Āmi yēṭā balalāma sēṭā ki āpani bujhatē pērēchēna?
আমার ফরাসী অনুশীলন করা দরকার Āmāra pharāsī anuśīlana karā darakāra
Is that right?
এটা কি ঠিক? ēṭā ki ṭhika?
Is that wrong?
এটা কি ভুল? Ēṭā ki bhula?
Mistake
ভুল Bhula
My French is bad
আমি ভালো ফরাসী বলতে পারি না āmi bhālō pharāsī balatē pāri nā
No problem!
কোনও ব্যাপার না! kōna'ō byāpāra nā!
Quickly
তাড়াতাড়ি Tāṛātāṛi
Slowly
ধীরে dhīrē
Sorry (to apologize)
দুঃখিত duḥkhita
To speak
বলা balā
What does that word mean in English?
ঐ শব্দটার ইংরাজিতে অর্থ কি? ai śabdaṭāra inrājitē artha ki?
What is this?
এটা কি? Ēṭā ki?
What should I say?
আমার কি বলা উচিৎ? Āmāra ki balā uciṯ?
What?
কি? Ki?
What's that called in French?
ওটাকে ফরাসীতে কি বলে? Ōṭākē pharāsītē ki balē?
Write it down please!
অনুগ্রহ করে এটা লিখে নিন! Anugraha karē ēṭā likhē nina!
Daily Conversation in Bengali
Finally, a list of some common phrases that you might come across from time to time. For a complete list of commonly used sentences, please visit our Bengali Phrases page. Enjoy!
Common Expressions in Bengali
English
Bengali
Audio
This
এটা Ēṭā
That
ওটা ōṭā
Here
এখানে ēkhānē
There
ওখানে ōkhānē
In The Morning
সকালে sakālē
In the evening
সন্ধ্যে বেলায় sandhyē bēlāẏa
At Night
রাতে rātē
Really!
সত্যি! satyi!
Look!
দেখুন! Dēkhuna!
Hurry up!
জলদি! Jaladi!
Fun Facts
Language Quote: The oldest written language was believed to be written in about 4500 BC.
Congratulations! You finished your 9th lesson in Bengali about questions, and misunderstanding. Are you ready for the next lesson? We recommend Bengali Lesson 10. You can also simply click on one of the links below or go back to our Learn Bengali homepage.