නංගි
naṁgi
The English phrase 'younger sister' is translated into Sinhala as නංගි (naṁgi).
නංගි is used to refer to a younger sister. Beyond biological relationships, it is commonly used as a friendly or affectionate term for any girl or woman who is younger than the speaker.
Meaning: Translations (noun)
Which one should you use?
While නංගි refers to a younger sister, the term අක්කා is used for an older sister.
How do you pronounce it?
naṁgi
Did you know?
- While නංගි specifically means younger sister, Sinhala has no single word for 'sister' that is neutral regarding age.
- Calling a woman නංගි who is actually older than the speaker can be perceived as an intentional insult or a way to belittle her status.
- Even in professional environments, staff may use නංගි to address younger female colleagues to create a sense of familial warmth.
Examples in context
- මගේ නංගි ගොඩක් දක්ෂයි.magē nangi goḍak dakshayi.My younger sister is very talented.
- නංගි අද පාසල් ගියා.nangi ada pāsal giyā.Younger sister went to school today.
Example conversation
Sanduni and Nupun are talking about their families.
- සඳුනි Sanduniනුපුන්, ඔයාට නංගි කෙනෙක් ඉන්නවාද?nupun, oyāṭa nangi kenek innavāda?Nupun, do you have a younger sister?
- නුපුන් Nupunඔව්, මට නංගි එක්කෙනෙක් ඉන්නවා.ov, maṭa nangi ekkenek innavā.Yes, I have one younger sister.
- සඳුනි Sanduniඇය දැන් ඉගෙන ගන්නවාද?æya dæn igenna gannavāda?Is she studying now?
- නුපුන් Nupunඔව්, ඇය පාසල් යනවා.ov, æya pāsal yanavā.Yes, she goes to school.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry නංගි, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
