Nepali Passive Voice — gariyo / garinchha Forms & Usage | KidSchooler

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Advanced grammar

Passive voice — “was done”

The Nepali passive is formed with the infix -इ- plus the impersonal ending. गरियो (gariyo) = “was done.” You’ll read this in signs, news, and government notices more than you’ll speak it.

Passive forms of गर्नु

Tense / use	Form	Romanized
3rd present	गरिन्छ	garinchha
3rd past	गरियो	gariyo
3rd future	गरिनेछ	garinechha
Agentless past (formal)	गरियो	gariyo

Worked sentences

01
यो काम गरियो।
Yo kaam gariyo.
This work was done.
02
खाना पकाइयो।
Khaanaa pakaaiyo.
The food was cooked.
03
झ्याल बन्द गरियो।
Jhyaal banda gariyo.
The window was closed.
04
निर्णय लिइयो।
Nirnay liiyo.
The decision was made.
05
बाटो खोलियो।
Baato kholiyo.
The road was opened.
06
चोर पक्राइयो।
Chor pakraaiyo.
The thief was caught.

Common questions

When should I actually use passive in Nepali?: In daily speech — rarely. Nepali strongly prefers active constructions, often with a dropped or implicit agent. The passive shows up in government notices, news headlines, and formal writing. As a tourist, you'll READ passive more than you'll SAY it.
What's the difference between काम गरियो and काम सकियो?: गरियो is a true passive — "was done" — implying an unstated agent performed the action. सकियो is intransitive — "got finished/completed on its own." काम सकियो is actually more natural in conversation than the full passive.
Why do passive and dative constructions look similar?: Sentences like "मलाई उपहार दिइयो" (I was given a gift) overlap the morphological passive with dative experience constructions. The line is fuzzy. Don't over-analyze — both are grammatical, and "मलाई उपहार दिए" (active with dative) is more conversational.

Related grammar

Tense / use

Form

Romanized

Audio

3rd present

गरिन्छ

garinchha

3rd past

गरियो

gariyo

3rd future

गरिनेछ

garinechha

Agentless past (formal)

गरियो

gariyo

Worked sentences

यो काम गरियो।

Yo kaam gariyo.

This work was done.

खाना पकाइयो।

Khaanaa pakaaiyo.

The food was cooked.

झ्याल बन्द गरियो।

Jhyaal banda gariyo.

The window was closed.

निर्णय लिइयो।

Nirnay liiyo.

The decision was made.

बाटो खोलियो।

Baato kholiyo.

The road was opened.

चोर पक्राइयो।

Chor pakraaiyo.

The thief was caught.

Common questions

When should I actually use passive in Nepali?

In daily speech — rarely. Nepali strongly prefers active constructions, often with a dropped or implicit agent. The passive shows up in government notices, news headlines, and formal writing. As a tourist, you'll READ passive more than you'll SAY it.

What's the difference between काम गरियो and काम सकियो?

गरियो is a true passive — "was done" — implying an unstated agent performed the action. सकियो is intransitive — "got finished/completed on its own." काम सकियो is actually more natural in conversation than the full passive.

Why do passive and dative constructions look similar?

Sentences like "मलाई उपहार दिइयो" (I was given a gift) overlap the morphological passive with dative experience constructions. The line is fuzzy. Don't over-analyze — both are grammatical, and "मलाई उपहार दिए" (active with dative) is more conversational.