Nepali Relative Clauses — Participial -eko and Correlative jo-tyo | KidSchooler

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Advanced grammar

Relative clauses — “the man who came”

Nepali has two ways to build a clause that modifies a noun — one colloquial, one formal. As a tourist you almost always want the colloquial one: मैले भेटेको मान्छे (“the man I met”).

Two patterns

Correlative (formal / written)
जो [clause], त्यो [main clause]
More common in writing and formal speech. The relative pronoun जो (who) pairs with त्यो (that one) in the main clause.
Participial (colloquial / common)
[verb-एको] + noun
Default in everyday speech. The participle precedes the head noun — "come-yesterday man" = "the man who came yesterday."

Worked sentences

01 · correlative
जो मान्छे मलाई सिकायो, त्यो अब छैन।
Jo maanchhe malaai sikaayo, tyo ab chhaina.
The man who taught me is no longer here.
02 · participial
मैले भेटेको मान्छे डाक्टर हो।
Maile bheteko maanchhe daakṭar ho.
The man I met is a doctor.
Notice -एको before the noun — this is the default Nepali pattern.
03 · participial
उनले किनेको ज्याकेट राम्रो छ।
Unle kineko jacket raamro chha.
The jacket she bought is nice.
04 · participial
तपाईंले खोज्नुभएको बाटो यहाँ छैन।
Tapaai~le khojnubhaeko baato yahaa~ chhaina.
The road you're looking for isn't here.
05 · correlative
जुन होटलमा म बसेँ, त्यो सस्तो थियो।
Jun hotel-maa ma base~, tyo sasto thiyo.
The hotel where I stayed was cheap.
जुन (which) is used for objects/places; जो is used for people.
06 · participial
हिजो आएको मान्छे आज फेरि आयो।
Hijo aaeko maanchhe aaja pheri aayo.
The man who came yesterday came again today.

Common questions

Which pattern should I use as a tourist — correlative or participial?: Participial. "मैले भेटेको मान्छे" (the man I met) is how everyday Nepali sounds. The जो...त्यो correlative is more formal and feels heavier in conversation. Start with -एको + noun.
Why is the relative clause BEFORE the head noun?: Nepali is SOV at the clause level and head-final at the phrase level. Modifiers — adjectives, relative clauses, possessors — all come before the noun they modify. "हिजो आएको मान्छे" literally orders as "yesterday came-man."
What's the difference between जो and जुन?: जो is the relative pronoun for animate referents — people. जुन is for inanimate referents — places, things, abstractions. "जो मान्छे" (which man) vs. "जुन होटल" (which hotel). They're not interchangeable.

Related grammar

Two patterns

Correlative (formal / written)

जो [clause], त्यो [main clause]

More common in writing and formal speech. The relative pronoun जो (who) pairs with त्यो (that one) in the main clause.

Participial (colloquial / common)

[verb-एको] + noun

Default in everyday speech. The participle precedes the head noun — "come-yesterday man" = "the man who came yesterday."

Worked sentences

01 · correlative

जो मान्छे मलाई सिकायो, त्यो अब छैन।

Jo maanchhe malaai sikaayo, tyo ab chhaina.

The man who taught me is no longer here.

02 · participial

मैले भेटेको मान्छे डाक्टर हो।

Maile bheteko maanchhe daakṭar ho.

The man I met is a doctor.

Notice -एको before the noun — this is the default Nepali pattern.

03 · participial

उनले किनेको ज्याकेट राम्रो छ।

Unle kineko jacket raamro chha.

The jacket she bought is nice.

04 · participial

तपाईंले खोज्नुभएको बाटो यहाँ छैन।

Tapaai~le khojnubhaeko baato yahaa~ chhaina.

The road you're looking for isn't here.

05 · correlative

जुन होटलमा म बसेँ, त्यो सस्तो थियो।

Jun hotel-maa ma base~, tyo sasto thiyo.

The hotel where I stayed was cheap.

जुन (which) is used for objects/places; जो is used for people.

06 · participial

हिजो आएको मान्छे आज फेरि आयो।

Hijo aaeko maanchhe aaja pheri aayo.

The man who came yesterday came again today.

Common questions

Which pattern should I use as a tourist — correlative or participial?

Participial. "मैले भेटेको मान्छे" (the man I met) is how everyday Nepali sounds. The जो...त्यो correlative is more formal and feels heavier in conversation. Start with -एको + noun.

Why is the relative clause BEFORE the head noun?

Nepali is SOV at the clause level and head-final at the phrase level. Modifiers — adjectives, relative clauses, possessors — all come before the noun they modify. "हिजो आएको मान्छे" literally orders as "yesterday came-man."

What's the difference between जो and जुन?

जो is the relative pronoun for animate referents — people. जुन is for inanimate referents — places, things, abstractions. "जो मान्छे" (which man) vs. "जुन होटल" (which hotel). They're not interchangeable.