Are you wondering what are the terminologies used for describing sports in Nepal? Get to know the best words to use and impress the locals by reading this post. After all, the locals are very interested in this topic, and the Nepali words you can learn here might be useful when starting a conversation with them. Are you ready to learn more? Let’s get started.
Words For Sports In Nepal
| English | Nepali | Pronunciation |
| Soccer/Football | फुटबल | phuṭabala |
| American football | अमेरिकी फुटबल | amērikī phuṭabala |
| Basketball | बास्केटबल | bāskēṭabala |
| Tennis | टेनिस | Ṭēnisa |
| Golf | गोल्फ | gōlpha |
| Baseball | बेसबल | bēsabala |
| Running | चलिरहेको | calirahēkō |
| Sumo wrestling | सुमो कुश्ती | sumō kuśtī |
| Taekwondo | तेक्वान्दो | tēkvāndō |
| Volleyball | भलिबल | bhalibala |
| Swimming | पौडी खेल्ने | pauḍī khēlnē |
| Boxing | बक्सिङ | baksiṅa |
| Table tennis | टेबल टेनिस | Ṭēbala ṭēnisa |
| Cricket | क्रिकेट | krikēṭa |
| Rugby | रग्बी | ragbī |
| Kickboxing | किकबक्सिङ | kikabaksiṅa |
| Surfing | सर्फिङ | sarphiṅa |
| Karate | कराते | karātē |
| Judo | जुडो | juḍō |
| Cycling | साइकल चलाउने | sā’ikala calā’unē |
| Weight lifting | भारोत्तोलन | bhārōttōlana |
What Are The Most Injured Body Parts When Playing Sports?
Injuries during sports or any physical activity are common and, most of the time, not something you can prevent.
During playing sports in Nepal, you would want to know the names of the body parts if you get injured and need to explain your pain to the medical staff during an emergency.
Before diving into sports, let’s first learn every vocabulary body parts and injury symptoms in Nepali.
Body Parts
| English | Nepali | Pronunciation |
| Hand | हात | Hāta |
| Foot | खुट्टा | Khuṭṭā |
| Toe(s) | औंला | Aunlā |
| Ankle | घुँडा | Ghum̐ḍā |
| Knee | घुँडा | Ghum̐ḍā |
| Finger(s) | औंला | Aunlā |
| Spine | मेरुदण्ड | Mērudaṇḍa |
| Shoulder | काँध | Kām̐dha |
| Wrist | नाडी | Nāḍī |
| Nose | नाक | Nāka |
Inside The Body
| English | Nepali | Pronunciation |
| Brain | मस्तिष्क | Mastiṣka |
| Skull | खोपडी | Khōpaḍī |
| Bone | हड्डी | Haḍḍī |
| Ligament | लिगामेन्ट | Ligāmēnṭa |
| Muscle | मासु | Māsu |
| Blood | रगत | Ragata |
| Bleeding | रक्तस्राव | Raktasrāva |
| Tendon | कण्डरा | Kaṇḍarā |
| Nerve | स्नायु | Snāyu |
Symptoms
| English | Nepali | Pronunciation |
| Broken | भाँचिएको | Bhām̐ci’ēkō |
| Dizzy | चक्कर | Cakkara |
| Nausea | वाकवाकी | Vākavākī |
| Vomit | बान्ता | Bāntā |
| Headache | टाउको दुखाइ | Ṭā’ukō dukhā’i |
| Concussion | आघात | Āghāta |
| Torn | च्यातिएको | Cyāti’ēkō |
| Cut | काट्नु | Kāṭnu |
| Pain | दुखाइ | Dukhā’i |
Other Words Related To Sports
Sports events are popular in the Nepali culture as well as in many other countries all over the globe. In this section, we will go over the most common words related to sports and sports events.
- Arena: मैदान (pronounced Maidāna)
- Athlete: खेलाडी (pronounced Khēlāḍī)
- Athletics: एथलेटिक्स (pronounced Ēthalēṭiksa)
- Award: पुरस्कार (pronounced Puraskāra)
- Beat: पिट्नु (pronounced Piṭnu)
- Captain: कप्तान (pronounced Kaptāna)
- Catch: समात्नुहोस् (pronounced Samātnuhōs)
- Coach: प्रशिक्षक (pronounced Praśikṣaka)
- Compete: प्रतिस्पर्धा (pronounced Pratispardhā)
- Court: अदालत (pronounced Adālata)
- Defeat: पराजय (pronounced Parājaya)
- Event: घटना (pronounced Ghaṭanā)
- Fan: फ्यान (pronounced Phyāna)
- Medal: पदक (pronounced Padaka)
- Referee: रेफ्री (pronounced Rēphrī)
- Rules: नियमहरू (pronounced Niyamaharū)
- Score: स्कोर (pronounced Skōra)
- Strategy: रणनीति (pronounced Raṇanīti)
- Teammate: टोली साथी (pronounced Ṭōlī sāthī)
- Victory: विजय (pronounced Vijaya)
Famous Sports In Nepal
In this section, we will be telling you about the famous games/sports in Nepal that men, women, and children love! Find out more about it below!
Cricket: This sport was introduced in the 1920s. The Cricket Association of Nepal was formed in 1946 and was funded by the Asian Cricket Council.
Volleyball: This has been the national game in Nepal, since May of 2017. The Nepal Volleyball Association spoke to the government about making this sport the national game. They convinced them to do this by showing them that this sport takes a lot less space to play than most other sports.
Swimming: Swimming is said to be one of the most popular sports in the Olympic games. The Nepal Swimming Association organizes events for professional swimmers in Nepal. Gaurika Singh, a 13-year-old Nepal local, is considered the youngest professional swimmer in Nepal to participate in the Olympics.
Boxing: Nepal won many international medals for boxing events in Nepal and many other countries. Because of Nepal’s growing success in this sport, boxing quickly became one of the most popular sports in Nepal.
Dandi biyo: This popular sport gets played the most in rural areas of Nepal. Before volleyball became the national sport, this was the national sport. This sport is played with roughly a 2-3 meter long stick and a 7-inch wooden pin. The stick is what makes up the Dandi part of the name of this sport, and the wooden pin makes up the Biyo part of the name for this sport. At first glance, this game can look a lot like baseball.
Kabaddi: This is one of the most famous games in Nepal. It originally started off in India and is extremely popular. This sport/game is usually played in two groups with seven players. Kabaddi is a professional game of tag. Though it started in rural areas, it is slowly becoming more of a professional sport in Nepal instead of just a game to play with your friends in the neighborhood.
What’s Next For You?
Now that you have an idea of the best words to use for talking about sports in Nepali, we urge you to find ways to use this in your conversations with the locals. With that said, you can try to join online discussions with sports fanatics or look for a language partner interested in this topic.
If you genuinely want to learn more deeply, we urge you to keep reading below! Nepali is not a an extremely difficult language to learn and we know that with Ling you can definitely achieve your goals.
Why Should You Download The Ling App?
Speaking a new language can be challenging, but the Ling App makes language learning super convenient for total beginners. With that said, we invite you to make the fantastic choice to learn Nepali using the Ling App. This platform gives you access to lessons for 60+ languages and lets you take your lessons at your own pace. Get to know more about its features here or dive right into it by downloading the app for free on PlayStore and the AppleStore!
