nepalese

nepalese — adjective

1. from the country of Nepal, or describing something that has to do with Nepal, th

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

from the country of Nepal, or describing something that has to do with Nepal, the people living there, or the language they speak

Example

The dining table was decorated with Nepalese tablecloths and small brass candle holders.

Nepalese + noun for origin/style

Padma bought a Nepalese portrait of a Buddhist teacher from a shop in Kathmandu.

Common collocations
  • Nepalese government
  • Nepalese culture
  • Nepalese people
  • Nepalese cuisine
  • Nepalese Himalaya
Synonyms
  • Nepali

    more common in modern spoken English; interchangeable with Nepalese for most adjective uses

Grammar Patterns

Nepalese + noun

Usage Note

Nepalese and Nepali are both used as adjectives meaning 'from or relating to Nepal'. Nepali is now more common in everyday speech, while Nepalese appears more often in formal or written contexts.

Common Mistakes

I bought a Nepali scarf.' (when you mean the country, not the language).
I bought a Nepalese scarf.
Use Nepalese for things from the country; Nepali usually refers specifically to the language.

nepalese — noun

Word family

  • Nepal
    nounA2
  • Nepali
    adjectiveB1
  • Nepali
    nounB1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Nepalese and Nepali both refer to a person from Nepal, but they differ in frequency and tone. Nepalese is the older English term and is still widely used in formal writing, government documents, and news reports. Nepali has become the more common word in everyday conversation and is preferred by many Nepali speakers themselves when speaking English. Nepali citizen is the most formal option and is used in legal or official contexts where citizenship status matters. For example, in a news article about the Himalayan region you might read 'a Nepalese guide,' while in casual speech someone might say 'my colleague is a Nepali.' For the language, Nepali is now the standard name in English — Nepalese for the language sounds outdated to many native speakers.

Nepalese ↗NepaliNepali citizen

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • people of Nepal
  • residents of Nepal

Prepositions

  • from Nepal
  • of Nepal

Etymology

NewariSanskritEnglish

Nepalese comes from the place name Nepal, combined with the suffix -ese, which is used to form adjectives and nouns meaning 'belonging to a place' (similar to Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese). The name Nepal itself is ancient — it appears in Indian texts from the Vedic period and may come from the Newari language, in which 'ne' means 'country' and 'pal' means 'cave' or 'shelter.' The English form Nepalese has been in use since the 18th century.