Police
❃ Police
-
පොලිසියට කතා කරන්න!
[ polisiyaṭa katā karanna! ] -
Call the police!
-
ටුවරිස්ට් පොලිසිය කොහේද?
[ ṭuvarisṭ polisiya kohēda? ] -
Where is the tourist police?
-
මාව මංකොල්ල කෑවා
[ māva maṅkolla kǣvā ] -
I have been robbed
-
කවුරුහරි මගේ බෑග් එක හොරකම් කළා
[ kavuruhari magē bǣg eka horakam kaḷā ] -
Someone stole my bag
-
මගේ පර්ස් එක නැතිවෙලා
[ magē pars eka nætivelā ] -
My wallet is missing
-
මට හොරකමක් ගැන පැමිණිලි කරන්න ඕනේ
[ maṭa horakamak gæna pæmiṇili karanna ōnē ] -
I want to report a theft
-
අනතුරක් වුණා
[ anaturak vuṇā ] -
There has been an accident
-
ඩ්රයිවර් පැනලා ගියා
[ ḍrayivar pænalā giyā ] -
The driver drove away (Hit and run)
-
මම අතරමං වෙලා
[ mama ataraman̆g velā ] -
I am lost
-
කරුණාකරලා මට උදව් කරන්න
[ karuṇākaralā maṭa udav karanna ] -
Please help me
-
මට ඔයාගේ ෆෝන් එක පාවිච්චි කරන්න පුළුවන්ද?
[ maṭa oyāgē fōn eka pāvicci karanna puḷuvanda? ] -
Can I use your phone?
-
මගේ ඉන්ෂුවරන්ස් එකට පොලිස් රිපෝට් එකක් ඕනේ
[ magē inṣuvarans ekaṭa polis ripōṭ ekak ōnē ] -
I need a police report for my insurance
-
මට සිංහල හොඳට බෑ
[ maṭa sin̆hala hon̆ḍaṭa bǣ ] -
I don't speak Sinhala well
-
ඔයාට මගේ පාස්පෝට් එක ඕනෙද?
[ oyāṭa magē pāspōṭ eka ōneda? ] -
Do you need my passport?
-
එයා අර පැත්තට ගියා!
[ eyā ara pættaṭa giyā! ] -
He went that way!
-
මම එයාගේ මූණ දැක්කා
[ mama eyāgē mūṇa dækkā ] -
I saw his face
-
එයා රතු ෂර්ට් එකක් ඇඳලා හිටියේ
[ eyā ratu ṣarṭ ekak æn̆dalā hiṭiyē ] -
He was wearing a red shirt
-
හදිසි ඇමතුම් අංකය මොකක්ද?
[ hadisi æmatum aṅkaya mokakda? ] -
What is the emergency number? (119 for Police)
-
ඔයාට හොඳින්ද?
[ oyāṭa hon̆dinda? ] -
Are you okay?
-
මම කිසිම වැරැද්දක් කළේ නෑ
[ mama kisima væræddak kaḷē nǣ ] -
I didn't do anything wrong
Dealing with law enforcement in a foreign country can be intimidating, but Sri Lanka has proactively addressed this by establishing a highly dedicated branch called the "Tourist Police" (ටුවරිස්ට් පොලිසිය - ṭuwarisṭ polisija). If you experience a theft—"Mawa mankolla kaewa" (මාව මංකොල්ල කෑවා - maːwa maŋkolla kæːwaː)—or get involved in a traffic accident, you can ask locals "Tourist policiya koheda?" (Where is the tourist police?). These officers wear specialized armbands, speak excellent English, and are specifically trained to handle insurance reports and foreigner-related issues with empathy. For immediate, severe emergencies, dialing 119 connects you to the national police dispatcher (note that in many Western countries, 119 is for medical or fire emergencies, but here it is strictly police). If you need to report an incident, you can say "Mata horakamak gana paminili karanna one" (මට හොරකමක් ගැන පැමිණිලි කරන්න ඕනේ), meaning "I want to report a theft." The absolute most crucial cultural advice when dealing with Sri Lankan police, or any official, is to remain entirely calm. In Western cultures, demanding your rights loudly might get you immediate attention, but in Sri Lanka, raising your voice or showing visible anger causes a severe "loss of face" for everyone involved. It is seen as uncultured and is deeply counterproductive. Sit down, speak softly, smile despite the stress of the situation, and let the officers slowly do their meticulous paperwork. A patient, respectful demeanor will magically expedite the bureaucratic process and earn you their full cooperation.
Other sections
Keep your progress
Enjoying the phrasebook?
Create a free account to save favorites, track your study, and continue where you stopped.