Rough, rusty, faded: where Tamil takes its adjectives from
Tamil has few adjectives of its own — a dozen short words like நல்ல, பெரிய, சின்ன, புது. Everything else is put together on the spot, in three ways. For example: “இது வழுவழுப்பான தாள், அது கரடுமுரடான தாள்” — This paper is smooth, and that one is rough. A rule from the Tamil course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Tamil has few adjectives of its own — a dozen short words like நல்ல (nalla), பெரிய (periya), சின்ன (siṉṉa), புது (pudu). Everything else is put together on the spot, in three ways.
First: a noun plus -ஆன. சதுரம் (saduram) 'a square' gives சதுரமான (saduramāṉa) 'square', அடர்த்தி 'density' gives அடர்த்தியான (aḍarttiyāṉa) 'dense'. This is the liveliest way, and it takes foreign words too.
Second: a verb in the form -இற or -ஞ்ச. ஒட்டு 'to stick' gives ஒட்டுற (oṭṭuṟa) 'sticky', வளை 'to bend' gives வளைஞ்ச (vaḷaiñca) 'crooked', கசங்கு 'to crease' gives கசங்கின (kasaṅgiṉa) 'creased'. The feature is the trace of an event.
Third: no word at all, but a whole thought. நிறம் போன (niṟam pōṉa) means 'the color went', that is, faded. Such a turn stands before the noun where an adjective would. A feature denied takes -ஆத: உடையாத (uḍaiyāda) 'unbroken'.
Table
| Way | Stem | Feature | In English |
|---|---|---|---|
| noun + -ஆன | சதுரம் — a square | சதுரமான | square-shaped |
| noun + -ஆன | அடர்த்தி — density | அடர்த்தியான | dense |
| verb + -இற | ஒட்டு — to stick | ஒட்டுற | sticky |
| verb + -ஞ்ச | வளை — to bend | வளைஞ்ச | bent |
| verb + -ன | கசங்கு — to crease | கசங்கின | creased |
| verb + -ஆத | உடை — to break | உடையாத | intact |
| a whole turn | புழுதி படி — dust to settle | புழுதி படிஞ்ச | dusty |
By example
- இது வழுவழுப்பான தாள், அது கரடுமுரடான தாள்idu vaḻuvaḻuppāṉa tāḷ, adu karaḍumuraḍāṉa tāḷThis paper is smooth, and that one is rough
- கசங்கின சட்டையையும் நிறம் போன சட்டையையும் தூக்கி வையுங்கkasaṅgiṉa saṭṭaiyaiyum niṟam pōṉa saṭṭaiyaiyum tūkki vaiyuṅgaTake away the creased and the faded shirts
- பெட்டியில உடையாத கிண்ணம் ரெண்டு தான் மிச்சம்peṭṭiyila uḍaiyāda kiṇṇam reṇḍu tāṉ miccamOnly two intact cups remained in the box
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
Rough, rusty, faded: how does it work in Tamil?
Tamil has few adjectives of its own — a dozen short words like நல்ல, பெரிய, சின்ன, புது. Everything else is put together on the spot, in three ways.
What does it look like in an example sentence Tamil?
“இது வழுவழுப்பான தாள், அது கரடுமுரடான தாள்” (idu vaḻuvaḻuppāṉa tāḷ, adu karaḍumuraḍāṉa tāḷ) — This paper is smooth, and that one is rough. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.