LingoflyIf: the ending -ஆ and the full -ஆல்
There is no separate word for 'if'. The condition shows as an ending on the verb of the first half. In live speech that ending is -ஆ on the past stem: மழை (maḻai) வந்தா (vandā), நான் (nāṉ) வர (vara) மாட்டன் (māṭṭaṉ) — 'if it rains, I will not come'. For example: “நீங்கள் (nīṅgaḷ) கணக்கு (kaṇakku) திறந்தா, அட்டை (aṭṭai) இலவசம்” (ilavasam) — If you open an account, the card is free. A rule from the Tamil course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
There is no separate word for 'if'. The condition shows as an ending on the verb of the first half. In live speech that ending is -ஆ (-ā) on the past stem: மழை (maḻai) வந்தா (vandā) (maḻai vandā), நான் (nāṉ) வர (vara) மாட்டன் (māṭṭaṉ) (nāṉ vara māṭṭaṉ) — 'if it rains, I will not come'.
It is built on the past stem, even when you mean the future. போனன் (pōṉaṉ) gives போனா (pōṉā) 'if I go', செய்தன் (seytaṉ) gives செய்தா (seydā). English says 'if I go', Tamil says 'if I went': the tense comes from the main half.
Books and notices write the full -ஆல்: மழை (maḻai) வந்தால். It is the same ending; speech usually swallows the final -ல். A bank sign takes -ஆல், a queue gives you -ஆ.
And -ஆலும் is 'even if': விலை (vilai) அதிகமானாலும் (vilai adigamāṉālum), நான் (nāṉ) வாங்குறன் (vāṅguṟaṉ) (nāṉ vāṅguṟaṉ). That is the full condition in -ஆல் plus the tail -உம் (-um) (--um), which everywhere means 'and, even'.
Table
| Verb | Past | Condition (speech) | Condition (bookish) |
|---|---|---|---|
| வா — come | வந்தன் (vandaṉ) | வந்தா (vandā) | வந்தால் |
| போ — go | போனன் (pōṉaṉ) | போனா (pōṉā) | போனால் |
| செய் — do | செய்தன் (seytaṉ) | செய்தா (seydā) | செய்தால் |
| இரு (iru) — be | இருந்தன் (irundaṉ) | இருந்தா (irundā) | இருந்தால் |
| வேணும் (vēṇum) — must | — | வேணுமெண்டா (vēṇumeṇḍā) | வேண்டுமானால் |
| even if | — | -ஆலும் | -ஆலும் |
By example
- vilai adigamāṉālum nāṉ inda vīṭṭai eḍukkiṟaṉEven if it is expensive, I will rent this house
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
If: how does it work in Tamil?
There is no separate word for 'if'. The condition shows as an ending on the verb of the first half. In live speech that ending is -ஆ on the past stem: மழை (maḻai) வந்தா (vandā), நான் (nāṉ) வர (vara) மாட்டன் (māṭṭaṉ) — 'if it rains, I will not come'.
What does it look like in a Tamil example sentence?
“நீங்கள் (nīṅgaḷ) கணக்கு (kaṇakku) திறந்தா, அட்டை (aṭṭai) இலவசம்” (ilavasam) (nīṅgaḷ kaṇakku tiṟandā, aṭṭai ilavasam) — If you open an account, the card is free. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.