Verbs in Tamil
27 words Tamil words on the topic “verbs”: வேணும் — want; need, போறேன் — to go, சாப்பிடறேன் — to eat, குடிக்கிறேன் — to drink. 27 words can be played from recordings.
27 words on the topic
- வேணும்vēṇumwant; needBuilt like 'to me ... is wanted': eṉakku ṭī vēṇum, 'I need tea'. The wanting one stands in the dative
- போறேன்pōṟēṉto goThe course gives the first-person form, 'I go': Tamil has no dictionary form at all, the stem stands in the lexicon. The ending -ēṉ is the 'I'. On foot or by bus — the verb is one
- சாப்பிடறேன்sāppiḍaṟēṉto eatFirst person, 'I eat'; the lexicon stem is sāppiṭu-. Nothing to do with 'there is, to have': existence is a different verb
- குடிக்கிறேன்kuḍikkiṟēṉto drinkFirst person, 'I drink'. The same verb smokes: 'I drink a cigarette', literally
- பேசுறேன்pēsuṟēṉto speakFirst person, 'I speak'. On the island the livelier verb is 'to chat', but this one is understood everywhere
- இருக்கேன்irukkēṉto beFirst person, 'I am'. Also 'I am located' and 'I live': 'I am in Jaffna' is how one says 'I live in Jaffna'
- கத்துக்கிறேன்kattukkiṟēṉto studyFirst person, 'I learn, I study'. One word for both 'to study something' and 'to be a student'. Teaching someone is a different verb — literally 'to give learning'
- தேர்ந்தெடுக்கிறேன்tērndeḍukkiṟēṉto chooseThe verb is given in the 'I do' form — here 'I choose'. In the shop people say it simpler: 'I will look and take'
- படிக்கிறேன்paḍikkiṟēṉto be a studentIt also means 'I read': the root serves both studying and reading. The verb you know is about mastering a skill
- ஞாபகம் வைக்கிறேன்ñābagam vaikkiṟēṉto memorizeLiterally 'I place into memory': 'memory' is the first word. 'I forgot' is another verb
- பாக்கிறேன்pākkiṟēṉto seepaak-ki-ren; the ṟ is a rolled r, crisper than the soft r of maram
- கேக்கிறேன்kēkkiṟēṉto hearkeek-ki-ren; a rolled r, and the t of the bookish form disappears in speech
- தூங்குறேன்tūṅguṟēṉto sleepThe bookish form loses a syllable in speech. 'I feel sleepy' is said impersonally: literally 'sleep is coming to me'
- கொண்டு போறேன்koṇḍu pōṟēṉto carrykon-du poo-ren; the n is made with the tongue curled back
- வைக்கிறேன்vaikkiṟēṉto placevaik-ki-ren; the ṟ is a rolled r
- உடைக்கிறேன்uḍaikkiṟēṉto breakAbout what flies into pieces: dishes, a branch, a coconut. Machinery in Tamil does not break — it spoils, the phrase you know from the home unit. What got broken is the participle you know
- கட்டுறேன்kaṭṭuṟēṉto buildkat-tu-ren; the tt is made with the tongue curled back — that is the only difference from 'I shout'
- சூடாக்குறேன்sūḍākkuṟēṉto heatFrom 'heat': the insert makes an action out of a property — 'I make it hot'. To reheat food keeps the same verb; what heats by itself takes the plain form
- பார்க்கிறேன்pārkkiṟēṉto watchYou know the Jaffna shortened 'to see' — what falls into the eyes on its own. One root, but the full form stands where one looks on purpose: a film, a book, out of the window
- பறக்கிறேன்paṟakkiṟēṉto flyYou know 'aeroplane'. The verb is first of all a bird's; about a person it is said when they fly by plane, and 'by plane' stands nearby. The Jaffna r is the same as in 'firewood'
- பாவிக்கிறேன்pāvikkiṟēṉto useThe Lankan word: Tamil Nadu says two other verbs, but on the island, in the shop and at home alike, it is this one. It fits things and languages alike: 'I use Tamil'
- சந்திக்கிறேன்sandikkiṟēṉto meetYou know 'gathering, meeting'. The root means both 'crossroads' and the verb 'to meet': roads converge the way people do. Meeting an arrival at the station is another matter — there one says 'to go and fetch'
- தொடுறேன்toḍuṟēṉto touchA brief touch with the hand: to check whether it is hot, or to tap a shoulder. In a temple and before elders the word carries weight — the elder's feet are touched as a sign of respect, with the same verb. The prohibition is 'do not touch'
- வாழுறேன்vāḻuṟēṉto liveYou know 'life', from the same root. This is to live a life somewhere or somehow; about merely residing at an address one says 'to be'
- வேலை செய்யிறேன்vēlai seyyiṟēṉto workYou know 'work' and the phrase 'does not do work', about a device. Tamil keeps no single verb: work is done — the noun plus 'to do' — and the same turn covers a person and a machine
- வாசிக்கிறேன்vāsikkiṟēṉto readYou know 'to study': in Tamil Nadu the same verb means both, which muddles things. On the island one reads with this verb and leaves the other to study. It also plays an instrument: 'I play the veena' is 'I read the veena'
- இருக்குirukkuthere isYou know 'to be' in the 'I' form. This is the form for things, and with it Tamil says 'there is, there exists': the place in the location case, the thing simply beside it. The negation is the 'not' you know
How it sounds in a sentence
A word list is a blank. Conversation is made of sentences, and these are the ones the words fit into most often.
- எனக்கு டீ வேணும்eṉakku ṭī vēṇumI need tea
- நான் வீட்டுக்கு போறேன்nāṉ vīṭṭukku pōṟēṉI am going home
- நான் சாதம் சாப்பிடறேன்nāṉ sādam sāppiḍaṟēṉI eat rice
- நான் தண்ணி குடிக்கிறேன்nāṉ taṇṇi kuḍikkiṟēṉI drink water
- நான் தமிழ் பேசுறேன்nāṉ tamiḻ pēsuṟēṉI speak Tamil
- நான் இப்ப வீட்டில இருக்கேன்nāṉ ippa vīṭṭila irukkēṉI am at home now
What is worth knowing about these words
வேணும் (vēṇum) — want; need. Built like 'to me ... is wanted': eṉakku ṭī vēṇum, 'I need tea'. The wanting one stands in the dative
போறேன் (pōṟēṉ) — to go. The course gives the first-person form, 'I go': Tamil has no dictionary form at all, the stem stands in the lexicon. The ending -ēṉ is the 'I'. On foot or by bus — the verb is one
சாப்பிடறேன் (sāppiḍaṟēṉ) — to eat. First person, 'I eat'; the lexicon stem is sāppiṭu-. Nothing to do with 'there is, to have': existence is a different verb
குடிக்கிறேன் (kuḍikkiṟēṉ) — to drink. First person, 'I drink'. The same verb smokes: 'I drink a cigarette', literally
Test yourself
First by ear — the way you will meet the word in conversation. Click the speaker and pick the translation.
- What is this word?
It is வேணும் (vēṇum) — want; need.
- What is this word?
It is தேர்ந்தெடுக்கிறேன் (tērndeḍukkiṟēṉ) — to choose.
- What is this word?
It is வைக்கிறேன் (vaikkiṟēṉ) — to place.
- What is this word?
It is சந்திக்கிறேன் (sandikkiṟēṉ) — to meet.
- What is this word?
It is போறேன் (pōṟēṉ) — to go.
Now the other way around: recall the spelling from the meaning. That is harder, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “want; need” in Tamil?
Built like 'to me ... is wanted': eṉakku ṭī vēṇum, 'I need tea'. The wanting one stands in the dative
- How do you say “to choose” in Tamil?
The verb is given in the 'I do' form — here 'I choose'. In the shop people say it simpler: 'I will look and take'
- How do you say “to place” in Tamil?
One verb for 'to put, to set, to lay': upright or flat, Tamil does not care. It is also inside 'to remember' and 'to trust' — 'to place memory', 'to place trust'
- How do you say “to meet” in Tamil?
You know 'gathering, meeting'. The root means both 'crossroads' and the verb 'to meet': roads converge the way people do. Meeting an arrival at the station is another matter — there one says 'to go and fetch'
- How do you say “to go” in Tamil?
The course gives the first-person form, 'I go': Tamil has no dictionary form at all, the stem stands in the lexicon. The ending -ēṉ is the 'I'. On foot or by bus — the verb is one
How to learn the set instead of just reading it
I want, I can, I am going, I know. Twenty verbs cover more everyday sentences than two hundred nouns.
A list is read in a minute and forgotten in a day. What works: hide the translation, try to recall, get it wrong — and come back to the same words tomorrow.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- This holds not only in experiments but in ordinary classrooms, with real students.checked many timesMawson & Kang, 2025, Behavioral Sciences 15(6):771 · 22 studies, d = 0.54 (confidence interval 0.31–0.77). The authors warn that individual studies disagree widely.
Frequently asked
How do you say “want; need” in Tamil?
«வேணும்», read “vēṇum”. Built like 'to me ... is wanted': eṉakku ṭī vēṇum, 'I need tea'. The wanting one stands in the dative. It is one of 27 words in the set “verbs” — the rest are in the table above.
How many verbs do you need to start?
A dozen is enough. The set of 27 words on this page covers nearly every everyday case on the topic — but it is best taken a few at a time, not all at once.
Is there audio?
Yes, 27 words on this page can be played — click the speaker next to the word. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.