Pronouns in Tamil
26 words Tamil words on the topic “pronouns”: நான் — I, நீ — you (informal), நீங்க — you (polite), அவர் — he. 26 words can be played from recordings.
26 words on the topic
- நான்nāṉIUsually dropped in speech: the verb ending already shows who acts. Naan is added for emphasis — 'I, personally'
- நீnīyou (informal)Only for close friends and children. With anyone else it sounds rude — switch to nīṅga
- நீங்கnīṅgayou (polite)The polite you: for strangers, elders and everyone you are not on first-name terms with. Its verbs take the ending -īṅga
- அவர்avarheThe respectful form — so respectful that it is used about women too, whenever deference is due
- அவள்avaḷsheFor a younger woman or one of your own circle. About an elder or a stranger you switch to the respectful avar, the same word as 'he'
- நாங்கnāṅgaweWe without you: me and mine. If the 'we' includes the listener, Tamil reaches for a different word, nām — a distinction English never makes
- என்னோடeṉṉōḍamyThe spoken form of the bookish eṉṉuṭaiya. The tail -ōḍa is what makes it possessive
- உன்னோடuṉṉōḍayour (informal)For an equal or a younger person. For an elder it is uṅgaḷōḍa, and mixing the two up is no small matter
- எங்களோடeṅgaḷōḍaourTamil splits 'our without you' (eṅgaḷ) from 'our with you' (nammaḷ) — a rare distinction
- உங்களோடuṅgaḷōḍayour (polite)Doubles as the polite 'your' singular. With elders and strangers this is the one to take
- அவரோடavarōḍahis, her, their (whose)Tamil is more precise than English here: avaṉōḍa about a man, avaḷōḍa about a woman, avarōḍa politely about anyone
- சொந்தsondaownAlso 'native': sondha ūr, 'one's native town'. One word covering both senses of own
- நானேnāṉēmyselfFrom nān, 'I', with the intensifier -ē. It flexes by person: nānē, nīyē, avarē
- முழுmuḻuwholeStands before the noun: muḻu nāḷ, 'the whole day'. The letter ḻ is that special Tamil sound again
- ஒவ்வொருவரும்ovvoruvarumeach ofFrom ovvoru, 'every', plus an animate tail and -um. Long, but assembled transparently
- எந்த ஒருenda oruanyEndha is 'which', oru is 'one'. Together they yield 'any — whichever one you like'
- இந்தindathisTwo steps: 'this' near, 'that' farther. The initial i- and a- are what tell them apart
- அந்தandathatThe partner of 'this'. The same i-/a- opposition works in 'here/there' too
- இப்படிப்பட்டippaḍippaṭṭasuchFrom 'in this way'. The spoken 'like this' version is shorter and heard more often
- வேறvēṟaanotherThe spoken form of the bookish 'other'. It also means 'except'
- எந்தendanoneIn a negative phrase 'which' becomes 'none'. On its own it is simply 'which'
- யாரோyārōsomeoneFrom 'who' with the tail -ō of vagueness. 'Something' is assembled the same way
- ஏதோēdōsomething or otherThe partner of 'someone', built with the same tail -ō. One is for people, the other for things
- யாரும்yārumnone of themFrom 'who' with the tail -um. In a negative phrase it means 'no one'
- ஒன்னும்oṉṉumnothingFrom 'one', with the same tail -um. Literally 'and not one'
- அவங்கavaṅgatheyYou know avar, 'he', and avaḷ, 'she'. Avaṅga is 'they' — and, politely, one person too, just as nīṅga stands for a single 'you': number surrenders to respect
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.
- நான் யாழ்ப்பாணத்தில இருக்கேன்nāṉ yāḻppāṇattila irukkēṉI live in Jaffna
- நீ எங்க போற?nī eṅga pōṟa?Where are you going?
- நீங்க எங்க இருந்து வாறீங்க?nīṅga eṅga irundu vāṟīṅga?Where have you come from?
- அவர் ஒரு டாக்டர்avar oru ḍākṭarHe is a doctor
- அவள் பாடசாலைக்கு போறாள்avaḷ pāḍasālaikku pōṟāḷShe is going to school
- நாங்க யாழ்ப்பாணத்தில இருக்கிறம்nāṅga yāḻppāṇattila irukkiṟamWe live in Jaffna
What is worth knowing about these words
நான் (nāṉ) — I. Usually dropped in speech: the verb ending already shows who acts. Naan is added for emphasis — 'I, personally'
நீ (nī) — you (informal). Only for close friends and children. With anyone else it sounds rude — switch to nīṅga
நீங்க (nīṅga) — you (polite). The polite you: for strangers, elders and everyone you are not on first-name terms with. Its verbs take the ending -īṅga
அவர் (avar) — he. The respectful form — so respectful that it is used about women too, whenever deference is due
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 நான் (nāṉ) — I.
- What is this word?
It is உன்னோட (uṉṉōḍa) — your (informal).
- What is this word?
It is ஒவ்வொருவரும் (ovvoruvarum) — each of.
- What is this word?
It is யாரோ (yārō) — someone.
- What is this word?
It is நீங்க (nīṅga) — you (polite).
Now the other way around: recall the spelling from the meaning. That is harder, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “I” in Tamil?
Usually dropped in speech: the verb ending already shows who acts. Naan is added for emphasis — 'I, personally'
- How do you say “your (informal)” in Tamil?
For an equal or a younger person. For an elder it is uṅgaḷōḍa, and mixing the two up is no small matter
- How do you say “each of” in Tamil?
From ovvoru, 'every', plus an animate tail and -um. Long, but assembled transparently
- How do you say “someone” in Tamil?
From 'who' with the tail -ō of vagueness. 'Something' is assembled the same way
- How do you say “you (polite)” in Tamil?
The polite you: for strangers, elders and everyone you are not on first-name terms with. Its verbs take the ending -īṅga
How to learn the set instead of just reading it
I, you, we, they. There is a handful of them, they turn up in every sentence, and politeness rides on them: most of these languages keep a formal “you” apart from a familiar one, and choosing the wrong one is noticed faster than a mispronounced word.
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 “I” in Tamil?
«நான்», read “nāṉ”. Usually dropped in speech: the verb ending already shows who acts. Naan is added for emphasis — 'I, personally'. It is one of 26 words in the set “pronouns” — the rest are in the table above.
How many pronouns do you need to start?
A dozen is enough. The set of 26 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, 26 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.