சும்மா ஒரு கணக்கா
“சும்மா ஒரு கணக்கா” (summā oru kaṇakkā) — at a guess in Tamil. Adverb, level B1. Literally 'just by counting', that is without measuring. There is no adverb of its own — this is a phrase. In a live sentence: “சும்மா ஒரு கணக்கா ஐம்பது பேர் இருப்பினம்” — At a guess there will be some fifty people. You can hear how it sounds right here. Written with the characters ச, ு, ம, ், ம, ா, ஒ, ர, ு, க, ண, க.
In short
| Written in Tamil | சும்மா ஒரு கணக்கா |
| Read in Latin letters | summā oru kaṇakkā |
| Translation | at a guess |
| Part of speech | adverb |
| Level | B1 |
- சும்மா ஒரு கணக்காsummā oru kaṇakkāat a guess
Why it looks that way
Literally 'just by counting', that is without measuring. There is no adverb of its own — this is a phrase
A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
In a live sentence
A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.
- சும்மா ஒரு கணக்கா ஐம்பது பேர் இருப்பினம்summā oru kaṇakkā aimbadu pēr iruppiṉamAt a guess there will be some fifty people
How not to forget this word
Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.
- This has been tested on foreign words too. The difference shows up most when you test yourself a few days later rather than straight away.checked many timesKim & Webb, 2022, Language Learning 72(2) · 48 experiments, 3,411 participants, 98 comparisons.
- 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.
- An answer you worked out yourself sticks better than one handed to you.checked many timesBertsch et al., 2007, Memory & Cognition 35(2) · 86 studies, 445 comparisons, d = 0.40.
Frequently asked
How do you say “at a guess” in Tamil?
«சும்மா ஒரு கணக்கா», read “summā oru kaṇakkā”. In a live sentence: “சும்மா ஒரு கணக்கா ஐம்பது பேர் இருப்பினம்” — At a guess there will be some fifty people. You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Adverb, level B1; written with the characters ச, ு, ம, ், ம, ா, ஒ, ர, ு, க, ண, க.
How is “சும்மா ஒரு கணக்கா” written in Latin letters?
summā oru kaṇakkā. This is a practical spelling — you need it to read aloud and be understood, not to meet an academic standard.
Why does this word look the way it does?
Literally 'just by counting', that is without measuring. There is no adverb of its own — this is a phrase. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
Can I hear how it sounds?
Yes, right on this page: click the word and it will play. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.