Lingoflyகாலி இடம்
- காலி இடம்kāli iḍamfree seat
“காலி இடம்” (kāli iḍam) — free seat in Tamil. Noun, level A1, topic — transport. 'Empty, vacant'; the same word names the vacant room. About a seat on the bus one asks shortly: 'is this free?' In a live sentence: “பின்னுக்க ஒரு காலி இடம் இருக்கு” (piṉṉukku oru kāli iḍam irukku) — There is a free seat at the back. You can hear how it sounds right here. Written with the characters க, ா, ல, ி, இ, ட, ம, ்.
In short
| Written in Tamil | காலி இடம் (kāli iḍam) |
| Read in Latin letters | kāli iḍam |
| Translation | free seat |
| Part of speech | noun |
| Level | A1 |
Why it looks that way
'Empty, vacant'; the same word names the vacant room. About a seat on the bus one asks shortly: 'is this free?'
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.
Nearby words: transport
Bus, metro, taxi, stop, station. These are words you need to recognize in writing — off a departure board and off a sign.
- பஸ்basbusThe English bus, written with the grantha letter reserved for foreign sounds
- ரயில்rayiltrainThe English rail. Words snap together: 'rail station' is the railway station, 'rail box' a carriage
- டாக்ஸிṭāksitaxiA car with a driver. The three-wheeler, of which there are many more on the island, has its own name: auto
- ஆட்டோāṭṭōtuk-tukThe three-wheeled taxi. In the south of the island it is a 'tuk-tuk', in the north simply an 'auto'
- டிரைவர்ḍraivardriverThe English driver. The bookish word exists too
- டிக்கட்ṭikkaṭticketThe English ticket — that is what one says at the station. The bookish word lives on plates and in announcements
- பிளாட்பாரம்plāṭpāramplatformThe English platform. The bookish word is known, but at the station nobody uses it
- ரயில் பெட்டிrayil peṭṭitrain carriageLiterally 'the train's box': a box, a suitcase and a carriage are one word
- விமானம்vimāṉamairplaneThat is what people say in speech. 'To fly' is 'I go by airplane', literally
- படகுpaḍaguboatpa-da-gu; the t between vowels sounds like d, and the k at the end like g
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “transport”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “free seat” in Tamil?
'Empty, vacant'; the same word names the vacant room. About a seat on the bus one asks shortly: 'is this free?'
- How do you say “platform” in Tamil?
The English platform. The bookish word is known, but at the station nobody uses it
- How do you say “taxi” in Tamil?
A car with a driver. The three-wheeler, of which there are many more on the island, has its own name: auto
- How do you say “boat” in Tamil?
Any boat. A big ship is another word
- How do you say “ticket” in Tamil?
The English ticket — that is what one says at the station. The bookish word lives on plates and in announcements
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 “free seat” in Tamil?
«காலி இடம்» (kāli iḍam), read “kāli iḍam”. In a live sentence: “பின்னுக்க ஒரு காலி இடம் இருக்கு” (piṉṉukku oru kāli iḍam irukku) — There is a free seat at the back. You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Noun, level A1, from the set “transport”; written with the characters க, ா, ல, ி, இ, ட, ம, ்.
How is “காலி இடம்” (kāli iḍam) written in Latin letters?
kāli iḍam. 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?
'Empty, vacant'; the same word names the vacant room. About a seat on the bus one asks shortly: 'is this free?' 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 this 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.