LingoflyEveryday life and routine in Tamil
11 words in Tamil on the topic “everyday life and routine”: வேலை (vēlai) — work, விழிக்கிறன் (viḻikkiṟaṉ) — to wake up, எழுந்திருக்கிறன் (eḻundirukkiṟaṉ) — to get up, முகம் கழுவுறன் (mugam kaḻuvuṟaṉ) — to wash up. 11 words can be played from recordings.
11 words on the topic
- வேலைvēlaiworkWork, job and position at once. 'I work' is 'I do work'; 'I am busy' — 'I am at work'
- விழிக்கிறன்viḻikkiṟaṉto wake upFrom viḻi, 'eye': to wake up is to open the eyes. The image is transparent
- எழுந்திருக்கிறன்eḻundirukkiṟaṉto get upAssembled from 'to rise' and 'to be'. Waking and getting up are two different deeds
- முகம் கழுவுறன்mugam kaḻuvuṟaṉto wash upLiterally 'I wash the face' — Tamil names what gets washed. 'To bathe whole' is a different verb
- தலை சீவுறன்talai sīvuṟaṉto comb one's hairLiterally 'I comb the head'. 'Comb' the noun comes from the same root
- ஷேவ் செய்யிறன்ṣēv seyyiṟaṉto shaveAn English root with the Tamil 'to do'. This is how Tamil adopts borrowings
- உடுப்பு போடுறன்uḍuppu pōḍuṟaṉto get dressedLiterally 'I put on clothes'. 'Put' is a very loaded verb: to put, to wear, to pour
- உடுப்பு கழட்டுறன்uḍuppu kaḻaṭṭuṟaṉto get undressedThe partner of 'to get dressed': 'to take off'
- உட்காருறன்uṭkāruṟaṉto sit downBoth 'to sit down' and 'to sit'. The polite invitation is 'please sit'
- படுக்கிறன்paḍukkiṟaṉto lie downBoth 'to lie down' and 'to lie'. 'Bed' comes from the same root
- ஓய்வு எடுக்கிறன்ōivu eḍukkiṟaṉto restLiterally 'I take rest'. Ōivu is also 'rest' the noun and 'pension' in the set phrase 'to receive pension'
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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.
What is worth knowing about these words
வேலை (vēlai) — work. Work, job and position at once. 'I work' is 'I do work'; 'I am busy' — 'I am at work'.
விழிக்கிறன் (viḻikkiṟaṉ) — to wake up. From viḻi, 'eye': to wake up is to open the eyes. The image is transparent.
எழுந்திருக்கிறன் (eḻundirukkiṟaṉ) — to get up. Assembled from 'to rise' and 'to be'. Waking and getting up are two different deeds.
முகம் கழுவுறன் (mugam kaḻuvuṟaṉ) — to wash up. Literally 'I wash the face' — Tamil names what gets washed. 'To bathe whole' is a different verb.
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 வேலை (vēlai) — work.
- What is this word?
It is உடுப்பு கழட்டுறன் (uḍuppu kaḻaṭṭuṟaṉ) — to get undressed.
- What is this word?
It is முகம் கழுவுறன் (mugam kaḻuvuṟaṉ) — to wash up.
- What is this word?
It is ஓய்வு எடுக்கிறன் (ōivu eḍukkiṟaṉ) — to rest.
- What is this word?
It is உடுப்பு போடுறன் (uḍuppu pōḍuṟaṉ) — to get dressed.
Now the other way around: recall the spelling from the meaning. That is harder, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “work” in Tamil?
Work, job and position at once. 'I work' is 'I do work'; 'I am busy' — 'I am at work'
- How do you say “to get undressed” in Tamil?
The partner of 'to get dressed': 'to take off'
- How do you say “to wash up” in Tamil?
Literally 'I wash the face' — Tamil names what gets washed. 'To bathe whole' is a different verb
- How do you say “to rest” in Tamil?
Literally 'I take rest'. Ōivu is also 'rest' the noun and 'pension' in the set phrase 'to receive pension'
- How do you say “to get dressed” in Tamil?
Literally 'I put on clothes'. 'Put' is a very loaded verb: to put, to wear, to pour
How to learn the set instead of just reading it
Work, home, rest, errands. The words the answer to “how are things?” is made of.
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.
- Study spread over days wins 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 “work” in Tamil?
«வேலை» (vēlai), read “vēlai”. Work, job and position at once. 'I work' is 'I do work'; 'I am busy' — 'I am at work'. It is one of 11 words in the set “everyday life and routine” — the rest are in the table above.
How many everyday words do you need to start?
The whole set on this page is 11 words, but there is no need to start with all of it: the words you will need in the next few days are enough. Take them a few at a time — five to seven new ones per session.
Is there audio?
Yes, 11 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.