Chapter 1.2 Consonants

Tamil Consonants

In this chapter we will learn the Tamil consonants and learn to identify, write and pronounce them.

The consonants are are called Mei ezhuthukaL. They are listed below.

க், ங், ச், ஞ், ட், ண், த், ந், ப், ம், ய், ர், ல், வ், ழ், ள், ற், ன். 

Learn the Tamil consonants using this video


Video for pronouncing Tamil consonants created by Vidya Mohan. 2024, CC BY-NC 4.0

Notes on Consonants

They always have a dot (puLLi/புள்ளி) on top.
They always start with the “e” sound.
It is interesting to note that some of the consonants are called a family (inam) and will appear together in words. These pairs are க்-ங், ச்-ஞ், ட்-ண், த்-ந், ப்-ம் and ற்-ன்.
There are some consonants that sound alike ந்,ண்,ன், ல்,ள்,ழ் and ர்,ற்.
These consonants that sound alike are differentiated by whether the sound arises from the nose, throat or chest.
The consonants are further divided into soft, hard and medium (Vallinam, Mellinam and Idaiynam).

வல்லினம்(Hard/Vallinam) க், ச்,ட், த்,ப், ற்

மெல்லினம்(Soft/Mellinam) ஞ், ங், ண்,ந்,ம்,ன்

இடையினம் (Medium/Idaiynam) ய், ர், ல்,வ்,ழ்,ள்

Pronunciation of Consonants

This chart below shows how to pronounce the consonants with simple English examples.

Consonant Group Pronunciation Help
க் vallinam k as in king
ங் mellinam ng as in king
ச் vallinam ch as in match
ஞ் mellinam ng as in plunge
ட் vallinam t as in top
ண் mellinam n as in cinder
த் vallinam th as in bath
ந் mellinam n as in pan
ப் vallinam p as in puck
ம் mellinam m as in from
ய் idaiyinam y as in yak
ர் idaiyinam r as in fur
ல் idaiyinam l as in lump
வ் idaiyinam v as in vice
ழ் idaiyinam tongue retracted to produce “zh”
ள் idaiyinam l as in marble
ற் vallinam tr as in trick
ன் mellinam n as in fin

Pronouncing the Consonants Activity

Writing the Consonants Activity

Consonant writing worksheet is given below for you to print and practice writing the consonants by hand.

Tamil consonant handwritten worksheet (PDF)

 

Here is a complete image of all the alphabets we have learnt so far.

Tamil alphabets. Vowels and consonants in poster form.
Tamil Vowels and Consonants. Used with permission from noolagam.com.

 

License

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Basic Tamil Copyright © 2024 by Vidya Mohan is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

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