Tamil consonants
Explore Tamil’s consonant groups and notice the pulli on pure consonants. Use the sound labels and recordings together.
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Read beyond the English spelling
Study one course group at a time. Keep the native letter visible beside its English label, especially when several letters have similar labels.
- க் — k as in skip. The pulli dot means no following a.
- ச் — ch as in match; this letter can also have an s-like sound in words.
- ட் — Curl the tongue tip back for ṭ; different from dental th.
18 Tamil consonants in course groups
Hard consonants (Vallinam)
The six traditional hard consonants. The dot removes the vowel; sounds can change within words.
| Letter | English sound guide | Reading hint | Recording |
|---|---|---|---|
| க் | k | k as in skip. The pulli dot means no following a. | Listen |
| ச் | ch | ch as in match; this letter can also have an s-like sound in words. | Listen |
| ட் | ṭ | Curl the tongue tip back for ṭ; different from dental th. | Listen |
| த் | th | Touch the upper teeth with the tongue for th; this is a stop, not English th. | Listen |
| ப் | p | p as in spin, without a strong puff of air. | Listen |
| ற் | ṟ | An alveolar r sound, distinct in spelling from ர்; doubled ற்ற has a stop-like reading. | Listen |
Nasal consonants (Mellinam)
Six nasal letters. Keep n, ṇ and ṉ distinct in spelling; the hints show tongue position.
| Letter | English sound guide | Reading hint | Recording |
|---|---|---|---|
| ங் | ng | ng as at the end of sing; a nasal from the back of the mouth. | Listen |
| ஞ் | ny | A single palatal nasal, roughly ny in canyon. | Listen |
| ண் | ṇ | Curl the tongue tip back for this nasal ṇ. | Listen |
| ந் | n | Dental n: the tongue touches the upper teeth. | Listen |
| ம் | m | Close both lips for m; there is no following a. | Listen |
| ன் | ṉ | Alveolar ṉ: tongue at the ridge behind the teeth; distinct from ந் and ண். | Listen |
Middle consonants (Idaiyinam)
Six traditional middle consonants. Compare l, ḷ and zh carefully.
| Letter | English sound guide | Reading hint | Recording |
|---|---|---|---|
| ய் | y | y as in yes, without adding a vowel. | Listen |
| ர் | r | A quick tongue-tip tap; keep it distinct from ற் in writing. | Listen |
| ல் | l | l with the tongue near the upper teeth. | Listen |
| வ் | v | A sound between English v and w. | Listen |
| ழ் | zh | Curl the tongue back without making a stop; zh is not English z plus h. | Listen |
| ள் | ḷ | Curl the tongue tip back for ḷ; air passes around its sides. | Listen |
Recognise a group at a time
- Choose a few written forms and compare their English hints.
- Cover the hints and identify the letters in a different order.
- Practise with matching, mixing, flashcards, or a visual quiz.
Keep one consonant fixed in the vowel-sign chart, then look for it in beginner words.
Prepared by Learn Akshara from our beginner Tamil curriculum. English spellings are approximate learning aids. Writing-system reference: The Unicode Standard, South Asian Scripts. AI-generated pronunciation is a learning aid, not a guarantee of accuracy. See our audio sources and credits.