Adjectives and adverbs
Describing words, -గా adverbs and comparing with కంటే.
An adjective comes before its noun and never changes: పెద్ద ఇల్లు pedda illu "a big house", పెద్ద ఇళ్ళు pedda iḷḷu "big houses".
| Adjective | Meaning | Adjective | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| మంచి maṁci | good | చెడ్డ ceḍḍa | bad |
| పెద్ద pedda | big, older | చిన్న cinna | small, younger |
| కొత్త kotta | new | పాత pāta | old (things) |
| వేడి vēḍi | hot | చల్లని callani | cold |
| ఎక్కువ ekkuva | much, a lot of | తక్కువ takkuva | little, few |
From nouns: -ఐన
Many describing words are nouns in Telugu. Adding -ఐన, also written -అయిన, makes them adjectives, and a final -ం becomes మ before it: అందం aṁdaṁ "beauty" gives అందమైన aṁdamaina "beautiful". ముఖ్యమైన mukhyamaina "important", కష్టమైన kaṣṭamaina "difficult" and సులభమైన sulabhamaina "easy" are made the same way.
- haidarābād oka aṁdamaina nagaraṁ.Hyderabad is a beautiful city.
Saying what something is like
To say "the house is big", the adjective takes a noun ending: -ది for women and things, -వాడు for a man, -వి for things in the plural and -వాళ్ళు for people.
- ī illu peddadi.This house is big.
- atanu maṁcivāḍu.He is a good man.
So ఆ ఇళ్ళు పెద్దవి ā iḷḷu peddavi is "those houses are big" and వాళ్ళు మంచివాళ్ళు vāḷḷu maṁcivāḷḷu "they are good people". For how something seems or feels, use -గా with ఉంది uṁdi: ఇక్కడ చల్లగా ఉంది ikkaḍa callagā uṁdi "it's cold here". బాగుంది bāguṁdi "it's good, it's nice" is heard all the time.
Adverbs: -గా
-గా turns a noun or an adjective into an adverb: త్వరగా tvaragā "quickly", నెమ్మదిగా nemmadigā "slowly", జాగ్రత్తగా jāgrattagā "carefully", సంతోషంగా saṁtōṣaṁgā "happily". బాగా bāgā means "well", and చాలా cālā "very, a lot".
- nemmadigā māṭlāḍaṁḍi.Please speak slowly.
- āme bāgā pāḍutuṁdi.She sings well.
Comparing: కంటే
"Than" is కంటే kaṁṭē after the "of" form, and the adjective doesn't change. కన్నా kannā means the same. "Than all" gives "the most": అన్నిటి కంటే anniṭi kaṁṭē for things, అందరి కంటే aṁdari kaṁṭē for people.
- ī illu ā iṁṭi kaṁṭē peddadi.This house is bigger than that one.
- atanu nā kaṁṭē peddavāḍu.He is older than me.
Cards from this guide
10 cardsEach card asks about one thing this guide teaches, and its back gives the answer with why and an example. They're reviewed with the rest of the Nouns and endings cards.
What happens to an adjective like పెద్ద (pedda, big) before a plural noun?
Nothing: it stays the same, as in పెద్ద ఇళ్ళు (big houses).
How do you make an adjective from a noun like అందం (aṁdaṁ, beauty)?
Add -ఐన, with final -ం becoming మ: అందమైన (beautiful).
How do you say 'this house is big' with పెద్ద (big) and ఈ ఇల్లు (this house)?
ఈ ఇల్లు పెద్దది. (ī illu peddadi)
What ending does an adjective take to say what a man is like, as in 'he is good'?
-వాడు (-vāḍu): అతను మంచివాడు.
What ending does an adjective take to say what several things are like, as in 'those houses are big'?
-వి (-vi): ఆ ఇళ్ళు పెద్దవి.
How do you say how something seems or feels, as in 'it's cold here'?
Describing word + -గా + ఉంది: ఇక్కడ చల్లగా ఉంది.
How do you make an adverb like 'carefully' from జాగ్రత్త (jāgratta, care)?
Add -గా: జాగ్రత్తగా (jāgrattagā).
How do you say 'well', as in 'she sings well'?
బాగా (bāgā)
How do you say 'than me', as in 'he is older than me'?
నా కంటే (nā kaṁṭē)
How do you say 'the most' about people, as in 'the cleverest in the class'?
అందరి కంటే (aṁdari kaṁṭē), 'than everyone'.