Gender
Men, and everyone and everything else.
Gender in Telugu follows meaning. In the singular, men are masculine, while women, animals and things share the other forms. In the plural, people, men and women alike, take one set of forms and everything else another.
| Subject | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Men | అతను వచ్చాడు atanu vaccāḍu he came | వాళ్ళు వచ్చారు vāḷḷu vaccāru they came |
| Women | ఆమె వచ్చింది āme vacciṁdi she came | వాళ్ళు వచ్చారు vāḷḷu vaccāru they came |
| Animals and things | బస్సు వచ్చింది bassu vacciṁdi the bus came | బస్సులు వచ్చాయి bassulu vaccāyi the buses came |
So "she came" and "the bus came" use the same verb, while "he came" differs. In the plural, men and women together take -ఆరు -āru, and animals and things -ఆయి -āyi.
Where gender shows
Gender shows mainly in the verb (Verb tense basics, Negative verbs). An adjective before a noun never changes.
| He | She, it | |
|---|---|---|
| Past | చేశాడు cēśāḍu | చేసింది cēsiṁdi |
| Future, habit | చేస్తాడు cēstāḍu | చేస్తుంది cēstuṁdi |
| Ongoing | చేస్తున్నాడు cēstunnāḍu | చేస్తోంది cēstōṁdi |
| Negative | చేయడు cēyaḍu | చేయదు cēyadu |
| Is there | ఉన్నాడు unnāḍu | ఉంది uṁdi |
| Is not there | లేడు lēḍu | లేదు lēdu |
| Is not (a) | కాడు kāḍu | కాదు kādu |
Meaning, not form
The shape of a word does not decide its gender. అన్న anna "older brother" ends in a, like అక్క akka "older sister", but takes the masculine: అన్న వచ్చాడు anna vaccāḍu, అక్క వచ్చింది akka vacciṁdi. Many words for people come in pairs:
| Man | Woman |
|---|---|
| అబ్బాయి abbāyi boy | అమ్మాయి ammāyi girl |
| తమ్ముడు tammuḍu younger brother | చెల్లెలు cellelu younger sister |
| స్నేహితుడు snēhituḍu friend | స్నేహితురాలు snēhiturālu friend |
| విద్యార్థి vidyārthi student | విద్యార్థిని vidyārthini student |
Respect
Respected people take the plural -రు -ru even when there is one of them, whatever their gender: ఆయన āyana, ఆవిడ āviḍa, మీరు mīru, and anyone named with గారు gāru (Polite speech and greetings).
- mā tammuḍu baḍiki veḷḷāḍu.My younger brother went to school.
- mā cellelu baḍiki veḷḷiṁdi.My younger sister went to school.
- pillalu āḍukuṁṭunnāru.The children are playing.
- pillulu pālu tāgutunnāyi.The cats are drinking milk.
- mā nānnagāru vaccāru.My father has come.
Cards from this guide
9 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.
In the singular, which nouns take the same verb forms as women?
Animals and things.
How do you say 'he came', with అతను (he)?
అతను వచ్చాడు (atanu vaccāḍu).
What verb ending do people take in the plural, men and women alike, as in 'they came'?
-ఆరు (-āru): వాళ్ళు వచ్చారు.
What verb ending do animals and things take in the plural, as in 'the buses came'?
-ఆయి (-āyi): బస్సులు వచ్చాయి.
The verb or an adjective: which one changes for gender in Telugu?
The verb.
Which verb form follows అన్న (older brother), a word ending in a like అక్క (older sister)?
The masculine: అన్న వచ్చాడు.
What's the word for a female friend, the counterpart of స్నేహితుడు (friend)?
స్నేహితురాలు (snēhiturālu).
What verb ending does one respected person named with గారు (gāru) take?
The plural -రు: నాన్నగారు వచ్చారు.
Why should you not call a woman అది (it)?
It is very familiar, even rude.