Tamil Pronouns and Levels of Respect

Tamil pronouns carry information about respect and about who is included.

The main pronouns

Pronoun	Romanised	Meaning
நான்	naan	I
நீ	nee	you (informal)
நீங்கள்	neengal	you (formal or plural)
அவன்	avan	he
அவள்	aval	she
அவர்	avar	he or she (respectful)
அது	adhu	it
அவர்கள்	avargal	they

Informal and formal you

• நீ is used with close friends, children and younger relatives.
• நீங்கள் is used with elders, strangers, and in formal settings. It is also the plural.

நீங்கள் எப்படி இருக்கிறீர்கள்? is polite. நீ எப்படி இருக்கிறாய்? is casual.

Respectful he and she

அவர் is used for a respected person of either gender, such as a teacher, an elder or a stranger. It is usually safer than அவன் or அவள், which can sound rude to the wrong person.

Two kinds of we

Tamil has two words for "we":

Pronoun	Meaning
நாம்	we, including the listener
நாங்கள்	we, excluding the listener

• நாம் போகலாம். Let's go (you and I).
• நாங்கள் போகிறோம். We are going (but not you).

English has no such distinction, so this is worth noticing.

Verbs and pronouns

Tamil verbs take endings that match the pronoun, which means the pronoun is often dropped.

Titles and names

Respect is also shown with names and titles, such as ஐயா (aiyaa, sir) and அம்மா (ammaa, madam, mother).

Tips

1. Use நீங்கள் with strangers and elders.
2. Use அவர் for respect.
3. Notice நாம் and நாங்கள்.
4. Use the dictionary to check pronoun forms.

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