യമകം examples

'അവക്കാഡോ' അവ(ൾ)ക്കാടോ

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ഒഴിച്ചുകൂട്ടാൻ ഒഴിച്ചുകൂട്ടാൻ വയ്യാ

കുതിരാ കുതിരക്കുഞ്ചി
കുതി രണ്ടു വച്ച കുതിര


പൈയ്യുള്ള പൈ പൈയ്യെപ്പൈയ്യെ 'പൈ' തിന്നു

തത്ത തത്തി

കക്ക കക്കി

ദാണ്ടേ പോകുന്നു മാധവൻ
ദാണ്ടേ പോകു,ന്നുമാധവൻ
  

A word with a dubious past

What is the past tense of തൂക്കുക?

Did you say തൂത്തു or തൂക്കി?

It depends on the sense of the word. If you mean to say to hang, the past tense form is തൂക്കി. But if you mean to say to wipe or to rub, the past tense for me തൂത്തു.

Why is this? Are there other words like this that has multiple past tense forms?

To explore this let us think about the root that gives these two senses. The sense of to hang comes from the root തൂങ്. തൂങ്ങുക is to hang (intransitive form) and തൂക്കുക is its transitive form. The sense of to rub or wipe comes from the root തൂ.

Are there other words like these?

Another example is കക്കുക.
കക്കുക (to steal) - കട്ടു (stole)
കക്കുക (to retch, throw up) - കക്കി (threw up)

Here, I don't know the difference between these roots.

A kind-of-similar pair is:

പുകുക (to enter) - പുക്കി (entered)
പൂക്കുക (to flower)  - പൂത്തു (flowered)

Here the infinitives are not identical; just similar.

P.S. Came across another pair:

കറക്കുക (to milk) - കറന്നു (milked)
കറക്കുക (to turn) - കറക്കി (turned)

Here the roots are different. The sense of turn comes from കറങ്: കറങ്ങുക (intransitive) -> കറക്കുക (transitive) -> കറക്കി. Consistent with തൂങ്ങുക  -> തൂക്കുക -> തൂക്കി.

The sense of milk, on the other hand, comes from കറവുക(?) -> കറക്കുക -> കറന്നു. Similar to മറവുക(?) ->  മറക്കുക -> മറന്നു.


P.P.S. Here is another pair:

ഇറക്കുക (to clench, to pinch) - ഇറുക്കി
ഇറക്കുക (to shear, to pluck flowers) - ഇറുത്തു

Here 

എറണാകുളം dialect

എറണാകുളം dialect - some examples


- ന്നു > - ണു

e.g.
വരുന്നു > വരണു
പോകുന്നു > പോകണു
ഇരിക്കുന്നു > ഇരിക്കണു


വരുന്നുണ്ടോ > വരണുണ്ടോ


  

Magic Squares

Let's take a detour today and look at magic squares.

സു	മ	തി
മ	രു	ന്നു
തി	ന്നു	ന്നു

This can be read across and down to read the same (though, with a little bit of 'cheating' in the pronunciation of ന്നു.)

Let us try something (hopefully) easier - Just making valid words reading across and down.

A small example is

പ	ത
ക	ല

A variant is

പ	ത
ക	റ

Can you think of other 2x2 magic squares? 

Moving words

The root സര in Sanskrit means to move, to flow, etc.  Some of the commonly used words in Malayalam are derived from this root, however, their meanings are very different today and one has to look deeper to get the connection with the flow.

പാദസരം  is anklet. പാദത്തിൽ സരിക്കുന്നത് = that which moves around the feet. This derivation is quite straight forward.

അവസരം is opportunity. It comes from അവ (downwards) + സരം (moving). Literally it means "befalling". Of course, opportunity befalls many times.

പരിസരം means environment. പരി (around) + സരം. That which moves around - which is the environment.

അനുസരണം means discipline. If we look closely at the components we see that it comes from അനു (following) + സരണം  (the act of moving). So literally, it means following behind, trailing behind etc. Of course, when you are acting in discipline you are following some set of norms or rules or guidelines.

പ്രസരണം means to spread out. It comes from പ്ര- (outwards) + സരണം (movement).

There are some other words, like ഉത്സരം (upward moving) which are used very closely in meaning with original Sanskrit.

Do you know other words that contain the സരം root?

Mortar and Pestle

Mortar and Pestle used to be a household staple in olden times. They are called ഉരൽ and ഉലക്ക, respectively.

ഉരൽ comes from ഉര- , to grind. But what about ഉലക്ക?

Interestingly, it also comes from the same root. One etymology is that ഉരം + കൽ = ഉരംക്കൽ -> ഉലക്ക.

(r --> l sound change has been attested in many languages and many words. )

Two ഴs

 ഴ being a native letter of our alphabet, is present in a number of Malayalam words.

But do you know a word that has two ഴs appearing together?

It is ഏഴേഴു = ഏഴ് + ഏഴ് = seven seven, literally = seven times seven = 49.

In theory, we can now construct words with any number of consecutive ഴs in this manner. E.g.

ഏഴേഴേഴു = 7 cubed = 213.

Do you know any other words with two or more ഴs in sequence?