A1 Verb Tenses 1 min read Leicht

The Present Tense Suffix (-unnu)

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Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds

Add '-unnu' to the root of a verb to describe actions happening right now or habitual routines.

  • Identify the verb root: 'kudi' (drink).
  • Attach the suffix: 'kudi' + 'unnu' = 'kudikkunnu'.
  • The suffix '-unnu' remains the same for all subjects (I, you, he, she, they).
Verb Root + unnu = Present Tense Action

Present Tense Conjugation

Subject Verb Root Suffix Full Form
Njan
padi
unnu
padikkunnu
Nee
padi
unnu
padikkunnu
Avan
padi
unnu
padikkunnu
Aval
padi
unnu
padikkunnu
Nammal
padi
unnu
padikkunnu
Ningal
padi
unnu
padikkunnu
Avar
padi
unnu
padikkunnu

Meanings

The '-unnu' suffix is the standard way to express present tense in Malayalam, covering both ongoing actions and habitual facts.

1

Ongoing Action

Actions occurring at the moment of speaking.

“Avar odunnu.”

“Amma samayikkunnu.”

2

Habitual Action

Actions performed regularly or as a general truth.

“Njan daily yoga cheyyunnu.”

“Achan office-il pokunnu.”

Reference Table

Reference table for The Present Tense Suffix (-unnu)
Form Structure Example
Affirmative
Root + unnu
Varunnu
Negative
Root + unnu + illa
Varunnilla
Question
Root + unnu + o?
Varunnu-o?
Habitual
Root + unnu
Daily varunnu
Continuous
Root + unnu
Ippo varunnu

Formalitätsspektrum

Formell
Njan kazhikkunnu.

Njan kazhikkunnu. (General)

Neutral
Njan kazhikkunnu.

Njan kazhikkunnu. (General)

Informell
Njan kazhikkunnu.

Njan kazhikkunnu. (General)

Umgangssprache
Njan kazhikkunnu.

Njan kazhikkunnu. (General)

The -unnu Universe

Verb Root

Action

  • varunnu coming
  • pokunnu going
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Beispiele nach Niveau

1

Njan padikkunnu.

I am studying.

2

Avar varunnu.

They are coming.

3

Mazha peyyunnu.

It is raining.

4

Nee enthu cheyyunnu?

What are you doing?

1

Njan chaya kudikkunnilla.

I am not drinking tea.

2

Achan office-il pokunnu.

Father is going to the office.

3

Amma samayikkunnu.

Mother is cooking.

4

Kutti kalikkunnu.

The child is playing.

1

Njan daily yoga cheyyunnu.

I do yoga daily.

2

Avar ippo varunnilla.

They are not coming now.

3

Enikku malayalam manassilakkunnu.

I am understanding Malayalam.

4

Bus varunnu.

The bus is coming.

1

Njan ee pusthakam vayikkunnu.

I am reading this book.

2

Avar oru veedu paniyikkunnu.

They are building a house.

3

Njan avane vilikkunnu.

I am calling him.

4

Ellavarum chirikkunnu.

Everyone is laughing.

1

Njan oru puthiya project thudangunnilla.

I am not starting a new project.

2

Avar oru katha parayunnu.

They are telling a story.

3

Njan ee avasara prayojanam edukkunnu.

I am taking advantage of this opportunity.

4

Njan avane sahikkunnilla.

I am not tolerating him.

1

Njan ee vishayam chinthikkunnu.

I am contemplating this matter.

2

Avar ee sthalam vediyunnu.

They are leaving this place.

3

Njan ente lakshyam neridunnu.

I am facing my goal.

4

Njan ee vazhi thiranjedukkunnu.

I am choosing this path.

Leicht verwechselbar

The Present Tense Suffix (-unnu) vs. Past Tense (-i)

Learners mix up present and past.

The Present Tense Suffix (-unnu) vs. Future Tense (-um)

Learners use -um for present.

The Present Tense Suffix (-unnu) vs. Infinitive (-uka)

Using the dictionary form as a verb.

Häufige Fehler

✗

Njan padikkunnu-en

✓

Njan padikkunnu

Do not add personal endings.
✗

Njan padikku

✓

Njan padikkunnu

Missing the suffix.
✗

Njan padikkunnu-illa

✓

Njan padikkunnilla

Incorrect negative formation.
✗

Njan padikkunnu-a

✓

Njan padikkunnu

Adding unnecessary particles.
✗

Avar padikkunnu-gal

✓

Avar padikkunnu

Pluralizing the verb.
✗

Njan padikkunnilla-u

✓

Njan padikkunnilla

Redundant suffixing.
✗

Njan padikkunnu-i

✓

Njan padikkunnu

Mixing past and present.
✗

Njan padikkunnu-aayirunnu

✓

Njan padikkunnu

Mixing present and past continuous.
✗

Njan padikkunnu-um

✓

Njan padikkunnu

Incorrect particle usage.
✗

Njan padikkunnu-aaka

✓

Njan padikkunnu

Incorrect verb form.
✗

Njan padikkunnu-ennu

✓

Njan padikkunnu

Incorrect reporting verb structure.
✗

Njan padikkunnu-aayi

✓

Njan padikkunnu

Incorrect aspectual marker.
✗

Njan padikkunnu-th

✓

Njan padikkunnu

Incorrect suffix.

Satzmuster

Njan ___ unnu.

Nee ___ unnu-o?

Avar ___ unnu.

Njan ___ unnu-illa.

Real World Usage

Texting constant

Njan varunnu.

Ordering food very common

Njan biryani kazhikkunnu.

Work common

Njan report submit cheyyunnu.

Travel common

Bus varunnu.

Social Media common

Njan photo upload cheyyunnu.

Home constant

Amma samayikkunnu.

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💡

Don't conjugate!

The verb stays the same for all subjects.
⚠️

Check the root

Ensure you have the correct base root.
🎯

Use for habits

It works for daily routines too.
💬

Natural flow

Use it to sound like a local.

Smart Tips

Use the present tense for scheduled events.

Njan varum (I will come - future). → Njan varunnu (I am coming - present/scheduled).

Remember: Malayalam is not like English.

Njan padikkunnu, Avar padikkunnu-gal. → Njan padikkunnu, Avar padikkunnu.

Use the present tense for current actions.

Njan cheyyuka. → Njan cheyyunnu.

Use the present tense for vivid narration.

Avar vannu (past). → Avar varunnu (narrative present).

Aussprache

pa-DIK-kun-nu

Stress

The stress is usually on the root, not the suffix.

Question

Varunnu-o? ↑

Rising intonation for questions.

Einprägen

Eselsbrücke

Think of 'unnu' as 'u-now' (you now).

Visuelle Assoziation

Imagine a clock ticking and every tick sounds like 'unnu'.

Rhyme

When the action is happening now, just add -unnu to show how.

Story

Ravi is sitting. He is eating. He is drinking. He is sleeping. Everything he does, he says 'unnu' at the end.

Word Web

varunnupokunnupadikkunnukazhikkunnuurangunnuodunnu

Herausforderung

Describe 5 things you are doing right now using -unnu.

Kulturelle Hinweise

Used in all regions, though pronunciation varies slightly.

Derived from Dravidian participial markers.

Gesprächseinstiege

“

Nee enthu cheyyunnu?

“

Nee chaya kudikkunnu-o?

“

Nee ippo padikkunnu-o?

“

Avar ippo varunnu-o?

Tagebuch-Impulse

Write about your daily routine.
Describe what you are doing right now.
Describe what your family is doing.
Write a short story about a busy day.

Häufige Fehler

Incorrect

Richtig

Incorrect

Richtig

Incorrect

Richtig

Incorrect

Richtig

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Test Yourself

Fill in the blank.

Njan chaya ___.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: kudikkunnu
Present tense uses -unnu.
Choose the correct form. Multiple Choice

Avar ___.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: varunnu
Present tense.
Fix the sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Njan varunnu-en.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Njan varunnu
No personal endings.
Make negative. Sentence Transformation

Njan varunnu.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Njan varunnilla
Add -illa.
Complete the dialogue. Dialogue Completion

A: Nee enthu cheyyunnu? B: Njan ___.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: padikkunnu
Present tense.
Build a sentence. Sentence Building

Njan / varunnu / ippo.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Njan ippo varunnu
Standard word order.
Sort by tense. Grammar Sorting

Sort: varunnu, vannu, varum.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Present: varunnu
Correct tense identification.
Match verb to meaning. Match Pairs

Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Coming, Going, Studying
Vocabulary check.

Score: /8

Ubungsaufgaben

8 exercises
Fill in the blank.

Njan chaya ___.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: kudikkunnu
Present tense uses -unnu.
Choose the correct form. Multiple Choice

Avar ___.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: varunnu
Present tense.
Fix the sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Njan varunnu-en.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Njan varunnu
No personal endings.
Make negative. Sentence Transformation

Njan varunnu.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Njan varunnilla
Add -illa.
Complete the dialogue. Dialogue Completion

A: Nee enthu cheyyunnu? B: Njan ___.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: padikkunnu
Present tense.
Build a sentence. Sentence Building

Njan / varunnu / ippo.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Njan ippo varunnu
Standard word order.
Sort by tense. Grammar Sorting

Sort: varunnu, vannu, varum.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Present: varunnu
Correct tense identification.
Match verb to meaning. Match Pairs

Match: varunnu, pokunnu, padikkunnu.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Coming, Going, Studying
Vocabulary check.

Score: /8

FAQ (8)

No, the verb remains the same.

Add 'illa' to the end.

No, use the future tense for that.

Yes, it is standard.

It is the standard present suffix.

No, it is the same.

The rule still applies.

Yes, it is universal.

Scaffolded Practice

1

1

2

2

3

3

4

4

Mastery Progress

Needs Practice

Improving

Strong

Mastered

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In Other Languages

Spanish moderate

Present Indicative

Malayalam has no subject-verb agreement.

French moderate

Présent

No conjugation in Malayalam.

German moderate

Präsens

Malayalam is agglutinative.

Japanese moderate

Present/Future

Malayalam uses a specific suffix.

Arabic low

Mudari

Malayalam is simpler.

Chinese low

Aspect markers

Malayalam uses suffixes.

Learning Path

Prerequisites

Next
The Verb 'To Be' (Aanu)

Related Grammar Rules

A2

Past Tense Suffixes (-i, -u, -thu)
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