Learning Tamil

A Living Textbook for Learning Tamil

36. Adding Emphasis

There are a few ways to add emphasis:

1. தான. This translates as ‘indeed A, just A, only A, A (said with emphasis)’

  • E.g. நான் நன்றாகப் படித்தால் தான் பல்கலைக்கழகத்தில் இடம் பிடிக்க முடியும் – Only if I study well can I get a place at University.

2. A-ஏ. This translates as ‘indeed A, in fact A, A itself, etc.’ –ஏ is used when the speaker feels the information which is to be emphasized is somewhat unexpected by the hearer or is something that requires reminding.