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TNPSC General Tamil grammar (இலக்கணம்) practice questions
On this page
In the Group 4 exam, Part A is the Tamil Eligibility-cum-Scoring Test: 100 of the 200 questions and 150 of the 300 marks, set in Tamil only at SSLC standard. You must score at least 40 per cent (60 of 150) in Part A, or Parts B and C are not evaluated, and the Part A marks still count towards your rank. Grammar (இலக்கணம்) is the most rule-bound part of Part A, which makes it the easiest to turn into marks with careful study. The five questions below test the fundamentals, in Tamil with an English gloss. The subject guide is TNPSC General Tamil, and the rules for the paper are in the Tamil eligibility test guide.
What this topic covers
- எழுத்து (letters): vowels, consonants, the special letter ஃ, combined letters and their time-measure (மாத்திரை).
- சொல் (words): the four kinds of words, tense in verbs, and finite and non-finite forms.
- புணர்ச்சி (joining): how two words join and how the letters change.
- யாப்பு (prosody): the verse forms such as வெண்பா and ஆசிரியப்பா.
TNPSC's unit-wise question counts are only indicative, and the Tamil-script syllabus in the notification lists the exact units, so read it alongside this page.
| Category | Tamil | Count or measure |
|---|---|---|
| Vowels | உயிரெழுத்து | 12 |
| Consonants | மெய்யெழுத்து | 18 (வல்லினம் 6, மெல்லினம் 6, இடையினம் 6) |
| Special letter | ஆய்தம் (ஃ) | 1 |
| Consonant-vowel combinations | உயிர்மெய் | 216 (12 × 18) |
| Total letters | மொத்த எழுத்துகள் | 247 |
| Short vowel | குறில் | 1 மாத்திரை |
| Long vowel | நெடில் | 2 மாத்திரை |
| Consonant and ஃ | மெய், ஆய்தம் | ½ மாத்திரை |
Sample questions
Question 1
உயிர்மெய் எழுத்துகள் மொத்தம் எத்தனை? (How many uyirmei letters are there in all?)
- A. 12
- B. 18
- C. 247
- D. 216
Question 2
பின்வருவனவற்றுள் வல்லின மெய் எழுத்து எது? (Which of the following is a vallinam consonant?)
- A. ச்
- B. ங்
- C. ள்
- D. ன்
Question 3
மரம் + கள் = ? (What is the joined form of மரம் + கள்?)
- A. மரம்கள்
- B. மரங்கள்
- C. மரகள்
- D. மரக்கள்
Question 4
காலத்தை வெளிப்படையாகக் காட்டும் வினைமுற்று எது? (Which finite verb shows tense openly?)
- A. குறிப்பு வினைமுற்று
- B. பெயரெச்சம்
- C. தெரிநிலை வினைமுற்று
- D. வினையெச்சம்
Question 5
திருக்குறள் அமைந்துள்ள பா வகை எது? (In which verse form is the Thirukkural composed?)
- A. குறள் வெண்பா
- B. ஆசிரியப்பா
- C. கலிப்பா
- D. வஞ்சிப்பா
Answers and explanations
- D. 216 combinations are formed by 12 vowels and 18 consonants (12 × 18). With 12 vowels, 18 consonants and ஃ, the total is 247 letters, which is option C and a common distractor.
- A. ச் is a vallinam (hard) consonant. The six vallinam letters are க், ச், ட், த், ப், ற். ங் and ன் are mellinam (soft) and ள் is idaiyinam (medium).
- B. In joining, the final ம் of மரம் changes to ங் before க, giving மரங்கள். The forms மரம்கள், மரகள் and மரக்கள் are spelling errors.
- C. தெரிநிலை வினைமுற்று shows the tense clearly, as in உண்டான் (he ate, past tense). குறிப்பு வினைமுற்று does not show tense openly. பெயரெச்சம் and வினையெச்சம் are incomplete (non-finite) verbs.
- A. The Thirukkural is composed in the குறள் வெண்பா form, a two-line verse. The four main verse types are வெண்பா, ஆசிரியப்பா, கலிப்பா and வஞ்சிப்பா.
How to prepare General Tamil grammar
Learn grammar from tables, and learn tables by writing them. Start with the letters table above and add the classification of every Tamil letter: குறில் and நெடில் vowels, then the six, six and six consonants. Rewrite it daily until you can fill it in blind.
Then work through words and joining. For each rule, learn one clear example, because questions often give a pair of words and ask for the joined form or the reverse. Practise dividing joined words into their parts (பிரித்து எழுதுக) and joining parts (சேர்த்து எழுதுக), which are standard question forms.
Study the verse forms through the works that use them: குறள் வெண்பா for the Thirukkural, ஆசிரியப்பா for much of Sangam poetry, and so on. This links grammar to literature, which you can practise in TNPSC General Tamil literature practice.
Use the school Tamil textbooks as the core, as the notification itself ties the literature questions to books up to SSLC standard. Do not try to master advanced prosody, which is beyond this paper.
Take the full topic test on PrepMatic
TNPSC aspirants can choose Tamil as their exam language on PrepMatic, and the topic tests and mocks then appear in Tamil. A topic test has about 15 questions in 30 minutes, which makes it a convenient check on your grammar before you sit a full-length mock that follows the 200-question Group 4 pattern. The free Basic plan includes 5 topic tests.
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- General TamilTNPSC General Tamil (பொதுத்தமிழ்): Group 4 Part A's 100 questions, the official topic list, the 40% gate, and how to study grammar, literature and scholars.
- TNPSC Tamil eligibility testHow the TNPSC Tamil eligibility test works in Group 4, Group 2/2A and Group 1: the 40% gate, whether marks count for rank, syllabus standard and how to prepare.
- Group 4 syllabusThe official TNPSC Group 4 syllabus (code 496): seven Tamil units, six General Studies units and aptitude topics, with question counts and priorities.
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