ಮಾಡು
māḍu/maːɖu/
The Kannada verb for do is ಮಾಡು (māḍu), used for performing tasks and actions.
ಮಾಡು is the general verb for doing or performing a task, such as doing work.
Meaning: perform tasks (verb)
How does it change in a sentence?
The verb changes with person and tense. ಮಾಡುತ್ತಾನೆ (māḍuttāne) means he does and ಮಾಡುತ್ತಾಳೆ (māḍuttāḷe) means she does. ಮಾಡಿದರು (māḍidaru) is a past form used for plural subjects or as a respectful form for one person.
How do you pronounce it?
It is pronounced māḍu, written in IPA as /maːɖu/. The first vowel is long, and the d is retroflex, said with the tongue curled back.
What mistakes should you avoid?
Avoid giving orders to elders or strangers with the bare ಮಾಡು. Use the polite ಮಾಡಿ instead.
Did you know?
- The word ಮಾಡು shares its ancient roots with the Tamil word மாட்டு, which means 'to tie' or 'to fasten'.
- The verb ಮಾಡು is used for actions that English speakers would describe as 'giving' or 'wearing', such as ಮಾಡು used to describe the act of smiling.
- You can turn almost any noun into an action by adding ಮಾಡು to it, effectively creating a 'compound verb'.
Examples in context
- ಮುಗಿಸಬೇಕಾದ ಕೆಲಸವನ್ನು ನೀನು ಏಕೆ ಮಾಡಲಿಲ್ಲ?Why didn't you do the work that had to be finished?Here the negative past form ಮಾಡಲಿಲ್ಲ asks why you didn't do the work.
- ಈ ಕೆಲಸವನ್ನು ಈಗ ಮಾಡು.Ī kelasavannu īga māḍu.Do this work now.
Example conversation
Kavya asks Rahul to help with a task.
- ಕಾವ್ಯ Kavyaರಾಹುಲ್, ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಸಹಾಯ ಮಾಡು.Rāhul, svalpa sahāya māḍu.Rahul, do me a small favor.
- ರಾಹುಲ್ Rahulಖಂಡಿತ, ನಾನು ಏನು ಮಾಡಲಿ?Khaṇḍita, nānu ēnu māḍali?Sure, what should I do?
- ಕಾವ್ಯ Kavyaಈ ಪುಸ್ತಕಗಳನ್ನು ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಮಾಡು.Ī pustakagaḷannu alli māḍu.Put (do the action of placing) these books there.
- ರಾಹುಲ್ Rahulಸರಿ ಕಾವ್ಯ, ಈಗಲೇ ಮಾಡುತ್ತೇನೆ.Sari Kāvya, īgalē māḍuttēne.Okay Kavya, I will do it right now.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry ಮಾಡು, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ಮಾಡು, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
