பெண்
peṇ/pɛɳ/
The English word "girl" can be translated into Tamil as சிறுமி or பெண் (peṇ).
Meaning: young female person (noun)
Ways to say it
| Tamil | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| பெண் | peṇ | /pɛɳ/ |
| சிறுமி | ciṟumi | /tʃɪrʊmiː/ |
The term is used to describe a young female person.
Which one should you use?
சிறுமி (ciṟumi) is a specific term used to refer to a young girl or a female child. In contrast, பெண் (peṇ) is a broader, more general term that can mean "female" or "woman" in general.
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is peṇ and the IPA is /pɛɳ/.
Did you know?
- In some traditional Tamil kinship terms, words for 'girl' or 'daughter' change based on whether the child is the elder or younger sibling of the speaker.
- The word பெண் can act as a gender marker for objects, such as பெண் நாய் for a 'female dog'.
- The term பெண் is a cognate with words in other Dravidian languages, such as the Kannada word ಹೆಣ್ಣು and the Malayalam word പെൺ.
Examples in context
- சீதா மிகவும் அருமையான சிறுமி.Sita is a very sweet girl.
- அந்தப் பெண் நன்றாகப் பாடுகிறாள்.Antha pen nandraaga paadugiraal.That girl sings very well.
- இந்தக் கிராமத்தில் ஒரு பெண் இருக்கிறாள்.Intha kiraamathil oru pen irukkiraal.There is a girl in this village.
Example conversation
Divya and Karthik are looking at a photograph.
- திவ்யா Divyaஇந்தப் பெண் யார்?Intha pen yaar?Who is this girl?
- கார்த்திக் Karthikஅவள் என் தங்கை.Aval en thangai.She is my younger sister.
- திவ்யா Divyaஅவள் மிகவும் அழகாக இருக்கிறாள்.Aval migavum azhagaaga irukkiraal.She is very beautiful.
- கார்த்திக் Karthikநன்றி, திவ்யா.Nandri, Divya.Thank you, Divya.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “girl” translations and entries பெண், சிறுமி, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries சிறுமி, பெண், CC BY-SA 4.0.
