பத்து லட்சம்
pattu latcham/pɐt̪ːɯ lɐʈtʃɐm/word by word
The Tamil word for million is பத்து லட்சம் (pattu latcham).
பத்து லட்சம் is used to express the cardinal number one million. While English speakers use the scale of millions, Tamil speakers use the scale of lakhs to denote large numbers.
Meaning: cardinal number (num)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase literally translates to 'ten lakhs', where pattu means ten and latcham means one hundred thousand.
Which one should you use?
In Tamil, this is expressed by combining ten units of a லட்சம் (lakh).
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is pattu latcham. The IPA is /pɐt̪ːɯ lɐʈtʃɐm/.
Did you know?
- The word லட்சம் is derived from the Sanskrit word lakṣa, which originally meant a mark or a target.
- Because Tamil uses the lakh system, large numbers are written with commas every two digits after the first thousand, unlike the English system of every three digits.
- While பத்து லட்சம் is the term for a million, the word லட்சம் is so central to the counting system that it is used as a general shorthand for 'a large amount' in colloquial speech.
Examples in context
- எட்டு மில்லியன் ரூபாய் தமிழில் எப்படி சொல்லுவாய்?How do you say eight million rupees in Tamil?
- ஐந்து மில்லியன் உறுதிகள் உள்ளன.There are five million confirmations.
Example conversation
Arun and Priya are talking about a business prize.
- பிரியா Priyaபோட்டியில் பரிசுத் தொகை எவ்வளவு?Pottiyil parisu thogai evvalavu?How much is the prize money in the competition?
- அருண் Arunபரிசுத் தொகை பத்து லட்சம் ரூபாய்.Parisu thogai patthu lacham rupaay.The prize money is ten lakh rupees.
- பிரியா Priyaஅது மிகப்பெரிய தொகை, அருண்!Adhu migapperiya thogai, Arun!That is a huge amount, Arun!
- அருண் Arunஆம், அது மிகப்பெரிய வெற்றி.Aam, adhu migapperiya vetri.Yes, it is a great victory.
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (பத்து, லட்சம்) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries பத்து, லட்சம், CC BY-SA 4.0.
