ಒಂದು
ondu/on̪d̪u/
The English word 'one' is translated to Kannada as ಒಂದು (ondu).
The word is used as the cardinal number 1.
Meaning: cardinal number 1 (num)
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is ondu. The IPA transcription is /on̪d̪u/.
Did you know?
- While ಒಂದು is the cardinal number, the word for 'first' in Kannada is ಮೊದಲ, which shares no phonetic resemblance to the number 'one'.
- While ಒಂದು functions as the number 1, if you are referring to 'one person' or 'one animal', you would often use a different grammatical form entirely to denote a single living being.
- The Kannada word ಒಂದು shares a common ancestor with the Tamil word ஒன்று, meaning they are linguistic cousins from the same ancient Dravidian family.
Examples in context
- ಇವತ್ತು ನನ್ನ ಹಳೇ ಪುಸ್ತಕ ಒಂದು ಸಿಕ್ತು.I found one of my old books today.This example is useful for showing how to use ಒಂದು when referring to a single item found, such as a book.Tatoeba #13236918 by Lumi, translation #13236919 by Lumi
- ನನ್ನ ಹತ್ತಿರ ಒಂದು ಪೆನ್ ಇದೆ.nanna hattira ondu pen ide.I have one pen.
Example conversation
Kiran and Kavya are discussing a single piece of fruit.
- ಕಿರಣ್ Kiranಕಾವ್ಯ, ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಒಂದು ಸೇಬಿದೆ.Kavya, illi ondu sebide.Kavya, there is one apple here.
- ಕಾವ್ಯ Kavyaಅದು ತುಂಬಾ ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿದೆ.adu tumba chennagide.It is very good.
- ಕಿರಣ್ Kiranನೀನು ಇದನ್ನು ತಿನ್ನಬಹುದು.neenu idannu tinnabahudu.You can eat this.
- ಕಾವ್ಯ Kavyaಧನ್ಯವಾದಗಳು, ಕಿರಣ್.dhanyavadagalu, Kiran.Thank you, Kiran.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “one” translations and entries ಒಂದು, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ಒಂದು, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
