ಈರುಳ್ಳಿ
īruḷḷi/iːɾuɭɭi/
The English word "onion" is ಈರುಳ್ಳಿ (īruḷḷi) in Kannada.
The word refers to the bulb of the onion plant.
Meaning: bulb (noun)
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation is /iːɾuɭɭi/. The romanization is īruḷḷi.
Did you know?
- In Karnataka, the onion is a central ingredient in 'uupma' and 'sambar', but some temple-style preparations strictly avoid ಈರುಳ್ಳಿ for religious reasons.
- In traditional Kannada medicine, ಈರುಳ್ಳಿ is often used in home remedies to treat cold and cough symptoms by being mixed with honey.
- The phonetic structure of ಈರುಳ್ಳಿ contains a retroflex 'ḷ' sound, which requires curling the tongue back against the roof of the mouth, a sound that does not exist in English.
Examples in context
- ನಾನು ಇವತ್ತು ಸಾಂಬಾರ್ಗೆ ಈರುಳ್ಳಿ ಹಾಕ್ಲಿಲ್ಲ.I did not put onion in the sambar today.This sentence shows how to use ಈರುಳ್ಳಿ when talking about adding it to a dish like sambar.
- ಈರುಳ್ಳಿ ತುಂಬಾ ಬೆಲೆಕಾರಿಯಾಗಿದೆ.Īruḷḷi tumbā belekāriyāgide.Onions are very expensive.
- ನನಗೆ ಈರುಳ್ಳಿ ಕತ್ತರಿಸುವುದು ಇಷ್ಟವಿಲ್ಲ.Nanage īruḷḷi kattarisuvudu iṣṭavilla.I don't like cutting onions.
Example conversation
Anvita and Abhishek are shopping at a vegetable market.
- ಅನ್ವಿತಾ Anvithaಅಭಿಷೇಕ್, ಒಂದು ಕೆಜಿ ಈರುಳ್ಳಿ ತಗೋ.Abhiṣēk, ondu keji īruḷḷi tagō.Abhishek, get one kg of onions.
- ಅಭಿಷೇಕ್ Abhishekಸರಿ ಅನ್ವಿತಾ, ಇನ್ನು ಏನೇ ಬೇಕು?Sari Anvitā, innu ēnē bēku?Okay Anvita, what else do you need?
- ಅನ್ವಿತಾ Anvithaಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಟೊಮೆಟೊ ಕೂಡ ತಗೋ.Svalpa ṭomeṭo kūḍa tagō.Also get some tomatoes.
- ಅಭಿಷೇಕ್ Abhishekಖಂಡಿತ, ಈಗಲೇ ತರುತ್ತೇನೆ.Khaṇḍita, īgalē taruttēne.Sure, I will bring them right now.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “onion” translations and entries ಈರುಳ್ಳಿ, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
