എന്ത്
entŭ/en̪t̪ɨ/
What in Malayalam is എന്ത് (entŭ). If unsure, use എന്ത്. Wiktionary also lists എന്തൊരു (entoru).
Meaning: what? (interrogative pronoun) (pron)
Ways to say it
| Malayalam | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| എന്ത് | entŭ | /en̪t̪ɨ/ |
| എന്തൊരു | entoru |
എന്ത് is the question word what. To ask what is, it joins with ആണ്, is, giving എന്താണ്.
Which one should you use?
എന്തൊരു (entoru) is not used for questions. It is an exclamation meaning what a, as in what a beautiful day.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In the dialect of Kozhikode, Ento? is a way to ask what.
How does it change in a sentence?
In everyday speech എന്താണ് is often shortened to എന്താ.
How do you pronounce it?
എന്ത് is pronounced /en̪t̪ɨ/.
Did you know?
- The word എന്ത് descends from the Proto-Dravidian root *yĀ-, making it a linguistic relative to 'what' in other Dravidian languages like Tamil and Kannada.
- Regional identity is strong in Malayalam, so a traveler in Kozhikode might hear Ento? used instead of the standard എന്ത്.
- In Malayalam, the word for 'what' can shift from a question to an expression of awe just by adding a suffix, turning എന്ത് into എന്തൊരു to mean 'what a'.
Examples in context
- ഇപ്പോള് എനിക്ക് എന്ത് വേണമെന്ന് എനിക്കറിയില്ല.I don't know what I want right now.എന്ത് here introduces what I want.Tatoeba #2187079 by dochash, translation #2186494 by Hybrid
- എന്ത്?What?എന്ത്? on its own asks what.Tatoeba #7896029 by lonewolfie, translation #36088 by brauliobezerra
- നിങ്ങളുടെ പേര് എന്താണ്?What is your name?എന്താണ് asks what is, here your name.
Example conversation
Sreedevi and Rahul are talking about a mystery box.
- ശ്രീദേവി Srideviഇതിൽ എന്ത് ഉണ്ട്?ithil enthu undu?What is in this?
- രാഹുൽ Rahulഎനിക്കറിയില്ല.enikkariyilla.I don't know.
- ശ്രീദേവി Srideviനിനക്ക് എന്ത് വേണം?ninakku enthu venam?What do you want?
- രാഹുൽ Rahulഎനിക്ക് കുറച്ച് മിഠായി വേണം.enikku kurachu mithaayi venam.I want some candy.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “what” translations and entries എന്ത്, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries എന്ത്, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR, Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
